A Tasty Flop

On our way to St. Augustine, FL, last week, we stopped in Ridgeland, South Carolina, for a bit of lunch. Since it was the start of our adventure, we didn’t want the usual fast food to start out the trip. I Googled what was close to us and found PJ’s Coffee of New Orlean’s. They offered some delicious sandwiches as well as coffee.

While at PJ’s, I found my new coffee love – Granita. This is an amazing treat of frozen coffee, blended to a smooth, icy texture. Of course, they have a machine for their granitas to keep them at the perfect temperature and consistency. But I was so in love, I wanted to figure out if I could make it at home.

The short answer is yes, you can make them at home. The longer answer is you can make it at home but it is no where near the same experience. I found recipes to try online and most work the same way. Mix some espresso or good strong hot coffee with some sugar and vanilla and mix until the sugar is dissolved. Pour the coffee into a metal cake pan. Place the pan into the freezer. Freeze for 30 minutes or so, until it just begins to crystallize. Remove and stir, repeat 3 or more times or until you have a delightful crystalline dessert.

The reality was that despite spending an entire afternoon freezing and stirring, freezing and stirring, mine never really set like it should. I am not sure what the problem was. Maybe I stirred too often or with too much zeal. Maybe I wanted it just too dang much.

After 7 hours of willing it to freeze to the desired consistency, I pulled the plug and served it soupy. It was still tasty, but sadly much more like a really cold iced coffee than a true granita. I am not sure I can let this go, and may continue to try other methods. If you know how to do this successfully, please share your tips with me!

You can actually buy a machine to make slushy drinks at home, but they are a bit expensive. If I ever win the lottery, this may be one of my first purchases.

I apologize for an anticlimactic post, but I gotta keep it real. Not everything that happens in my kitchen is a success; kind of a metaphor for my life. But I will keep looking for a way to make this work. It’s a good excuse to make an extra pot of coffee.

If you would like to try it yourself, you can find the recipe I tried here:

https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/coffee-granita-107827?intcid=inline_amp