Meyer lemon granita

I still have a lot of Meyer lemons around, so I decided to make a granita. A granita is similar to a sorbet but has a much coarser texture. Instead of freezing it in an ice cream maker, the mixture is frozen and scraped periodically with a fork to create flakes.

I created this recipe with Meyer lemons in mind - when you eat it, it starts off sweet in your mouth and ends with a kick of tartness. Meyer lemons are sweeter than regular lemons, so if you use regular lemons you will need to adjust the sugar accordingly. The corn syrup keeps the granita from turning rock hard in the freezer.

Meyer lemon granita
makes about 4 cups

1 and 1/2 cups water
1 and 1/2 cups sugar
1/4 cup light corn syrup
1/4 cup honey
2 cups Meyer lemon juice (if you use regular lemons, increase the amount of sugar to taste)
2 tablespoons lemon zest
strips of lemon zest for garnish (optional)

In a saucepan, combine water, sugar, corn syrup and honey. Cook over medium high heat until sugar dissolves. Cool the sugar mixture to room temperature, and add the lemon juice and zest. Pour into a shallow pan and place in freezer. Every hour for three hours, scrape the granita with a fork to create flakes. Before serving, scrape the granita one more time with the fork. Garnish with strips of lemon zest.