Recipe: Sunset Sorbet with White Chocolate Sauce

Sunset Sorbet with White Chocolate Sauce

by Stephanie Zonis

This sorbet is named for its pretty orange-peach color. I like the taste of mango, and here it is mixed with watermelon, lime, and just a bit of optional rum. Very refreshing! The white chocolate sauce adds an accent of richness and sweetness without cloying. This is a perfect hot-weather dessert; I like to serve it in wineglasses with a small pool of the sauce under the sorbet and just a bit more poured on top. Fresh berries look wonderful with this, too.

Produce is more variable than just about anything else, so you may have to vary the amount of sugar called for here. When the fruit is puréed, start by adding about 1/3 c. sugar. Stir it in well to dissolve, then taste a bit of the mixture. If it is not sweet enough, simply add a bit more sugar, stir in, and taste again. Remember that the freezing process subdues sweetness slightly, so you may want to have the fruit purée a bit sweeter than you'd like before it's frozen. Superfine sugar is used here, as it dissolves almost instantly. You can buy it in supermarkets in a one-pound box, or make your own by processing sugar in a food processor fitted with a steel blade until the sugar grains are extremely fine.

You'll need an ice cream freezer of one-quart capacity to make this. The sauce should be made in advance, but it can be made up to several days ahead if desired (let it get to room temperature, then cover tightly and store at cool room temperature). As with all homemade frozen desserts, the sorbet should be eaten within 2-3 days of churning.

Incidentally, if you've never worked with a mango before, the fruit is ripe when it yields to gentle pressure. The pit clings to the flesh and must be cut away, and the skin must also be discarded. Ignore these minor distractions, and make yourself some of this good sorbet!

White Chocolate Sauce:

9 ozs. best-quality white chocolate, finely chopped
1/3 c. + 1 Tbsp. hot water

In medium heatproof bowl, place chopped chocolate. Place over warm water low heat (water should not touch bottom of bowl); stir often until almost smooth. Remove from heat and water and stir until melted and completely smooth. All at once, add hot water. with sturdy whisk, stir water into chocolate (mixture will separate at first and look awful, but eventually water should incorporate fully and a smooth sauce will form.

If sauce is not smooth, turn into food processor fitted with steel blade and process just until smooth.) Cool sauce to room temperature, then cover airtight and store at cool room temperature.

About 1-1/3 cups

Sunset Sorbet:

2 c. diced (1/4" cubes) watermelon, free of seeds
2 c. diced (1/4" cubes) ripe mango (about 2 large mangos)
1/3 c. water
3 Tbsp. freshly-squeezed, strained lime juice
3/4 c. superfine sugar (see recipe introduction)
Optional: 1 Tbsp. light rum

In blender container, combine first four ingredients. Cover and blend at high speed until puréed. (If you wish a very fine texture, you can force the purée through a fine strainer at this point.) Turn purée into medium nonreactive bowl. Add sugar and stir in thoroughly; taste for sweetness. Adjust sweetness to your preference. Chill purée, covered, for 4-6 hours, or until very cold.

To churn:

Follow manufacturer's instructions for freezing sorbet. To add optional rum, wait until mixture is about three-quarters frozen. I find that this churns quickly. When churned, quickly transfer to microwaveable/freezable container and freeze. About 3 cups sorbet, or 6 servings of one-half cup each

To serve:

If you have made the sauce more than about 8 hours in advance, it will solidify slightly. Gradually add a small amount of warm water at a time, whisking each addition in well, until sauce is thin and pourable (you might want to whisk in a bit of freshly-squeezed, strained lime juice or light rum at the end, too).

Make small pools of the sauce in serving dishes or wineglasses. If you churned the sorbet more than 4-6 hours ago, it will be frozen pretty solidly. To soften, remove top. Place in microwave at medium (50%) power for about 15 seconds. Check consistency; sorbet should be just softened enough to scoop well. If not, microwave for a few seconds more. Scoop sorbet onto pools of sauce; pass remaining sauce to pour over sorbet as desired.

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Copyright © 1998 Francesca Chocolate Productions. All Rights Reserved. Stephanie Zonis provides the above information to anyone, but retains copyright on all text. This means that you may not: distribute the text to others without the express written permission of Stephanie Zonis; "mirror" or include this information on your own server or documents without my permission; modify or re-use the text on this system. You may: print copies of the information for your own personal use; store the files on your computer for your own personal use only; and reference hypertext documents on this server from your own documents.

This page originally created in 1998 and modified October 2007