Granita

{{Short description|Italian dessert}}

{{Other uses}}

{{Refimprove|date=March 2013}}

{{Use American English|date=November 2024}}

{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2024}}

{{Infobox food

| name = Granita

| image = Granita originelle au citron de Sicile.jpg

| image_size =

| caption = Granita flavored with Sicilian lemon

| alternate_name = {{lang|it|Granita siciliana}}

| country = Italy

| region = Sicily

| creator =

| course = Dessert

| type =

| served =

| main_ingredient = Sugar, water, flavoring

| variations =

}}

Granita ({{IPA|it|ɡraˈniːta|lang}}){{Cite web|url=https://www.treccani.it/vocabolario/granita/|title=Granita - Significato ed etimologia - Vocabolario - Treccani}} or {{lang|it|granita siciliana}} ({{IPA|it|ɡraˈniːta sitʃiˈljaːna|lang}}) is a semi-frozen dessert made with sugar, water, and various flavorings. Originally from Sicily, it is available throughout Italy in varying forms.{{Cite web|last=Morabito|first=Greg|date=2018-04-13|title='Chef's Table: Pastry' Recap: Corrado Assenza Makes Sicily's Favorite Gelati and Granita|url=https://www.eater.com/2018/4/13/17223016/chefs-table-pastry-corrado-assenza-recap-episode-2|access-date=2021-06-15|website=Eater|language=en}} It is related to sorbet and Italian ice; however, throughout Sicily its consistency varies.{{Cite web|title=Watermelon Granita Recipe|url=https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1014903-watermelon-granita|access-date=2021-06-15|website=NYT Cooking|language=en-US}} Food writer Jeffrey Steingarten says that "the desired texture seems to vary from city to city" on the island; on the west coast and in Palermo, it is at its chunkiest, and in the east, it is nearly as smooth as sorbet.{{cite book|author=Steingarten, Jeffrey|title=The Man Who Ate Everything|chapter=The Mother of All Ice Cream|pages=361–380|year=1997|publisher=Vintage Books|isbn=0-375-70202-4}} The chapter is an essay first published in June 1996. This is largely the result of different freezing techniques: the smoother types are produced in a gelato machine, while the coarser varieties are frozen with only occasional agitation, then scraped or shaved to produce separated crystals. Although its texture varies from coarse to smooth, it is always different from that of ice cream, which is creamier, and from that of sorbet, which is more compact; this makes granita distinct and unique.