• 1 vanilla bean
• 1 cup sugar
• Juice of 2 lemons (about 1/4 cup)
• 4 cups water
• 1 1/2 cups dried hibiscus flowers
• 8 mint leaves , finely shredded, for garnish

With a sharp knife, split vanilla bean lengthwise; scrape out seeds with dull side of knife. In a large saucepan, combine seeds, pod, sugar, lemon juice and water (or cranberry juice); bring to a boil. Remove from heat, add hibiscus flowers, cover and let steep 10 minutes.

Strain liquid, discarding solids and pour into a shallow baking pan; place in freezer. After 30 minutes, drag a fork back and forth through partially frozen mixture to break it up into tiny crystals. Repeat every 30 minutes until granité has texture of shaved ice. With the fork, scrape granité into 8 martini glasses. Garnish with mint.