It's beginning to feel like fall, with the weather finally dropping below 90 degrees here in Miami... HA! So before the palm leaves start yellowing and falling off the coconut trees... allow me to share this delicious Kakigori-inspired shaved fruit ice with you!
A little known fact about me-- before I became a registered dietitian, I was in the food service industry for over a decade. I worked and did everything -- from being a take-out girl at Ruby Tuesday's to being one of the top servers at Nobu Miami Beach. A lot of the restaurants I worked at offered Asian-fusion fare, like Nobu, which offers Japanese-Peruvian food. One of the most popular desserts offered at Nobu was this kakigori, which is a Japanese shaved ice dessert with flavored syrup and delicious toppings. It reminds me of what we call a "granizado" in my home country of Cuba, or "raspado" as it is known in other Latin American countries.
This version of a kakigori is a bit different. There's a viral TikTok trend happening now where the kids will freeze a whole piece of fruit and shave it into a bowl, making for a shaved fruit ice made with whole fruit! This idea looked simple and delicious enough, so I took a stab at it with Cara Cara naval oranges and Florida-grown strawberries. I was not disappointed!!
The beauty of this recipe is that you can really customize it to your liking. If you prefer other fruit, have at it! Similarly, you can curate your toppings to your liking. Here's the recipe below!
Cara Cara Orange and Strawberry Kakigori-Inspired Shaved Fruit Ice
Serves: 2
Prep time: at least 6 hours to freeze fruit, 5 min
Cook time: 0 min
Ingredients
2 Cara Cara oranges, peeled and frozen
1 cup strawberries, washed and frozen
1 tbsp sweetened condensed milk (optional, but highly recommended)
Toppings of your choice: coconut flakes, shaved almonds, nuts, adzuki beans, dried fruit, etc.
Instructions
Freeze your fruit for at least 6 hours, but optimally overnight, for the best final product. If the fruit is not fully frozen, it will be difficult to shave and it will mush.
With a grater, grate the frozen orange into a serving bowl.
Repeat step 2 with half a cup of frozen strawberries.
Repeat steps 2 and 3 into another serving bowl.
Top both servings with sweetened condensed milk and your toppings of choice. Eat it quickly before it melts! Enjoy :)
See how quick and easy that is? This is a fun family activity to do together, too!
This recipe also uses whole fruit instead of syrups, and while syrups are colorful and fun to use for shaved ice, using whole fruit adds a lot of nutrition! You're getting all of the vitamins and minerals in the fruits you choose, and you're even getting fiber! Similarly, there's a lot of opportunity to add nutrition with your chosen toppings. Nuts add heart-healthy fats, fiber, and protein and adzuki beans and dried fruit also add fiber!
If you give this a try, take a pic and tag me on socials.
¡Buen provecho!