Nectarine Sorbet

After years of passing up on recipes requiring an ice cream maker I caved and purchased one along with The Perfect Scoop by David Lebovitz. The book contains every imaginable ice cream and sorbet recipe.

Waiting for the nectarines to ripen was the longest step involved in making this sorbet. The amazing color comes from the nectarine skins. A bit of vodka prevents the  sorbet from turning rock solid in the freezer yet is not detected in the taste.

Lebovitz suggests serving scoops of nectarine sorbet in wine glasses and allowing each guest to pour in a bit (or more) of red wine. Heavenly!

Ingredients:

2 pounds ripe nectarines
2/3 cup water
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vodka

Directions:

1. Slice the nectarines and remove pits. Cut into small chunks.
2. Cook with water in a small saucepan over medium heat until soft, about 10 minutes.
3. Remove from the heat and add sugar. Let cool to room temperature.
4. When cool, puree the mixture with an immersion blender or in a food processor. Stir in the vodka.
5. Chill the mixture thoroughly, then freeze in an ice cream maker.

Yield: 1 quart.

Photo: The Kitchn.