The Cook's Illustrated Cookbook (366 page)

SERVES 4

Be sure to use ripe mangos for this recipe.

1.
Combine mangos and water in blender and puree until smooth, about 2 minutes. Strain through fine-mesh strainer; discard pulp.

2.
Add sugar and lemon juice and stir until sugar is dissolved. Pour into 2 ice cube trays and freeze mixture until firm, at least 2 hours or up to 5 days frozen and transferred to zipper-lock bag.

3.
To serve, place single layer of frozen cubes in bowl of food processor. Pulse until no large chunks of ice remain, 10 to 12 pulses. Scoop into individual bowls and repeat with remaining cubes. Serve immediately.

Omit mangos and water. Increase sugar to ¹⁄
₂
cup; whisk sugar and 1 cup orange juice (2 oranges) together until sugar dissolves. Substitute lime juice for lemon juice; stir lime juice and 1¹⁄
₄
cups sparkling wine into orange juice mixture. Pour into 2 ice cube trays and freeze and process as directed.

Substitute 1 pound plums, halved, pitted, and sliced thin, for mangos and increase water to 1¹⁄
₄
cups. Bring plums, water, sugar, and 1 cinnamon stick to boil in medium saucepan. Reduce heat and simmer until fruit is tender, about 5 minutes. Off heat, remove and discard cinnamon stick and stir in lemon juice. Transfer mixture to food processor and process until smooth. Strain mixture through fine-mesh strainer; discard solids. Pour puree into 2 ice cube trays and freeze and process as directed.

Omit mangos and lemon juice and reduce water to ¹⁄
₂
cup. Whisk water, sugar, and 1¹⁄
₂
cups pink grapefruit juice (2 grapefruits) together until sugar dissolves. Stir in 1 tablespoon Campari. Pour into 2 ice cube trays and freeze and process as directed.

Omit mangos, water, and lemon juice and reduce sugar to ¹⁄
₄
cup. Whisk sugar and 2 cups hot espresso together until sugar dissolves. Let cool to room temperature and stir in 1 tablespoon amaretto. Pour into 2 ice cube trays and freeze and process as directed.

Omit mangos, water, and lemon juice and reduce sugar to 3 tablespoons. Whisk sugar and 1 cup hot espresso together until sugar dissolves. Let cool to room temperature and stir in 1¹⁄
₄
cups milk. Pour into 2 ice cube trays and freeze and process as directed.

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS

Sorbets (a frozen mixture of pureed fruit or juice and sugar) should be creamy and silky. They literally melt in your mouth, almost like ice cream. But too often, sorbets turn out icy. We wanted to replicate our ideal at home. After tests involving gelatin, jam, egg whites, and corn syrup, we found the real key to a creamy sorbet: a high sugar concentration. By using ¹⁄
₂
cup of sugar per cup of fruit (give or take a few tablespoons, depending on the fruit), we were able to achieve the desired result: a smooth, creamy texture without cloying sweetness. A small amount of lemon or lime juice balanced the sweetness perfectly. We also found that adding a tablespoon of high-proof alcohol (tasteless vodka worked well) improved the texture of the sorbet and permitted a slight reduction in the amount of sugar for stronger fruit flavor.

MAKES ABOUT
1¹⁄
₂
PINTS

If using a canister-style ice-cream machine, be sure to freeze the empty canister at least 24 hours and preferably 48 hours before churning. For self-refrigerating ice-cream machines, prechill the canister by running the machine for 5 to 10 minutes before pouring in the sorbet.

1.
Pulse berries, sugar, and salt together in food processor until combined, about 15 pulses. With processor running, add water, lemon juice, and vodka, if using, and continue to process until sugar is dissolved, about 1 minute. Strain mixture through fine-mesh strainer into large bowl and refrigerate until completely chilled, about 1 hour.

2.
Transfer mixture to ice-cream machine. Churn until mixture resembles soft-serve ice cream. Transfer sorbet to airtight container, press firmly to remove any air pockets, and freeze until firm, at least 3 hours. (Sorbet can be frozen for up to 1 week.)

Omit berries. Reduce sugar by 1 tablespoon and add 2 teaspoons grated orange zest to food processor with sugar and salt. Omit water and reduce lemon juice to 1 tablespoon; add 2 cups orange juice (4 oranges) to processor with lemon juice.

Omit berries and lemon juice. Increase sugar by 1 tablespoon and add 2 teaspoons grated grapefruit zest to food processor with sugar and salt. Add 1¹⁄
₂
cups grapefruit juice (3 grapefruits) to processor with water. Substitute Campari for vodka.

Omit berries. Increase sugar to 1¹⁄
₄
cups and water to 1¹⁄
₂
cups; add 2 teaspoons grated lemon zest to food processor with sugar and salt. Increase lemon juice to ¹⁄
₂
cup (3 lemons).

Omit berries. Increase sugar to 1¹⁄
₄
cups and water to 1¹⁄
₂
cups; add 2 teaspoons grated lime zest to food processor with sugar and salt. Substitute ¹⁄
₂
cup lime juice (4 limes) for lemon juice.

