Strawberry Sorbet by Lizzie

Hey everyone!

It’s only Wednesday, and already this week is totally topsy-turvy! For one, I (and many other New Yorkers) experienced my first EARTHQUAKE yesterday! It was really minor, but people were still freaking out. I thought I was going crazy for a second! I can’t imagine living somewhere like California where this sort of thing happens frequently.

Anyway, if you’ll remember, this week I’m focusing on STRAWBERRIES, and today I want to provide you with a sweet, end-of-summer treat that will refresh you in these dog days of summer! So let’s get shakin’ and make some….

STRAWBERRY SORBET!!

Ingredients:
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup water
2 cups fresh chopped strawberries
1 tbs freshly-squeezed lemon juice
1-1.5 tbs vodka
2 tbs fresh chopped mint

Preparation:
In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine the sugar and water. Stir with a wooden spoon until the mixture comes to a boil, reduce the heat to low, and simmer 5 minutes. Then, remove from heat and cover, let stand about 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, rinse and chop up your strawberries and throw them in your large Magic Bullet cup. Pour in about 1/4 of the sugar water, and blend about 10 seconds, until smooth.

Add this mixture back to the remaining sugar water, and stir in the lemon juice, vodka, and mint.

FYI, the vodka is not so much to make this a boozey sweet treat (though we all know where I stand on those), but because it’s the key to making a soft sorbet. Alcohol doesn’t freeze, so adding it to the sorbet will keep it from getting to hard. You can use other alcohols as well, but vodka is your best bet, because it won’t affect the taste of your sorbet.

Anyway, if you have an ice cream maker, you can move this mixture to it and process according to the manufacturer’s instructions, but don’t fear! I don’t have an ice cream maker, and this is how I do it:

Pour your mixture into a container (the wider the better, as it will freeze faster) and cover and throw into the freezer. When the mixture is semi-solid in a few hours, mash it up with a fork and refreeze. When frozen, put this BACK in your Magic Bullet and process until smooth. Cover and freeze one last time until it’s ready to serve!

Obviously, sine there is a bit of a wait time on this, make it a couple days in advance! Garnish with a mint leave if you’re feeling SUPER fancy!

Enjoy the rest of your week!

~Lizzie