Berry Mint Granita with Rum – 3 ingredients!

A berry mint granita with rum is refreshing and flavorful — perfect for your summer barbecues, but you’ll want to make it all year round!

Here in Michigan, we’ve finally been enjoying some warmer weather. Warmer meaning it’s been in the 35-50 degree range but yesterday it got up to the mid-sixties! Woo-hoo!

This is our first full year in our new house and I am ridiculously excited for the onset of spring and summer after what seems like a never-ending winter. We have a large deck, a grill that has been in hibernation for months now, and stocked fridges in our basement bar. The kids’ outdoor toys are waiting to be pulled out of the shed and the patio table has been in hiding under a tarp.

I cannot wait to get everything out and enjoy some warmer weather! Between friends, family, and my husband’s co-workers, I am sure we will be doing lots of entertaining this summer.

One of the things that always comes along with entertaining is food. I tend to keep things simple most of the time. Burgers on the grill, a few salads, and a fun dessert.

This berry mint granita with rum is the perfect summer dessert. It’s insanely refreshing and ridiculously easy to prepare, and also could be served as a cocktail, something along the lines of a frozen Sangria slushie or a frosé (frozen rosé slushie).

When Simply Juice Drinks™ asked me to develop a recipe using one of their newly launched flavors, I almost immediately thought of a granita. The refreshing and flavorful juice drink is the perfect base for a granita.

Wondering what a granita is? Think sorbet, only with flakier ice – kind of like a snow cone. Originally hailing from Sicily, a granita consists of finely shaved ice flavored with sugar, water, and flavoring, often fruit.

I chose to use Simply Mixed Berry™ Juice Drink for this granita with rum, but in my recipe notes you’ll see some combinations I would suggest for the other flavors, Simply Fruit Punch™ Juice Drink and Simply Tropical™ Juice Drink.

The real fruit juice in Simply Juice Drinks takes out the extra step of having to cook and puree fruit to make a granita. You don’t need to be slaving away in the kitchen on a hot summer day! You can feel good about serving this to guests because the juice drinks are all natural, made with simple ingredients, and contain no artificial flavors, colors or added preservatives.

All you need to add to the Mixed Berry Juice Drink is rum and fresh mint, 3 simple ingredients. This is definitely (definitely) not the place for mint extract or any other type of mint substitute. You need the real stuff here – fresh mint leaves. The rum adds great flavor but it also gives the granita a really nice, soft consistency.

The rum and mint combination actually reminds me of a mojito. Have you tried my pomegranate mojito? If you’re more into creamy drinks, try this mojito milkshake!

About this granita with rum:

If you’ve never made a granita before, it’s super simple.

Find a flat baking dish that fits in your freezer. I use a 9×9-inch pan but a 9×13-inch would also work and would actually result in you enjoying this granita even sooner. If you have limited freezer space, a loaf pan will also work, but make sure to give yourself additional time for it to freeze.

Mix the three ingredients together — you can do this right in the dish that you’re freezing it in. The three ingredients? Simply Mixed Berry Juice Drink, finely minced mint leaves, and rum!

Put the pan into your freezer. Stick around, because every 30 minutes, you need to pull the pan of granita out of the freezer and scrape the mixture with a fork, stirring the frozen edges down into the middle of the baking dish. 

Keep doing this until the berry granita is completely frozen in pretty little flakes that melt in your mouth, releasing the fantastic, refreshing flavors of berry, mint, and rum.

So that’s it! Here’s my scenario:

Set the timer on your phone each time and tackle the rest of your party prep while dessert makes itself! Stick it in the freezer and go make a salad.

Pull it out of the freezer, scrape and stir, stick it back in the freezer, go cut some flowers from your garden and arrange them on the table.

Pull it out of the freezer, scrape and stick back in freezer, and go jump in the shower.

Pull it out of the freezer/scrape/put back in freezer, and go do your hair and makeup and get dressed. Pour yourself a glass of Mixed Berry Juice Drink, rum and mint to give yourself a sneak peek of what you’ll be enjoying later.

Okay, time to scrape again. After you stick it back in the freezer, it might already be time to welcome your guests and put the steaks on the grill!

Get the idea? So easy, yet so sophisticated. Too many easy desserts end up looking and tasting easy if you catch my drift. This one is classy, looks so beautiful, and it won’t leave you and your guests feeling like you can’t slip into your bikini and jump in the pool. 

Okay I don’t have a bikini body OR a pool but it’s a pretty picture I painted, right?

Like easy summer desserts?

So do I! Who wants to waste beautiful summer days slaving inside at a complicated dessert! Not me! Try:

 

• Strawberry sorbet with mint
• Homemade pudding pops – use any flavor of pudding mix to create your own specialty.
• Ice cream terrine with roasted strawberries – sounds way fancier than it actually is, and it’s easy to make!
• Grilled pineapple with ice cream and bourbon caramel sauce
• Root beer float popsicles
• Rice Krispie treats – easy to make and always a hit!
• Sprinkle ice cream pie with Rice Krispie crust

Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me @rachelcooksblog on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest!

Recipe

Get the Recipe: Berry Mint Granita with Rum

5 from 2 votes

Prep Time: 5 mins

Additional Time: 4 hrs

Total Time: 4 hrs 5 mins

6 servings

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Berry mint granita with rum is refreshing and flavorful — perfect for those summer barbecues, but you’ll want to make it all year round!

Ingredients

• ▢ 3 cups Simply Mixed Berry juice
• ▢ 1/3 cup loosely packed fresh mint leaves, finely minced (extra for garnish if desired)
• ▢ 1/2 cup white or gold rum

Instructions

• Mix all ingredients together in an 8×8-inch or a 9×9-inch pan.
• Place in freezer and freeze for 3 1/2 to 4 hours, scraping with a fork every 30 minutes and stirring the icy edges into the middle.
• Scoop into bowls to serve and garnish with extra mint leaves. Or put in glasses and serve as a cocktail.
• Make ahead: cover granita and keep frozen for 1-2 days.

Notes

If you can’t find all the ingredients for this recipe, try these substitutions, keeping ratios the same:

• Simply Tropical Juice Drink with rum and flaked coconut
• Simply Mixed Berry Juice Drink with vodka and basil
• Simply Fruit Punch Juice Drink with rum or vodka and lime zest (about 1 teaspoon of lime zest only)
• Non-alcoholic: Simply Mixed Berry Juice Drink with lime juice and fresh mint.

Nutrition Information

Serving: 1g, Calories: 122kcal, Carbohydrates: 13g, Protein: 1g, Sodium: 26mg, Fiber: 4g, Sugar: 8g

This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.

© Author: Rachel Gurk

Simply Juice Drinks can be found next to other Simply Beverages in the refrigerated section of your local grocer. All three great-tasting flavors I mention are available in a 59-fl. oz. multi-serve bottle, with Fruit Punch and Tropical also offered in a convenient, grab-and-go, 11.5-fl. oz. single-serve bottle – perfect for throwing in your cooler on the way to the beach.

Disclosure: This granita with rum post is sponsored by Simply Beverages™, but all opinions expressed are my own and are unbiased and based on my personal views. All opinions are AS ALWAYS my own. Thanks for supporting my blog by reading about brands and products I use and love.

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