Pear Spice Sorbet

Most holiday desserts will make you feel more like a stuffed turkey than a hot chick. But unlike Paula's whoopie pies, this recipe gives you all the holiday flavor without the Santa-like waistline. The pear is silky and sophisticated, sexed up with some cinnamon, ginger, and cloves. And because no holiday is complete without a little liquor, there's a shot of rum to finish it off. 

Cloves, ginger, cinnamon.

Clementine Sorbet

I'm addicted to Clementines. I could easily overdose on those sweet seedless slices in a single sitting.  Each year as the temperature drops, these "Christmas oranges" are flown in from California or South America or some other magical place where fruit, um, grows on trees. And just when I begin to bore myself crazy with pumpkin recipes, clementines bring back that summer fruit nostalgia.

If you want to be really sophisticated, add a scoop to a glass of champagne for a mind-blowing mimosa.

Blackberry Sorbet

I've been off the grid on a Pacific Northwest getaway. (OK, semi-off the grid... I brought my iPhone.) Between a work trip to LA and a family visit to Colorado, I traded one Washington for the other. More precisely, Bainbridge Island, a short ferry ride from Seattle where I spent summers growing up. In true island fashion, my mom and I lived off the land (plus beer, wine, and baguettes from Central Market). We dug clams and geoduck from the beach, ate them steamed with butter and lemon, then tossed the empty shells from the deck back into the ocean. We slurped raw oysters grown by a neighbor. And of course, we picked ripe August blackberries.

I've been fantasizing about picking blackberries and making this sorbet all summer. Anyone who has ever had blackberries straight from the vine knows they taste nothing like the kind in the grocery store. They're bursting with juice like the orange roe you sometimes get on sushi, and they're so sweet they taste like they've been injected with powdered sugar.

Apricot Champagne Sorbet

I'm over peaches. Apricots are where it's at. This is a very simple recipe that will easily impress. It's the perfect light finish to a summer meal or snack to savor in the mid-afternoon heat. The apricots give it a tangy sweetness, and the Champagne brings an extra zing and an incredibly soft, airy texture. 

Honeydew Sorbet

If you were ever going to eat a sorbet for breakfast and not feel one bit guilty about it, this would be it. It's essentially just pureed melon with a little bit of agave nectar to sweeten it (and if you want, vodka for a less icy texture). It's also a refreshing treat during a brutally hot afternoon, like say, every day this week. Not surprisingly, it tastes just like honeydew. And that's the beauty of it.

Make sure your melon is ripe for optimal sweetness. 

Coconut Basil Sorbet

In mathematics, the simplest approach is referred to as the "elegant solution." By that definition, this is the most elegant recipe ever. Three ingredients. No stove. Just blend and churn. For such simplicity, the flavor is remarkably complex and creamy.

I am also thrilled to say that this is one of several recipes that will be featured in tomorrow's Washington Post Express for a story about homemade ice cream. Please pick up a copy and check back here for behind-the-scenes details from my very first photo shoot!

Lemon Raspberry Sorbet

It's a million degrees outside. Coming from Colorado, the hot humidity of DC summers just makes me want to melt. Thank goodness I write an ice cream blog, right? Cold treats are always on hand. I can't think of any sorbet more refreshing on a day like today than this one. It's tart and sweet—but not disgustingly sweet like some Italian ices. Plus, the raspberry morsels and specks of lemon zest make it pop.

Mango Lime Jalapeno Sorbet

This is the first recipe I ever made with my ice cream maker. In fact, it was one of the reasons I bought an ice cream maker in the first place. Dolcezza, a fantastic gelato shop here in DC, was selling it at the farmers market. I fell in love with the combination of sweet, tart, and spicy, but not the price (sorry, Dolcezza!). If only I could make it myself, I thought...

Little did I know at the time that it could be so easy. 

Watermelon Mint Sorbet

When I was very little, my parents told me that if you swallowed watermelon seeds then a watermelon would grow inside your stomach. As it turns out, that is not true. It's a good thing because (1) that would be very painful, and (2) watermelon is delicious and without it you could not make this lovely, heat-beating sorbet.

Mint makes everything more refreshing. 

Coconut Ginger Sorbet

This frozen fix has no cream, just coconut milk, which prompted a philosophical question... Is it ice cream or is it sorbet? On one hand, it has the smooth creaminess of ice cream. Plus, it's made out "milk," even if it's never been near a cow udder. Yet, coconut is technically a fruit, which should qualify it as a sorbet. Ultimately, I'm going to call it a sorbet because it sounds healthier. Coconut milk has "good fat," right?

Looks like snow, tastes like summer.

Champagne Strawberry Sorbet

Feeling in a festive mood (and trying to finish off the four pounds of strawberries on my hands), I came up with this pretty pink creation. I think it would be great to add it to a Champagne flute with a splash of some bubbly. This sorbet is boozy and crisp with sweet strawberry tang.

Gotta love strawberry season.

Strawberry Jalapeno Cilantro Sorbet

I love spicy. Spicy as in a bottle of Tabasco a month. Spicy as in I'm not sure all my taste buds still exist. So when I bought four pounds of strawberries today, it wasn't so unusual that I thought "Maybe I can make a spicy strawberry sorbet?" And what goes better with jalapeno than cilantro, right? Well, it made sense in my head. And it makes sense in my mouth.

Get ready for some serious strawberry porn after the jump.

Pear Sake Sorbet

A friend recently told me that sake is really trendy right now. I'm not quite convinced that it's really any trendier than it's ever been. (Chicken and waffles, however, that's a trend. Why is every restaurant in DC serving this all of a sudden??) Either way, I'm starting my own sake trend, beginning with this sorbet. The pureed pear is sweet and silky, and the sake is a perfect compliment flavor. Plus, the alcohol content prevents the sorbet from getting too icy.

Does this remind you of The Very Hungry Caterpillar?

Apple Carrot Ginger Sorbet

Apple-carrot-ginger is one of the greatest juice combinations of all time. It's got a healthy fruity taste with a spicy zing of ginger. I was introduced to it at the farmers markets in London, where I spent a semester in college. There's something very energizing about it. Plus, it's tasty and good for you.  It was only a matter of time before someone "churned" it into a sorbet.

 

Carrot juice and apple juice.

Pineapple Basil Sorbet

One of my goals is to master the art of growing basil, because believe it or not, it's a terrific ingredient for all kinds of ice creams and sorbets. Unfortunately, I seem to eventually kill every plant I bring home. At least this week it was reincarnated as pineapple basil sorbet.

I'm sure there are ways you could make this recipe very complicated by adding in all sorts of extraneous ingredients. I kept it simple with just two: pineapple and basil. I let both of them soak up some sunlight for a couple days.

White Wine Mango Sorbet

I hadn't had a chance to properly celebrate spring. I was traveling, then got sick, then dragged myself down to the Tidal Basin to see the cherry blossom trees only to be swarmed by tourists. Then I made this sorbet. It's boozy and sweet. Icy and smooth. Perfect for kicking off spring.

I think a Riesling or some other sweet white wine would work best for this recipe. I chose this bottle of French white wine called La Vieille Ferme totally at random from Whole Foods. It comes from the slopes of the Luberon Mountains. It had a nice peachy flavor.