Not Just Vanilla: Strawberry Delight

Strawberry Sorbet

A cool and sweet treat that you can normally can eat it spring and summer. An icy sweet treat that is addictive as well as delicious and healthy. I crave fresh fruits, berries and vegetables all year long and unfortunately when I get a craving for strawberries, well needless to say, it isn't spring yet.

Welcome to winter in Indiana !

This recipe caught my eye a few weeks ago when I bought the

Perfect Scoop by Dave Libovitz. This recipe makes a very full flavored strawberry sorbet. It is smooth with the light texture of the strawberry seeds. It is also sweet but not super sweet and strawberries are wonderful after a very heavy rich or garlicky dinner. They refresh your palate and are just delightful. I loved this sorbet!

I made it first with very expensive and bland strawberries (winter berries) and it was not to bad. But I wanted to experiment with frozen strawberries.

I sometimes freeze my own fruit and vegetables in the summer, I only froze 3 farmers dozen of corn on the cob this year. However, I found frozen fruit at the grocery on sale, 1 pound for $2.49. First I added the strawberries and sugar together in a large bowl and covered it with plastic wrap. I also filled a larger bowl full of hot water ( not hot enough to cook) and placed the bowl with the strawberries in to the hot water bowl. After about 20 to 25 minutes, when the strawberries were almost completely defrosted, I added in the lemon juice and 1 teaspoon of raspberry liquor. I then put the mixture into the blender and transfered it to the refrigerator for about 1 hour.

Strawberry Sorbet

Ingredients:

1 lb. fresh or frozen strawberries, rinsed and hulled

3/4 cup sugar

1 tsp. kirsch optional)

1 tsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice

Pinch of salt

This is a quick and very easy recipe perfect for Valentines Day.

Slice the strawberries and toss them in a medium bowl with the sugar and kirsch, if using, stirring until the sugar begins to dissolve. Cover and let stand for 1 hour, stirring every so often. You can strain the mixture to remove the seeds it you want, I liked the texture with the seeds and it is much healthier to keep the strawberry seeds in the sorbet.

Puree the strawberries and their liquid with the lemon juice and salt in a blender or food processor until smooth. Press the mixture through a strainer to remove the seeds if you wish.

Chill the mixture thoroughly, then freeze it in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions.