Gochugaru Girl wonders if one day Nespresso might take over the world, exterminating all other methods of brewing coffee at home.
I was extremely sceptical when I was first introduced to Nespresso in 1998.
After dinner with some Swiss-French friends, they told us that this was the new way to have coffee. I didn’t think the idea would take off.
Who would want to have coffee from a capsule?
The answer is, people like us.
We are on now on our fourth machine – retired models are shared with friends who want a test drive before they commit to buying one for themselves.
The inspiration for this coffee granita was the one we had in Tazza D’Oro in Rome, where the queues are constant throughout the day.
I used Kazaar, as the intensity of the coffee needs to come through when mixed with sugar and then frozen. If you are serving this after dinner, and feel that your guests might not want a caffeinated coffee, then use Decaffeinato Intenso.
It is necessary to start this endeavor early in the morning for the granita to be ready for a mid-afternoon iced coffee break. It is even better if the coffee is made the night before and then left to chill in the fridge; this will give a head start to the whole process.
The recipe here makes enough for eight small (90 ml) glasses, which are just taster portions. For a real treat, serve in larger glasses, and be generous with the cream. If you have 8 – 10 guests, double this quantity and use a larger plastic container for freezing.
For the Granita:
6 x Kazaar Nespresso capsules, to make 300 ml espresso
60 g granulated sugar
Whipped cream, to serve
You will also need a shallow plastic container with a lid. Mine measured 15 cm x 15 cm x 5 xm.
How to Make:
Begin by making 6 x 50 ml espresso shots from the capsules. This is easy if you use a measuring jug and measure as you go along.
Add the sugar to the hot coffee. Let this cool, then pour it into the container and place in the freezer. Alternatively, place in the fridge until you are ready to start the process the next day.
Initially, the coffee will take 2 – 3 hours to form ice crystals around the edge. When this happens, stir the granita with a fork to distribute the ice.
Repeat the process every 45 minutes, continuing to fork the ice crystals around until you have no liquid coffee left.
The whole process can take up to another 3 hours.
Ideally, serve the granita as soon as it is ready. if you are leaving the granita in the freezer to serve later, remove the container and place in the fridge for 15 minutes before serving.
To serve the granita a la Tazza D’Oro, place some whipped cream at the bottom of a glass, top with a generous amount of granita and finish off with some more whipped cream.
The cream at Tazza D’Oro is pumped from a machine, so I would not hesitate to suggest using what is fondly known as squirty cream i.e. cream from an aerosol can. We use a French brand, Isigny Sainte-Mere Creme a la Vanilla de Madagascar.
Our small glasses come from my favourite utilitarian glass producer, Duralex.
