Pomegranate Granita

Persian Sharbats, from which we got sherbets, sorbets, granitas, and the now popular drinks called shrubs, could be either sweet or savory. Jean Chardin, traveling in Iran in the seventeenth century, described a favorite of the Isfahanis: sugar, a pinch of salt, pomegranate juice, and a squeeze of garlic and lime, all mixed with crushed ice. This sweet-sour mixture, he found, not only quenched the thirst but stimulated the appetite. Such cool drinks traveled along the trade routes to become