Sorbet on a hot, sunny day is one of life’s greatest pleasures. It’s just the best. I love having a few flavours nestled in my freezer to eat together so the flavours create a sort of fusion of deliciousness. This recipe has Prosecco in it, so it’s almost like a frozen cocktail you eat with a spoon and it’s heavenly. If you’re not a fan of grapefruit or Prosecco, I suggest trying a different recipe because the flavours in this sorbet are strong. If you do like those flavours, get excited because you’re in for a treat.
You will need an ice cream churn to make this sorbet unless you’ve managed to master one of the more old fashioned ways to make ice cream without machinery. I am not that advanced I’m afraid and rely on modern technology to get me through, but I’ve heard tale of shaking bags of ice and all kinds of trickery with salt for making ice cream without one.
I can’t say enough about my ice cream maker – it’s one of the best gifts I’ve ever received and I put it to work regularly… Homemade ice creams, sorbets and gelatos really are the best – nothing compares so if you’ve ever thought of purchasing one, I highly recommend it. Do it now before the inflation makes the prices rise again and then make a commitment to use it regularly – you won’t regret it and you can feel smug every time you offer your guests some homemade ice cream. It’s worth it! Obviously the more you spend the better the gadget. More expensive ice cream makers will have a built in freezing unit while the cheaper ones often require storing a bowl in your freezer. I’ve made sorbet with both types and it’s worth it, but if you can afford the splurge and you have the space I suggest buying a machine with the freezing unit built in. It saves a lot of time, you don’t have to waste freezer space with the bowl and the ice cream seems to turn out better.
When you’re making this recipe, I feel it’s necessary to emphasise that there is a lot more juice in a grapefruit than you might think, but you really need to get in there and destroy it with plenty of elbow grease. It’s a bit of a messy process, especially if you’re using an old school juicer like I do, but it’s a task that must be undertaken in the noble pursuit of sorbet for a sunny day. Those little wedges of grapefruit flesh hold a lot of juice in them, so really get as much of it as you can out of there – waste nothing.
You can store sorbet in anything you like that’s freezer safe, but I find it handy to buy the cardboard takeaway ice cream/soup containers with lids. You could also get plastic freezer tubs in a pint size that are reusable. I personally love to get the pint-sized ones that I can easily label with the flavours. Because most recipes make two pints I will sometimes use the disposable ones so I can keep a pint and gift a pint, but if you want to store it in a square Tupperware box that works too.
Makes 2 pints.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon shredded grapefruit peel
- Juice from 6 large grapefruits (about 1200ml), strained
- 150g caster sugar
- 3 tablespoons golden syrup
- 200ml Prosecco or other sparkling white wine
- Fresh mint leaves to serve (optional)
Method
- Add the strained grapefruit juice, caster sugar, golden syrup and grapefruit peel to a saucepan on medium heat and cook until the sugar dissolves. Pour in the Prosecco and cook, stirring occasionally until the mixture reduces significantly to about 1 litre. If you’re not sure, you can pour it into a 1 litre measuring jug to check and return it to the pan if it needs to reduce further.
- Allow the mixture to cool for a while and then process in an ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s instructions. It doesn’t have to be room temperature, but cooling it down makes it process faster. My machine takes 1 litre of mixture, but if yours doesn’t, put it what’s allowed and store the rest in the fridge for a second churn.
- When the mixture is finished churning and is frozen to a soft set, split it evenly between two pint-sized containers leaving some room for the ice cream to expand as it freezes. If you’re doing this in batches, then divide it accordingly – you should get about 2 pints of sorbet in the end. Leave to set even further in the freezer until firm – usually a couple of hours will do the trick.
- To serve to guests, scoop the sorbet into a glass or a bowl and garnish with a fresh mint leaf or two. If you’re alone, grab a spoon and eat it straight out of the tub with fierce abandon while congratulating yourself for being awesome enough to make your own sorbet.
Chef’s Notes
- If you’re making this vegan, it’s important to use a Prosecco and also caster sugar that are vegan.
