My name is Alex Quast, and I’m thrilled to pen my first guest blog for Blythe’s Blog. I live much of the time in the Seattle area, and some in Southern California, and I’ve been able to enjoy Leslie’s cooking on many occasions. She is one of my inspirations as an aspiring… something. I’m not quite sure yet. I love food. I love science. I love the idea of combining these two passions, but I’ve got a little time to figure it out, as I’m only 15.
So, every December, my high school band does a huge fundraiser by selling twenty-pound boxes of West Texas ruby red grapefruits. Sadly, one can only eat so many halves of grapefruit for breakfast, and suprêming gets tiring very quickly. Recently, I created a sorbet as a refreshing dessert that isn’t too sweet. The orange juice enhances the citrus flavor of the sorbet, and the herbs add a mellow “green” flavor which cuts into some of the grapefruit’s bitterness.
I will periodically post my musings about my favorite recipes, discoveries, Northwest ingredients, the great Southern California vs. Seattle hamburger debate (oh yes, it exists), and other things that suggest themselves.
Enjoy the sorbet!
Grapefruit Herb Sorbet
Makes about 1 quart
Special hardware: 1.5 quart or more ice cream maker
1½ cups Simple Syrup (equal parts sugar and water, dissolved and cooled)
1½ cups Ruby Red grapefruit juice (from about 3 medium grapefruits)
3 oz (6 Tbs) orange juice
1 Tbs grapefruit zest (from 1 grapefruit)
1½ tsp mint or lemon balm, finely minced (use lemon balm if you can)
¾ tsp kosher salt
Make sure your ice cream maker’s core is in the freezer, along with a 1-quart container and its lid.
Mix all ingredients in a large bowl or pitcher, preferably something with a pour spout, and put in refrigerator.
When the mixture has been macerating for at least an hour, set up your ice cream maker. Make sure you start the machine before you add the liquid, as the quickly freezing base can bind up the paddle.
The average ice cream maker will take about 20 minutes to make a batch of sorbet, but check every few minutes.
You can eat the sorbet as is, and it will have a consistency similar to soft-serve. For scoopable sorbet, put it in the frozen container for 4 to 6 hours before serving.
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