Grapefruit Sorbet

Grapefruit Sorbet 1
Originally uploaded by wanderingcoyote.

Yep, yet another citrus recipe!

I was in the mood for some sort of dessert that used ingredients I had on had and that was fat free. Although this recipe contains lots of sugar, I felt better about eating it than I would have some ice cream. But now I wonder if grapefruit ice cream might be the next thing I try, because grapefruit is one of my favourite fruits (right up there with fresh pineapple).

I have a Cuisinart ice cream maker, which I got a few years back on sale at Sears for about $80. It's probably the best $80 I've ever spent because I get a lot of joy from this little machine. It's easy to use, quick, and it incorporates the perfect amount of air into the ice cream or whatever to get a light consistency. And I feel better eating homemade ice cream than store bought stuff, because the commercial ones have all kinds of chemicals and fillers in them that are not good for you.

My basic ice cream recipe is here. This sorbet recipe came from the recipe book that came with the ice cream maker. I added the vodka as my own touch.

2 cups sugar
2 cups water
1 1/2 cups freshly squeezed ruby red grapefruit
zest of 1 grapefruit
1 oz vodka (I used Smirnoff's orange flavoured one)

1. The day before you want your sorbet, combine the sugar and water in a saucepan and bring it to the boil. Let it boil for a couple of minutes, or until the sugar is completely dissolved and you have a perfectly clear syrup (we call this simple syrup in the pastry world and we use it for all kinds of things). Remove from heat and let it cool. Put it in the fridge overnight so it's completely cold for using the next day. This is crucial if you're using this particular ice cream maker because the drum has a freezing liquid in it that will melt if you put warm liquid into it.
2. Zest the grapefruit and sqeeze the juice into the sugar syrup and mix well to combine.
3. Throw into your ice cream maker. Add the vodka near the end when the sorbet is almost done in the machine - alcohol affects freezing. In the Cuisinart machine, the whole process took just under half an hour.
4. Scoop into a container and freeze until firm.

We made sorbet in school, but we were taught to use a densitometer or sugar thermometer to measure the density of the sugar syrup. I cannot remember what it had to be, and the chef instructor I had in the advanced kitchen had to admit that this device is hard to find these days. But this method of using a simple syrup of 50/50 worked fine and it froze well.

This is more summery, but if you need a fat free sugar fix, it works in January just as well as it would in July. Enjoy!