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Recipes for Shabbat Sorbet By Eileen Goltz On a hot summer Shabbat afternoon when walking home from shul is like a stroll in the tropics my children's battle cry has always been "I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream." The request never posed a problem because I always had the solution to the demand for a cold, sweet treat to combat the heat. If it couldn't be ice cream it was one of its three best friends, sherbet, sorbet and granite. OK, you ask, what's the difference between sherbet, sorbet and what is granite? The answer to the question will help you determine exactly which you want to serve next Shabbat. A granite (pronounced grah-nee-tay) in French, or, granita (pronounced grah-nee-tah in Italian) are the same cold treat: a grainy frozen mixture of sugar, water combined with a flavored liquid, like coffee, lemon or lime juice or even melted chocolate. Granite is frozen in a large freezer-safe pan and is stirred with a spatula or raked with the tines of a fork about every 30 minutes to yield large, coarse ice crystals. Sorbet is a smooth, creamy frozen delicacy consisting of sugar, water, and most often, a fruit puree or fruit juice. The main differences in these two ices (which contain basically the same ingredients) lies in the freezing method, the amount of sugar you use in proportion to the liquid in the recipe, as well as the texture in the finished product. Sorbet, prepared with a relatively high proportion of sugar to liquid, and frozen in a conventional, beater-type ice cream maker, has a creamy, smooth almost ice cream-like consistency... Sherbet is technically an ice as well, containing sugar, water and fruit puree or fruit juice as well as between 1 and 2 per cent milk fat. A sherbet is not as light or full of fruit as a granite or sorbet. Granites and sorbets are characteristically light and refreshing, but intensely flavored, and sometimes tart and sweet at the same time. Both types of ices can be served as a first course, an accompaniment to a salad, as a treat between courses or of course, as dessert. All three types of ices begin with a sugar syrup which is easy to make ahead and stores well (covered) in the refrigerator. You can prepare the fruit puree ahead too, and store it in the refrigerator at least a day before using. Just stir the two mixtures to blend thoroughly before pouring it into the container to freeze. So what do you do when company's coming, and you don't
have time to prepare a sherbet, sorbet or granite? You take 10 minutes to
make a cheaters sorbet! You puree a frozen can of fruit. Make several
different flavors so you can present a rainbow of sorbets elegantly in a
fluted glass with a sprig of mint. Keep cans of a variety of fruits on hand
in your pantry to turn into sorbets. You'll need a minimum of 18 hours
freezing time, so it's a good idea to keep a couple of cans in your freezer,
ready to puree. Just open the cans, pour the fruit and juice into a self
seal plastic bag and freeze. Fruits packed in heavy syrup make the smoothest
texture, but fruits packed in light syrup can also be used.
In a small saucepan, heat 1 cup water with the sugar
until sugar is dissolved. Refrigerate until cold. Combine sugar syrup with
coffee, cold water and vanilla and blend together thoroughly. Pour into a
freezer-safe container, such as a 9 x 13 x 2-inch metal pan. Freeze,
stirring and scraping the mixture with a rubber spatula at first, then the
tines of a fork every 30 to 40 minutes until a grainy consistency and
completely frozen. This process takes 3 to 4 hours. Spoon into chilled
stemmed glasses or bowls. Top each serving with a small dollop of non dairy
whipped topping or softly whipped cream, if desired. Makes 4 cups.
In a small saucepan, heat 1 cup water with the sugar
until sugar is dissolved. Refrigerate until cold. Combine sugar syrup with
lemon juice, cold water and blend together thoroughly. Pour into a
freezer-safe container, such as a 9 x 13 x 2-inch metal pan. Freeze,
stirring and scraping the mixture with a rubber spatula at first, then with
the tines of a fork every 30 to 40 minutes until a grainy consistency and
completely frozen. This process takes 3 to 4 hours. Spoon into chilled
stemmed glasses or bowls. Makes 7 cups
In a blender or a food processor, puree the peaches.
In large saucepan, combine the sugar, orange juice and lemon juice. Over
medium heat, cook and stir until the sugar dissolves, then remove the
mixture from the heat. Stir in the pureed peaches. Cover and refrigerate
until the mixture is cold. Freeze the mixture in an ice cream machine using
it according to manufacturer's instruction.
Cover the bottom of a cookie sheet with waxed paper.
Cut the bananas into quarter-inch slices, coat them with the lemon juice,
place them on the prepared cookie sheet, and freeze. After the bananas are
frozen, puree them in a food processor or blender with the strawberries and
apple juice. Serve immediately in chilled cups. The leftover sorbet doesn't
freeze well, but it does make a nice addition to plain or vanilla yogurt.
Makes 2 ½ to 3 cups.
Combine sugar and cocoa powder in a heavy-bottomed
saucepan. Gradually mix in the water. Stir it in a little at a time to make
a paste out of the dry stuff. Place over medium heat, bring to a simmer, and
stir until the sugar dissolves. Increase the heat and bring to a boil. Boil
the syrup until it is a dark, glossy brown, 1 to 2 minutes. Pour the mixture
into a bowl and stir in the vanilla and liqueur of choice. Cover and chill
until very cold. Pour the chocolate sorbet mixture into an ice cream maker
and freeze according to directions. Serve immediate or transfer to a Makes 3
to 4 cups
Combine the mango, lemonade and water in a blender or
food processor and puree until very smooth (You may have to do this in
batches) Pour the mixture into your ice cream maker, fit in the dasher and
lid and churn. Follow directions for your freezer. Makes 5 to 5 1/2 cups.
In a medium-sized, heavy saucepan, combine the sugar
and cocoa. Gradually whisk in the water. Place the mixture over medium-high
heat and bring to boil, whisking constantly. Boil 1 minute, whisking
constantly. Reduce heat to low. Add the chocolate, orange juice, corn syrup
and orange peel. Stir just until the chocolate melts. Pour the mixture into
a bowl and refrigerate until cold, about 1 hour. Transfer sorbet mixture to
ice cream maker and process according to the manufacturer's instructions.
Transfer sorbet to an airtight container; cover and freeze overnight to
allow the flavors to develop or for up to 3 days.
In a sauce pan combine the wine, sugar and lime juice.
Bring the mixture to simmer, stirring until sugar dissolves. Simmer gently 3
minutes. Cool completely. Puree cubed watermelon in processor. Strain puree
through sieve set over large bowl, pressing on solids with back of rubber
spatula. Discard solids in sieve. Stir wine mixture and orange juice
concentrate into watermelon puree. Pour the melon mixture into 8 x 8 x
2-inch glass dish. Freeze until semi-firm, stirring occasionally, about 2
hours. Cover; freeze until solid, at least 8 hours or overnight. Chill
processor work bowl and metal blade. Transfer melon mixture to processor.
Using on/off turns and scraping bottom and sides of bowl, process until very
smooth. Scoop sorbet into frozen bowls. Garnish with lime slices and
watermelon wedges. Serve immediately. Makes 6 cups.
Pare, core and coarsely chop pears and place them in a bowl. Toss them with the lemon juice. Spread the pears and strawberries on baking sheet. Freeze them, uncovered, until frozen solid. Place the frozen pears and strawberries in food processor or blender. Add the milk and sugar, process until smooth. Serve immediately or return to freezer. Makes 3 cups. Eileen Goltz, a professional chef and caterer, is the author of the new cookbook, Perfectly Pareve. © Eileen Goltz 2003 |
