Micheladas, often called cheladas, are drinks made with beer, fresh lime juice, and sometimes chile. Micheladas especiales, or cubanas, use the same foundation but add Worcestershire sauce, hot sauce, and Maggy sauce, a popular seasoning that has a salty, caramelized, deep flavor. This raspado is inspired by these popular beverages.

　　

Ingredients

serves 4 to 6

　　2 small piquín or árbol chiles

　　3 cups water

　　1/2 cup sugar

　　Zest and juice of 3 limes, plus juice for wetting the rim

　　1/4 cup chile powder

　　1/2 teaspoon salt

　　2 cups cold medium-dark beer

　　

Step 1

Combine the chiles, water, sugar, and lime zest in a saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring, until the sugar dissolves. Let cool to room temperature, then stir in the lime juice. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve. Pour the mixture into a shallow nonreactive pan and put it in the freezer.

　　

Step 2

Once the edges start to freeze (about 1 hour), scrape lightly with a fork, bringing the ice crystals from the edges to the center. Return to the freezer and continue scraping every 30 minutes or so, until the mixture is completely frozen and looks like small ice flakes.

　　

Step 3

Place the chile powder and salt in a bowl and stir. Wet the rim of a glass with lime juice, then dip it in the chile powder. For each serving, place 1/2 cup of the granita in the prepared glass. Pour about 1/4 cup beer over the granita and serve immediately.

　　

note

Step 4

It’s always best to serve granita as soon as it’s ready. But if you leave it in the freezer and it hardens, simply take it out of the freezer, let it soften for 5 to 10 minutes, and then scrape it with a fork again.

　　Reprinted with permission from Paletas, Authentic Recipes For Mexican Ice Pops, Shaved Ice, & Aguas Frescas, copyright © 2011. Published by Ten Speed Press, a division of Random House, Inc. As the country's most authoritative voice on Mexican sweets, FANY GERSON has been featured in the New York Times, Gourmet, Fine Cooking, Daily Candy, Village Voice, NY Daily News, Time Out magazine, and New York magazine, among other publications. She recently launched the acclaimed La Newyorkina, a Mexican frozen treats and sweets business that began with her love for paletas. A graduate of the culinary Institute of America, Fany has worked in a range of fine-dining kitchens around the world. Visit www.lanewyorkina.com for more information.