Thursday, August 09, 2007

Pretty in Pink: A Gooseberry Sorbet

It's hot here in Estonia. I'm sure Estonia feels still cool enough for Ximena & J. who last weekend arrived here up in the North hoping to escape the Spanish summer heat (they're currently holidaying on Saaremaa, a beautiful island off the west coast). But I'm having real difficulties with the temperatures around +30 Celsius and constant sunshine. So much so that I've opted to stay and work from home for a few days. You see, the beach is just 5 minutes away, so I can always hop on my bike, cycle to the beach and dip into the waves to cool the body and clear the mind.

Alternatively, I can have yet another scoop of ice cream. I made a second batch of David Lebovitz's wonderfully tasting and amazingly simple Vietnamese coffee ice cream this afternoon - if you haven't tried that one (and like your coffee with milk & sugar), then I strongly suggest you pick up a can of sweetened condensed milk next time you're at the supermarket! But here's a sorbet recipe from a fortnight ago. Not just any sorbet, but a gooseberry sorbet of most beautiful pink shade. I served this at the recent movie night, together with four other frozen desserts, where it was a clear favourite with many of my friends. This gooseberry sorbet has a sweet yet subtly sharp flavour, and requires a use of ripe and good-flavoured gooseberries.

Gooseberry Sorbet
(Tikrisorbee)



350 ml water
300 g sugar
500 g ripe red gooseberries

Top and tail the gooseberries.
Bring the water to the boil, add sugar and stir, until dissolved. Add gooseberries and boil for 5 minutes, until softened.
Cool, then puree in a blender. Press through a fine sieve, trying to gather as much of the juices as possible.
Place into the fridge for an hour, or until the mixture is thoroughly cool.
Churn in your ice cream machine according to the instructions.

BLAST FROM THE PAST
A year ago I shared a recipe for a summery chicken with creamy mustard and dill sauce and crispy bacon. Two years ago I wrote about carrots pickled with rosemary and orange juice - both of which I still happily recommend you'd try.

9 comments:

Dagmar said...

It looks very pretty! By the way, we finally tried the Vietnamese coffee icecream, it's amazing!

Shaun said...

Pille - I have never seen red gooseberries before and am intrigued by your sorbet. I picked up some redcurrants at the market yesterday and am decided what to do with them. Maybe I'll follow the sorbet route, too.

Evelin said...

peab seda jäätisemasina asja vist ikka ajama hakkama:D

suure tõenäosusega teen sel aastal tikritest veel paraja portsu marjaraamatust pärit karusmarjatšatnit. üliülimaitsev! kuigi ma ilmselt tegin ka sinna eelmisel aastal väikseid muudatusi sisse:)

Figs, Bay, Wine said...

Oh my, what a gorgeous shade of pink! My Dad's favorite is coffee ice cream, and when I miss my family, I like to pick some up. Instead I think I'll try both David's version and this gooseberry sorbet. One guy at my market sells red gooseberries. Great idea!

David T. Macknet said...

Looks and sounds marvelous! And such a simple recipe! I've only ever seen green-ish goosberries, though.

I had a question: if you're going to pass them through a sieve, is it necessary to top & tail them? Won't those bits just be left behind?

Yes - I'm lazy. :)

Jeanne said...

Oh that looks lovely! I always do a double-take when I see pink gooseberry anything - I grew up knowing only Cape gooseberries (physalis) and to me gooseberry anything should be YELLOW :) Still envy you your Kitchenaid ice cream maker. And your proximity to the beach!

Anonymous said...

Hi! I was googling Estonian food after having seen the Finnish morning TV with some dishes being cooked by the Estonian Presidents cook and found your blog. It is nice to see what other bloggers blog about and I will certainly be coming back to see more of your delicious recipes.
You are welcome to read about how it is to be a foreigner living in your neighbouring country Finland.
Wishing you all a nice day!

lobstersquad said...

it´s lovely and cool on the island! well, cool for us, anyway. and there are plenty of berries, too. very tempting, really

Pille said...

Dagmar - having just eaten another scoop of that Vietnamese coffee ice cream, I agree:)

Shaun - I'd probably pair redcurrants with something a tad milder. Peaches maybe?

Evelin - mul oli ka see plaan, aga vist teen hoopis tikri-õunamoosi. Ja loodan, et leiad endale väärt jäätisemasina:)

Figs Olives Wine - I'd have a hard time choosing between the two ice creams/sorbets:)

SteviMack - that thought crossed my mind. If I were you, I'd still top them (or is it 'tail them'? I.e. I'd remove the black bit and leave the other).

Jeanne - that's a totally different 'gooseberry', you know:)

Mona - welcome to my blog, and I hope you'll return! I'll be checking out your blog soon!

Ximena - glad to hear you're enjoying the holiday. It's way too hot for me, but I imagine you must be quite happy:) Looking forward to seeing you two again on Saturday!