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July 2008
Melon Sorbet
Sorbet de Melon
photo by France Ruffenach
Say
melon to a Frenchman and he pictures only one variety—the
round Charentais with its pale green skin and juicy, brilliant
orange flesh. Beside its intense fragrance, all other melons tend
to pale into obscurity, though a cantaloupe can be substituted. An
ultra-ripe, fragrant melon is essential for sorbet, as chilling
blankets the taste. To highlight the fruitiness, I like to add an
equally fragrant sweet wine such as a Muscat de Frontignan from
the shores of the Mediterranean, but port is good too.
Makes
1 quart/1 liter/1 3/4 pints sorbet
- 1
melon (about 2 pounds/900 grams)
-
1/4 cup/60 grams/2 ounces sugar, more to taste
-
Juice of 1 lemon, more to taste
- 1
cup/250 milliliters/8 fluid ounces sweet white wine, more to
taste
-
1/2 egg white, whisked until frothy
-
Ice cream churn
Chill
a container to hold the sorbet after freezing. With a sharp knife,
cut a thin slice from the top and bottom of the melon so it sits
flat. Pare off the peel, working from top to bottom. Halve the
melon, discard seeds, and cut the flesh in chunks. Purée it in a
food processor—there should be about 3 cups/750 milliliters/1 1/4
pints. Return the purée to the processor with the sugar, lemon
juice, and wine. Process it until smooth. Chill it in the
refrigerator until cold, about 30 minutes. Taste the mixture,
adding more wine, lemon juice or sugar if needed.
Freeze the melon
mixture in the ice cream churn until almost firm. With the blades
turning, add the egg white and continue churning until the sorbet
is firm. Pack it in the chilled container, cover tightly and store
it in the freezer. Fruit sorbet can be kept up to 24 hours but
the texture will gradually harden and crystallize. If hard, let it
stand about an hour in the refrigerator to soften before serving.
Excerpted from THE COUNTRY COOKING OF FRANCE
by Anne Willan, Chronicle Books, 2007.
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