Cherry Sorbet

Wednesday, 23 July 2008

We have to confess that we do not like dark cherries when they’re cooked. To paraphrase Marlena Dietrich, “It’s not that we wouldn’t; it’s not that we couldn’t, it’s not even that we shouldn’t; it’s just that we don’t.” This unfortunately precludes canning them or putting them up in the form of jam. Every technique we’ve tried yields pitiful results. So we try to make the most of cherry season by enjoying them fresh and when the season is over, we settle for dried cherries or cherries that have been pitted and frozen. Frozen cherries it turns out make wonderful sorbet. (Makes about 6 servings) 1 cup sugar 1 cup cold bottled water 1 tablespoon lemon juice 1 pound individually quick frozen cherries, technique follows 1.) Put the sugar, water and lemon juice in a mixing bowl and whisk until most of the sugar is dissolved. Since it's cold, it will not dissolve completely. 2.) Put the grater attachment in the food processor and push the frozen cherries through the grater. It's important to use this attachment because the regular blade will not work on frozen cherries. 3.) Immediately add the grated frozen cherries to the cold sugar water and whisk until smooth. Serve the sorbet soft as is, or transfer the slushy sorbet to a sealed container and put in the freezer until it is set, about an hour.   Frozen Cherries The secret to perfect frozen cherries is to pit them and allow them to freeze solid without touching one another. (In the industry, products frozen this way are referred to as Individually Quick Frozen or "IQF.") Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Snap the stem off each cherry and use a cherry pitter or an olive stoner to remove the pit, then place each pitted cherry on the parchment-lined sheet pan. Don’t let the cherries touch. Freeze the cherries on the baking sheet for several hours, or until they are frozen through, then transfer the frozen berries to self-sealing food storage bags or small airtight containers and seal before returning to the freezer. Use the frozen cherries to make sorbet, puree them in smoothies or use them to garnish cocktails. They are also quite good individually dipped in melted dark chocolate which hardens almost instantly on the frozen fruit.

 

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