Coffee Granita

There is nothing like a glistening, icy granita on a hot summer day, and while I do enjoy the fruit-based varieties, for me the ultimate expression of this ancient Italian treat is done with coffee. It's refreshing, restorative, and unlike those other versions, stimulating. And who couldn't use an extra kick in the pants on one of these very long summer days.

You can make this granita with virtually any brewed coffee base, but my first choice would be a cold brew. If you haven't seen our video for that incredibly simple technique, please check it out. The pure coffee flavor extracted during that very passive procedure is impressive, and if you can remember to make some the day before, your granita will be world-class. Otherwise, just a pot of good, old-fashioned dip brew is more than fine.

Whenever I post something like this, people always wonder if they can reduce the amount of sugar. Well, of course you can, but the sugar helps prevent the mixture from freezing solid, so if you do use less, you'll have an icier final product. Feel free to experiment, but my advice is to make this as shown, and then burn the extra calories off doing fun summertime activities during one of the very long days I mentioned above. Either way, I really do hope you give this amazing frozen treat a try soon.