Mendocino Wild Huckleberry Granita

Ingredients:

• 1 pound huckleberries* (fresh or frozen) or enough to yield two cups of juice
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup syrah
• Juice of one-half lemon (Meyer, if possible)

Method:
Purée huckleberries in a food processor. Put through a fine strainer, pressing on berries to extract all liquid, to yield two cups.
 
Place syrah and sugar in a small saucepan; bring to boil.
 
Mix huckleberry juice, sugar/syrah mixture and lemon juice in a bowl. Pour into a Pyrex or Corning ware wide dish or pie pan and place in freezer. Scrape with a fork every two hours until frozen, approximately 4-6 hours. It will scrape into a snowflake-like mixture.
 
Store granita in a plastic refrigerator container in the freezer. Granita will store well for approximately two weeks.
 
To Serve:
 
Rub a Martini or other decorative glass rim with a wedge of lemon and twirl in a little sugar on a plate. Portion granita into the glasses and garnish with a lemon twist and fresh huckleberries.
 
*Blackberries may be substituted (you may have to adjust sugar, to taste)
If using frozen berries, defrost first.