We’ve never really gotten the hang of our refrigerator. In principle, we understand that the lowest shelf is the coldest (good for storing meat) and the highest shelf isn’t (good for storing lettuce and spinach) …and then the back of all of the shelves are so cold that we have a block of Parmesan frozen into it. But other than that, we don’t understand it technically. Which means we sometimes get a block of Parmesan frozen into the back of our refrigerator. And very often fruits and vegetables get a bit frozen too.

Just like a beautiful Jamaican papaya we bought recently. Frozen to the core. So sad. So normally with vegetables it’s not a big deal as we can use them in a soup. And with other fruit, we throw them into one of our smoothies. But we really wanted to be able to taste the papaya, so we decided to turn it into a granita – perfect for summer right now! Now – full disclosure – we don’t usually go for granita or sorbets. We much prefer ice cream (as you know) and choosing granita/sorbet always seemed to us like you’re denying yourself what you really want. (Unless of course you hate/can’t consume dairy.) But as a Papaya Saver, it totally works.

We paired it with rose syrup as we’re Indian and therefore have a bottle handy, but you can very easily substitute it with honey or a simple sugar syrup. And feel free to add more sugar, we added just a little as we were feeling particularly virtuous and self-denying.

This recipe makes 1 serving so perfect if you don’t want to end up with huge amounts – and you’ve also just eaten a whole papaya. Then you can go eat the ice cream you actually wanted in the first place.

Makes 1 serving

1 medium very ripe Jamaican papaya
2 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp rose syrup

1. Peel the papaya as best you can. Cut lengthways and remove the seeds from each half.
2. Dice the papaya into 1 inch chunks and place in a freeze-proof bowl.
3. Then, using a fork or a potato masher, mash the papaya into a smooth paste.
4. Add the lemon juice and rose syrup. (You can also add some honey or sugar syrup if you like your frozen treats quite sweet!)
5. Mix thoroughly and freeze for a couple hours. (We forgot about it until the next day!)
6. When you’re ready to serve, leave out for about 5-10 minutes so that it softens slightly. Then using a metal spoon or fork, cut into the frozen block and mash roughly so that the mixture resembles granita.
7. Enjoy immediately!

So what do you think? Feel free to share your questions and comments below! We’d love to hear what you have to say.