Orange Sherbet

First things first.. it’s Sherbet, like Sorbet. I’ve been pronouncing it wrong my entire life, until last week it seems. I’ve probably been spelling it wrong, too. There are some things I have my Baton Rouge upbringing to thank, and I’m sure both misprououncing and misspelling Sherbet is one of them (farewell Sherbert, like Herbet!)

I was recently sent a package of gorgeous Sanguinellos (I learned, another name for “Blood Oranges”) from Frieda’s Produce. I love the name Sanguinello— a much more polite thing to call a fruit than “blood.” I did, briefly, consider calling this post Sanguinello Sorbet because I love alliteration and it just flowed! But, then how would you guys find it when you searched for it 🙂 So, we’ll call it Blood Orange Sherbet, which is what it is.

I juiced these beauties, and was quite tempted to make Blood Orange Mimosas, but decided on something even more refreshing to celebrate the last weekend of summer: ice cream! Well, not ice cream, but something similar: sherbet. Sherbet is made just like sorbet, except there’s cream in it. I remember Orange Sherbet always being around when I grew up, and I didn’t quite get it. But, now that I’ve been sorbet-ing fruits aplenty, adding cream felt like a fun, next step.

There’s something really satisfying about juicing citrus manually, so I spent some time and juiced and juiced and juiced. (I think there’s red-tinted juice still splattered somewhere in my house.) Then, I just added it to a blender with milk, cream, sugar and a little corn syrup to prevent crystallization. I blended until it came together, and then I poured it into my ice cream maker. And voila! That’s it. Well, almost it…

I couldn’t stop at Blood Orange Sherbet when Blood Orange Givrées would be even more enticing!

True story: I was reading Jessica Harris, culinary historian’s memoir “My Soul Looks Back,” while I have the sherbet freezing, and I’m thinking about putting it in some hollowed out oranges to be fancy, and she’s talking about how she made Orange Givrées at a dinner party back in NYC’s primetime days when she was hanging out with Maya Angelou and James Baldwin and the like. Orange Givrées are when orange sorbet is put back in the orange and re-frozen. So, that decided it. Into the oranges the sherbet went. And since Labor Day was just around the corner, I knew it would be the perfect thing to share with some of the folks at the writing retreat I’m at in Eureka Springs, Arkansas (Check out the direct sunlight in the photo below—don’t see that when I’m in NYC, that’s for sure.)

The blood orange sherbet was a hit! I know it looks a little pinker in the ice cream maker, but the color contrast from indoor lighting compared to outdoor lighting was shockingly different. I may have to start taking all of my food photos outside now!

Orange Sherbet

1 1/2 cups (12 ounces) orange juice
3/4 cup whole milk
3/4 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup corn syrup
1 tablespoon lemon juice (from about 1/2 lemon)

Note: If you want to make Orange Givrées, half and hollow out 4 oranges. Once the sherbet is frozen, you can scoop it into the halves and then re-freeze completely before serving.

1. Juice the oranges. You should have a total of 1 and 1/2 cup fresh orange juice, but you can use packaged orange juice if desired.

2. Combine the juice, milk, cream, vanilla, sugar, corn syrup and lemon juice in a large bowl or blender. Whisk or blend until combined.

3. Pour the mixture into an ice cream maker and churn according to its directions. Once churned, freeze in an air tight container until ready to enjoy. (If making Givrées, scoop the sherbet into the hallowed out orange halves before re-freezing.)

Thanks to Frieda’s Produce for generously sponsoring this post.