Tropical Granita

Although I adore banana bread, I get tired of it being virtually the sole option for using up overripe bananas. I have an astoundingly low boredom quotient - I want variety, particularly in my food!

In a moment of great serendipity, not only did I happen to have bananas on the verge of becoming mush, but I also had a pineapple that had been staring at me for quite some time and I had a tidbit of mango sorbet taking up space in the freezer.

Well, let's just throw everything into the blender, shall we, rather than letting any of it go to waste!

And that's precisely what I did. But instead of drinking it as a smoothie - which is a perfectly valid option - I froze it and turned it into a granita, the perfect sweet and cool dessert for a hot July day.

Ideally, I'd have been available every 30 minutes to stir and scrape the granita so that it didn't form ice chunks. But then I wouldn't have been enjoying lunch with friends; and I wouldn't have been playing Mah Jong with the "bubbes" (inspiring women in their 80s and 90s) who have adopted me and invited me into their regular weekly game, teaching me about strategy and about life over the course of the afternoon.

Personally, I rather liked this with a bit of iciness to it; but the choice is yours as to how much work you want to put into it. It's July, it's hot, it's time for vacation ... there's a reason they call these the lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer!


Tropical Granita

2 cups fresh pineapple chunks
3 medium bananas, very ripe, peeled
1 cup mango sorbet, softened
1/2 cup pineapple juice

Place everything into a blender and whir until smooth. Pour into an 8" square metal baking pan and freeze for 6 hours or so; scrape every 30 minutes if you want to, but don't feel obligated.

Makes 3 generous cups.