Orange granita

Ingredients:

• 6 oranges
• 4 cups freshly squeezed orange juice
• Sugar, to taste
• 3 sprigs of basil
• 2 tbsp orange liqueur (recommended: Grand Marnier)

Preparation:

1. Wash the oranges. Cut off 1/4 of the top and a small piece of the bottom so they stand up straight.
2. Using a grapefruit knife, scoop out the orange pulp and place it in a sieve set over a bowl. Be careful not to cut through the bottom of the orange. Arrange the oranges on a baking sheet, place them in the freezer, and freeze until firm.
3. Press the orange pulp through a sieve to extract all the juice. You should have approximately 1.5 to 1.3/4 cups of orange juice. Add an additional 4 cups of orange juice. Stir in the sugar, a tablespoon at a time, until the mixture is sweet enough to your liking. Add the basil and orange liqueur and let steep for 15 minutes.
4. Strain the mixture into a saucepan or baking dish. The dish should be large enough so that the liquid is no more than 2.5 cm deep. Freeze for at least 1 hour. Remove from the freezer and scrape with 2 forks to loosen the ice. Return to the freezer and let set for another 2-3 hours, scraping with forks about every hour.
5. Once the granita has set, spoon it into orange peel bowls and serve immediately.