It is middle of summer season in Australia. Balmy is how I like to describe the days spent basking under the Sydney sun. There were moments though when the heat would be too much to take, even for me who grew up in a tropical country. Scorching at times that makes you crave for something refreshing to quench your thirst. Water is of course my first choice but for a little bit of indulgence, granita comes to mind. We have a favourite flavour at home – mango and mint granita. Very easy to make and very refreshing indeed. This time though, I thought of spiking it up a bit with something more “adult-friendlly” – vodka! I couldn’t resist adding a bit of pineapple-flavoured vodka to make it more interesting.
You can use any citrus-flavoured vodka but I really like the mango-pineapple combination. I added a cup but it is up to you whether you want more or less alcohol in it. Of course, for a child-friendly version, just omit the vodka and it will still be absolutely a treat.
Ingredients
- 2 mangoes (Kensington variety)
- 3/4 cup water
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- about 2 tablespoons of fresh mint leaves
- 1 cup vodka (any citrus flavour)
- Peel mangoes and remove stones. Puree mango flesh in a food processor or blender.
- In a medium saucepan over low heat, place water, sugar and mint leaves and stir until sugar has dissolved completely. Remove from heat and let stand for about 10 minutes to infuse mint flavour.
- Strain mint mixture into mango puree then add vodka. Stir and mix well.
- Pour into a shallow tin and freeze for about an hour.
- Remove from freezer and stir with a fork. Refreeze for a further hour and again, scrape the frozen parts and mix with any mixture that is still slushy. Repeat until mixture is completely frozen and you can scrape the granita into icy crystals.
- Keep frozen until ready to serve.
