When we had the really hot spell the other week, I was sat at home desperately craving an ice cream or something similar. A glimpse in the freezer, I was mortified that there was nothing there! Plus it really wouldn't have gone down well with the diet. So I was thinking what could I have that was reasonable in terms of my weight watching but also would give me the taste of summer that ultimately I was craving. A rummage around the fruit bowl and I found a couple of lemons and limes languishing there, that had been brought to adorn an ice cold G&T; but seeing as I'd made a schoolboy error of leaving the house dry of gin I decided to use them to make a refreshing sorbet. I'd just have to be patient whilst it froze...
I think the best bit about making sorbets is that there is really no recipe as such. So without a lot of hard work you get a fantastic tangy and refreshing dessert. it really is one of the simplest desserts you could make, and once you're got your head around the freezing aspect of it, if you do not possess an ice-cream maker like me, you can pretty much do what you like to create some fantastic combinations.
With regards to the recipe though, some people use an egg-white in their sorbets, if they're not adding in any alcohol, apparently it makes the sorbet smoother, but I've never added one to my sorbet and it tastes just fine.
What You'll Need
300ml Water
200g Caster Sugar
150ml Freshly Squeezed Lime Juice - About 3 limes
150ml Freshly Squeezed Lemon Juice - About 3 medium sized lemons
Lemon and Lime zest
3 tablespoons Limoncelli Liquor
Freezer-proof tub and lid, if you do not have an ice-cream maker
What You'll Need to Do
Zest at least one lemon and one lime.
Juice both the lemons and limes, and remove any pips that may escape into the juices.
Leave to the juices to one side, or pop them in the fruit to chill a little whilst we make the syrup.
Add the caster sugar and water to a saucepan, and place over a medium heat.
Stir the caster sugar and water, until the caster sugar has completely dissolved into the wate
Bring the liquid to the boil and simmer gently for about 5 minutes or until the liquid has become a syrup. Make sure you do not allow the syrup to become too thick, it should be thin.
Remove the saucepan from the heat and cool it in a bowl of iced wate
When the syrup has cooled, and the lemon and lime juices, including the bits. If you would rather not include any fleshy bits that had managed to get into your juices, you can strain them before adding.
Add the lemon and lime zest.
Add the limoncelli into the mixture and allow it to completely cool.
If you have one, pour the mixture into your ice-cream maker, and follow the manufacturer's instruction
Else, pour the mixture into a freezer-proof tub, and place in the freezer for an hour. After an hour in the freezer, or until the sorbet is becoming firm around the edges, remove the sorbet from the freezer.With a hand-whisk or an electric hand-blender, whisk the sorbet until it is smooth. This will break up any ice crystals that are starting to form. Place the sorbet back in the freezer and repeat after another 2 hours.
If you are not serving your sorbet straight away, it is always a good idea to remove it from the freezer to the fridge for 30 minutes or so to soften up.