Chocolate granita recipe

Chocolate granita is a lighter alternative to ice cream (opens in new tab) that still taste luxurious. This Sicilian dessert is typically made from sugar, water, and various flavourings – lemon, orange and coffee (opens in new tab) are popular choices. We’ve made our chocolate granita using cocoa powder and vanilla, then served with some fresh blueberries and a dash of cream. If you want to make this dessert suitable for vegans (opens in new tab), simply omit the cream or use a vegan alternative. This chocolate granita is both refreshing and rich and is perfect served at the end of a meal with a hot espresso. It’s a simple but delicious choice for dinner parties (opens in new tab), a bit like a grown up version of an ice lolly. The flavours will transport you to sunny Italian shores!

Ingredients

• 100g caster sugar
• 40g cocoa powder
• 1tsp vanilla extract
• 150g punnet of blueberries
• 200ml single cream, optional

Method

1. Heat 300ml water with the sugar and cocoa in a pan, mix until the sugar has dissolved, remove from the heat and add 300ml of cold water and the vanilla extract. Pour the liquid into a loaf tin, leaving a couple of centimetres clear at the top, put in the freezer. After 2 hours remove the tin from the freezer and use a fork to distress, cover with clingfilm and place back into the freezer.
2. Remove the granita from the freezer 20 mins prior to serving. Once again use a fork to aggravate the mixture and create lots of crystallised icy shards. Serve scoops of the granite into coupes and top with the blueberries and a drizzle of cream, if you like.