Stone fruit sorbets have to be some of my favourites. Their innate creaminess really comes out when they have been blended and churned. Use the ripest fruit you can get your hands on. The quality of the fruit will be front and centre. Removing the skin from the peaches, nectarines or apricots is very much down to personal preference. If you want to remove it then cut a small cross into the base of each fruit. Bring a large pan of water to the boil and add the fruit. Remove after 1–2 minutes and immediately plunge into a bowl of ice water to halt any cooking. The skin should peel off easily.
Makes: 1 litre
Season: Summer
Time: 30-40 mins + 4 hours chilling
Ingredients
1kg ripe stone fruit, peeled if preferred
lemon juice, to taste
about 150g caster sugar
Method
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Cut the fruit into rough chunks and remove the stones. Blend with a squeeze of lemon juice and half of the sugar until you have a smooth purée. Pass through a fine sieve. Whisk in the remaining sugar a little at a time, tasting between additions. If you have a refractometer you are aiming for a 25°Bx so whisk in more sugar as required. Season with some more lemon juice if it tastes a little too sweet. Go very lightly here as you are just brightening the sorbet, not changing the flavour profile.
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Chill the sorbet base in the fridge for at least 4 hours or overnight. Pour into an ice-cream machine and churn until frozen. Transfer to a lidded plastic container and keep in the freezer. Put the container in the fridge about 30 minutes before serving.
Read more: The Last Bite
Going from Gramercy Tavern in New York to Lyle’s, Flor and The River Café in London, Anna is undoubtedly one of the most exciting pastry chefs in today’s British food scene. The Last Bite is her first cookbook, filled with all the technical pastry methods and tricks she has picked up along the way. Anna The Last Bite: A whole new approach to making desserts through the year by Anna Higham. Published by DK, 5 May. £22. Recipe Photography credit: Kim Lightbody.
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