Holes

I finished this book in the dead of (Calfornia) winter, which means no fresh peaches to be found. If you've read Louis Sachdar's novel, Holes, or seen the movie of the same name, you'd know canned peaches would be more in theme anyways. But I still waited until summer to undertake this project.

Holes is a Newberry award winning "young adult" novel, part mystery, part comedy, all enjoyable. Stanley Yelnats is a teen who carries a family curse. A series of mishaps sees him serving out a term at Camp Greenlake. There is no lake in sight, and Stanley joins other teens in building character by digging holes in the desert. Stanley begins to think that there is more to the hole digging, and the mystery begins to unfold. Sachdar deftly interweaves a story of a relationship between a school teacher and a seller of onions, a generation before, when there was still water in the lake.

Holes is a very satisfying read. Although the family curse is a bit more comedic than oppressive, watching the Yelnats family persevere under its shadow is inspiring. The tale of Kissin' Kate Barlow starts off as old west legend, but turns out to be the emotional core of the novel.

I put "young adult" in quotes, because it's not limited to young adults, it's just accessible to them. I recall that Sachdar first became inspired by driving through a hot, dusty desert, not a speck of water in sight, and began wondering what it would be like having to dig holes in such an environment. What he weaves around such a simple idea is truly wonderful.


Two of the things that bridge the Kissin' Kate Barlow timeline with Stanley Yelnats' are peaches and onions. Can those two things go together? I first tried a peach infused bourbon, with a pickled onion garnish, which was fine, but decided that a) what I create should really be satisfying after a long day of digging holes and b) it should probably be accessible to children. I decided to make a granita.

A granita is essentially Italian shaved ice. Made with water, some sugar, and fruit, the mixture is basically scraped, and fluffed as it freezes. For my "Holes" inspired dessert, the flavors are naturally, peaches and onion.

Holes Granita 
INGREDIENTS
4 ripe peaches, quartered
1/4 red onion, cut into thick slices
1 cup of water
2/3 cup of sugar
3 sprigs of basil
1/4 cup of lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon of salt
whip cream (optional)
sweetened bourbon (optional)

Combine the water, sugar, and basil in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir constantly until all the sugar is dissolved, and allow to cool at room temperature for about 30 minutes.

I added the lemon peels from the lemons that I squeezed for the juice to the syrup as well

In a blender, add the peaches, lemon juice, red onion and salt. Blend until pureed. Push the mixture through a fine mesh sieve over a mixing bowl. Pour in the basil syrup, and still well. Cover and refrigerate until thoroughly cool (about an hour).

Pour the mixture into a shallow baking dish (I used a rectangular dish, around 7x10").  Place the dish in the freezer for 2 hours. The bottom and sides should be slightly solidified. Using a fork, break up the frozen pieces into smaller ice crystals. Put back in the freezer, and repeat this procedure in an hour, and again an hour after that.

When ready to serve, use a fork to break up any larger chucks, the granita should have a light, feathery structure.


Serve with whip cream, and for older adults a small pour of sweetened bourbon (1 oz bourbon, 1/4 oz simple syrup, stirred, and poured over the granita)

The granita is very surprising! The addition of the red onion seemed gimmicky (just a tie in with the novel), but in truth, with the basil, it adds a delicious, savory complexity to the dessert. Sort of a more adult subtext to a kid-friendly frozen treat.

If you're wondering where I got the awesome, and appropriate, shovel spoons, check them out here!