Substitute 12 ounces blueberries for berries.

Substitute 2¹⁄
₂
pounds peaches, peeled, halved, pitted, and chopped coarse, for berries. Reduce sugar by 1 tablespoon. Substitute rum or peach schnapps for vodka.

Substitute 3 mangos, peeled, pitted, and chopped coarse, for berries. Reduce sugar to ³⁄
₄
cup plus 1 tablespoon.

Substitute 1 small pineapple, peeled, cored, and chopped coarse, for berries. Reduce sugar to ³⁄
₄
cup and lemon juice to 1 tablespoon.

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS

The perfect sherbet recipe is a cross between sorbet and ice cream, containing fruit, sugar, and dairy but no egg yolks. Like its foreign cousin, sorbet, sherbet should taste vibrant and fresh. In the case of sherbet, however, its assertive flavor is tempered by the creamy addition of dairy. Ideally, it is as smooth as ice cream but devoid of ice cream’s richness and weight. We we began with classic orange sherbet. For bright flavor, we started by combining fruit zest and sugar together in a food processor before adding 2 cups of orange juice. A small amount of alcohol ensured the sherbet had a smooth, silky texture, and whipped heavy cream lightened the texture of our frozen dessert. To guarantee sherbet with an even consistency, we prepared it in an ice-cream machine and then come up with variations with lime, lemon, and raspberries.

MAKES ABOUT 1 QUART

If using a canister-style ice-cream machine, be sure to freeze the empty canister at least 24 hours and preferably 48 hours before churning. For self-refrigerating ice-cream machines, prechill the canister by running the machine for 5 to 10 minutes before pouring in the sherbet. For the freshest, purest orange flavor, use freshly squeezed unpasteurized orange juice (either store-bought or juiced at home). Pasteurized fresh-squeezed juice makes an acceptable though noticeably less fresh-tasting sherbet. Do not use juice made from concentrate, which has a cooked and less bright flavor.

1.
Pulse sugar, orange zest, and salt in food processor until damp, 10 to 15 pulses. With processor running, add orange juice and lemon juice in slow, steady stream; continue to process until sugar is fully dissolved, about 1 minute. Strain mixture through fine-mesh strainer into medium bowl; stir in triple sec, then cover and place in freezer until chilled and mixture registers about 40 degrees, 30 minutes to 1 hour. Do not let mixture freeze.

2.
When mixture is chilled, using whisk, whip cream in medium bowl until soft peaks form. Whisking constantly, add juice mixture in steady stream, pouring against edge of bowl. Transfer to ice-cream machine and churn until mixture resembles thick soft-serve ice cream, 25 to 30 minutes.

3.
Transfer sherbet to airtight container, press firmly to remove any air pockets, and freeze until firm, at least 3 hours. (Sherbet can be frozen for up to 1 week.)

Substitute lime zest for orange zest, increase sugar to 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons, and omit lemon juice. Substitute ²⁄
₃
cup lime juice (6 limes) combined with 1¹⁄
₂
cups water for orange juice.

Omit orange juice. Substitute lemon zest for orange zest, increase sugar to 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons, and increase lemon juice to ²⁄
₃
cup (4 lemons). Combine lemon juice with 1¹⁄
₂
cups water before adding to food processor.

In-season fresh raspberries have the best flavor, but when they are not in season, frozen raspberries are a better option. Substitute a 12-ounce bag of frozen raspberries for fresh.

Omit orange zest and juice. Cook 15 ounces (3 cups) raspberries with sugar, salt, and ³⁄
₄
cup water in medium saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until mixture just begins to simmer, about 7 minutes. Strain through fine-mesh strainer into medium bowl, pressing on solids to extract as much liquid as possible. Add lemon juice and triple sec; cover and place in freezer until chilled and mixture registers about 40 degrees, 30 minutes to 1 hour. Proceed as directed.

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS

Homemade vanilla ice cream is never as creamy, smooth, or dense as the impossibly smooth “super-premium” ice cream found at gourmet markets or high-end ice cream shops. We wanted an incredibly creamy, dense, custard-based vanilla ice cream that would rival any pricey artisanal batch. A vanilla bean delivered the best vanilla flavor. And a combination of heavy cream and whole milk, along with egg yolks, yielded ice cream with just the right amount of richness. Creating smooth ice cream means reducing the size of the ice crystals; the smaller they are, the less perceptible they are. Our first move was to replace some of the sugar in our custard base with corn syrup, which interferes with crystal formation, making for a super-smooth texture. To speed up the freezing process, thereby ensuring small ice crystals, we froze a portion of the custard prior to churning, then mixed it with the remaining refrigerated custard. Finally, instead of freezing the churned ice cream in a tall container, we spread it into a thin layer in a cold metal baking pan and chilled it, which allowed the ice cream to firm up more quickly and helped deliver the smooth texture we were after.