Granita is a semi-frozen dessert that is typically made with fruit. This rhubarb granita from The Detox Kitchen’s new book is refreshing and tart, perfect with sweet and creamy banana ice cream. Make sure to use the ripest bananas for the ice cream, as they will be the sweetest. Honeyed pecans are a lovely, crunchy topping.

Ingredients: Serves 2

3 very ripe bananas

500g rhubarb, roughly chopped

3 tbsp honey

100ml water

100g pecans, roughly chopped

A pinch of flaked sea salt

Method

Peel the bananas, then put them into a freezer bag and leave in the freezer overnight.

To make the granita, place the rhubarb and 2 tablespoons of the honey in a saucepan with the water. Simmer for 15 minutes until the rhubarb is soft. Cool, then tip into a food processor and blitz until smooth. Pour the mixture into a shallow freezer-proof container and place in the freezer.

After 30 minutes, use a fork to stir in any of the mixture that has frozen at the edges. Repeat this process four or five times, at 30-minute intervals, until the granita is semi-frozen all over with a granular texture and you are able to scrape off soft spoonfuls.

Toast the pecans in a dry frying pan until they are slightly browned. Remove from the heat and stir in the remaining honey and the salt. Tip the nuts on to greaseproof paper and leave to cool.

Remove the bananas from the freezer and put them into a food processor. Blitz until completely smooth and thick. This should take 3–5 minutes.

Fill each glass with a spoonful of pecans, then some banana ice cream, then granita. Repeat, finishing with a final sprinkle of granita.

Extract taken from Detox Kitchen Vegetables by Lily Simpson (Bloomsbury, £26) is out now. Photography © Issy Croker

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