Cranberry Ice

Part of the repertory of Craig Claiborne and Pierre Franey of the New York Times of leftover Thanksgiving Day foods includes an uncommonly refreshing dessert ice made with the inevitable, day-after cranberry sauce. It is an extremely easy dish to make, requiring only a simple syrup made with sugar and water, cooked for 5 minutes and chilled. This is blended in the food processor or blender with the slightly tangy, sour-sweet sauce, along with orange juice. The liquidy mixture is poured into the container of an ice-cream maker and frozen according to manufacturer's instructions. This will produce what is know in French as a granite or in Italian as a granita, which is to say frozen fruit and ice. It is velvety smooth and, with the addition of a little egg white or heavy cream before the mixture is frozen, can be turned into a delightful sherbet. (Prep time does not include freezing.)

• Ready In: 30 mins
• Yields: 7 cups

Ingredients

• 1 1⁄2 cups sugar
• 1 1⁄2 cups water
• 2  cups cranberry sauce
• 2  cups  orange juice (freshly squeezed, preferably)

Directions

1. Combine the sugar and water in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Let cook 5 minutes and remove from heat. Let cool. Chill.
2. Put the cranberry sauce into the container of a food processor or blender and blend thoroughly. Add the orange juice and the syrup and pour into the container of an electric- or hand-cranked ice-cream freezer. Freeze according to manufacturer's instructions.