Happy wedding anniversary ~ Part 3 ~ Lime Granita with Candied Mint Leaves and Sweet Sour Cream

We finished our Italian anniversary feast with a light little dessert. It was so small and refreshing that it could actually be served in between the courses of a rich dinner, as well.

I found the original recipe from Epicurious.com, but I reduced the sugar quite a bit. We like our citrus desserts to be a little tart, so if you like things a little sweeter, you may want to add more sugar. Taste before you put it in the freezer. I used light sour cream instead of the full fat version, also.

Lime Granita with Candied Mint Leaves and Sweet Sour Cream

Based on a recipe from Epicurious.com

Granita:

1 1/2 cups water

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup fresh lime juice

Candied Mint Leaves:

2 tablespoons sugar

6 fresh mint leaves, washed, patted dry

1 large egg white, beaten until foamy

Sweet Sour Cream:

1/2 cup light sour cream

1 1/2 tablespoons powdered sugar

For granita:
 Bring water and sugar to boil in medium saucepan, stirring until sugar dissolves. Reduce heat to medium and simmer 5 minutes. Cool syrup. Stir in lime juice. Transfer lime syrup to 9 by 9-inch glass baking dish. Cover and place in freezer. Stir every 45 minutes until frozen, about 3 hours. DO AHEAD Granita can be made 2 days ahead. Cover and keep frozen.

For candied mint leaves:
 Place sugar on small shallow plate. Brush both sides of 1 mint leaf lightly with egg white; dredge in sugar. Transfer mint leaf to rack. Repeat with remaining mint leaves. Let mint stand at room temperature until dry, about 3 hours. DO AHEAD Can be made 1 day ahead. Store in airtight container at room temperature.

For light sour cream:
 Mix light sour cream and sugar. DO AHEAD Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and chill.

For a fun presentation from Epicurious, serve the granita in hollowed-out lime halves. To prepare the limes, snip the membranes with scissors, and then scrape clean with a grapefruit spoon.

Using fork, scrape granita to loosen. Spoon granita into bowls or lime halves; drizzle with light sour cream, garnish with candied mint leaves, and serve immediately.