I'm in the midst of creating holiday food gifts this morning. My chocolate truffle blend in chilling, and I've got almonds ready to blanch for marzipan.
One gift that people really seem to appreciate is fresh fruit sorbets. I love making my own so that I can control the sweetness. I want just enough sweet to compliment the fruit without overtaking it. It's also fun to use ingredients other than sugar to balance all the sensory delights.
Today I tried making mango sorbet for the first time. I chopped and strained fresh mango, saving the remaining fibrous pulp for jam or salsa. I also made a simple syrup, which is sugar and water simmered briefly and cooled.
Then it was on to the blend. I follow my instincts over recipe here, and started by blending in some simple syrup and meyer lemon juice. Meyer lemons are not as tart as many lemons, and complimented the mango with some tartness and sweet. This lets me use less syrup for that perfect flavor.
Twenty five minutes of churning later, I had a silky, smooth sorbet. I'll keep one at home so visitors can sample and provide feedback. The others will be gifted. Once the churning container is fully frozen again, it will be time for fresh meyer lemon and basil sorbet.
Until then, happy holidays!
