Try this watermelon granita recipe for yourself courtesy of Brick Lane.
The Darlinghurst foodscape is a culturally profuse and vibrant one at that. You’ve got Aussie Bills on one corner. There’s also Almond Bar, a Middle Eastern restaurant on Liverpool street. Take a short stroll and you’ll soon be at Bar Reggio, an institution serving up lovingly made Italian cuisine. Injecting some finger-licking Anglo-Indian goodness into this neighbourhood is Brick Lane. Since opening its doors in October 2016, owners Kiran Bains and Alistair French have been feeding its patrons high quality Australian produce with lashings of subcontinental spice. More recently, they also launched a new autumn menu! We were lucky enough to be given their mouth watering watermelon granita recipe. Try it for yourself, it’s delicious.
Watermelon Granita Recipe
makes approximately 5 portions
All components of this dish must be prepared the previous day.
For the Granita:
½ a watermelon
150g caster sugar
150g water
1 lemon
Combine the sugar and water in a small pot and bring to the boil to dissolve, then take off heat and cool down. Juice the watermelon and pass through a fine sieve. Mix the 300mL of sugar syrup with 1.5 litre of watermelon juice and squeeze the lemon through a sieve. Combine well and place in a long flat tray in the freezer. Every 30 minutes, using a fork, scrape the sides of the container to break up the ice crystals until completely frozen and fluffy. Keep in freezer.
For the Vanilla Custard:
7 egg yolks
70g sugar
375mL cream
200mL milk
2 vanilla beans
Mix the yolks with sugar just to dissolve. Do not over whip. Scald the milk and cream with the split vanilla pods. Gently whisk together then chill before straining. Pour into ramekins and bake in bain marie at 130ºC for 50 mins until wobbly. Cool down immediately.
For the Rose Jelly:
50g caster sugar
250g water
10mL rose water
½ lemon juice
2 leaves of gelatin
Combine the sugar and water and bring to boil slowly to dissolve. Allow to cool slightly then add the rosewater and lemon juice. Cool down completely.
Soak the gelatin leaves in iced water to rehydrate. Once soft, squeeze out any excess water and store in fridge. Gently warm up 50mL rosewater stock and add the bloomed gelatin to it and mix until dissolved. Gradually add the rest of the rose water stock and then strain and set in container in the fridge.
For the Lemon Confiture:
5 lemons
100g caster sugar
1.5L water
Additional caster sugar
Combine sugar and water in a pot and bring to boil then remove from heat. Peel the lemons with a vegetable peeler then using a very sharp knife, “fillet” the white pith off the lemon rind. Once the skins are cleaned and ready, finely slice into long thin strips.
In a small pot, bring 300mL of the sugar syrup to the boil and add the julienned lemon peel. When syrup returns to boil, strain the peel and refresh in iced water to stop cooking process. Discard the used sugar stock. Repeat this step 4 more times to remove all bitterness from the peel. Once cold and refreshed, squeeze out any excess water. Juice the rindless lemon and strain it then weigh the juice. Mix lemon juice with equal quantity of caster sugar and bring to boil to dissolve. When boiling, add the blanched lemon and turn down to a simmer. Gently allow to tick over until the peel is tender. Cool in syrup and store in fridge.
To Assemble:
Place and scoop of the vanilla custard in the base of a cooled bowl or serving glass. Using a fork, lift out some of the lemon peel from the syrup and arrange on top of custard. Use a teaspoon to scoop out some rose jelly and place on top of peel. Finally, cover the whole lot in a good amount of watermelon granita and serve immediately.
Brick Lane
75 Stanley Street Darlinghurst NSW
02 8964 9318, Open lunch: 12noon – 2:00pm Tuesday – Friday, Dinner: 5.30pm – 10:00pm Monday – Friday 6.00 – 10:00pm Saturday
http://www.brick-lane.com.au/#unconventional-subcontinential