Easy Orange Granita Recipe (52 New Foods, Around the World Week 3) January 18 2013, 5 Comments

This easy orange granita recipe was a deliciously fun project for my kids and me! A simple twist on a favorite fruit: Satsuma Mandarin Oranges.

Like sparklers against a dark night sky, mandarin oranges at the local market add bright and cheerful pops of color to dreary winter days and herald the coming of Chinese New Year! Nature’s perfect “fast food”, mandarin oranges are regularly featured as lunch box treats, after school snacks and even dessert at this time of year for my family.

As we venture forward into another year of trying new foods, we wanted to prepare this favorite food in a new way. With a little inspiration from our blended family, a combination of Chinese and Italian roots, we decided to make a classic Italian dish with our simple Asian ingredient: Mandarin Orange Granita.

Easy Orange Granita Recipe

Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 90 to 120 minutes
Yield: Makes 4 servings
Crunch a Color points: 5 orange

Ingredients:

8 Satsuma mandarin oranges

Note: you’ll also need an ice cube tray and a simple citrus press.

If you’re like us, you don’t have time to scrape, then freeze, scrape, then freeze, to create a granita. Instead, we made our orange granita the easy way, with our food processor. We tried the recipe two ways: one with Clementine and the other with Satsuma mandarin oranges. The Satsuma’s were far superior, both in color and taste, so we’d highly recommend hunting them down at your market for this granita recipe. It will be well worth your effort! 

Directions:

1. Slice the Satsuma mandarin oranges in half (cutting through the middle of the orange as opposed to top to bottom). Using a simple citrus press, squeeze the juice out of the oranges.

2. Pour the juice into an ice cube tray and place in the freezer. It can take up to two hours for the juice to freeze completely.

3. Once frozen, remove the juice cubes from the tray and load into a food processor.

4. Pulse until the frozen juice looks like slush.

5. Enjoy!

* What is your favorite granita recipe? Post your pictures and ideas on our Facebook page.

Craving more easy recipes to try? Catch up on last week’s recipe: Sesame Green Bean Salad.

About the author: Jennifer Tyler Lee is a mom of two children and the creator of Crunch a Color® -- the award-winning nutrition games that make healthy eating fun. Like most parents, she struggled to get her kids to eat healthy, balanced meals, so she decided to make it into a healthy eating game and she’s giving back to support non-profit kids’ nutrition programs. Winner of the Dr. Toy and Parent Tested, Parent Approved awards, Crunch a Color® has been featured by Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution, Laurie David’s Family Dinner, Kiwi Magazine, Dr. Greene, and Yum Food & Fun For Kids, among many others, as a simple, fun and playful way to get kids to eat healthy and try new foods. Jennifer’s passion is making mealtime fun, easy and healthy for busy families. Her easy recipes, quick tips, and new food adventures are regularly featured at Pottery Barn Kids, Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution, The Huffington Post, and on her weekly recipe blog at crunchacolor.com.