Tomato sorbet is delicious and easy to make from fresh fruit. I needed a palate cleanser when planning the “Offal Good Dinner” and I wanted something closer to our theme than your typical amuse-bouche. I believe this boldly flavored treat accomplished the mission.
This tastes just like a mouthful of garden fresh tomato right off the vine – with a spicy kick.
It required a couple of test batches before working out the kinks, because it has almost no fat, no additional sugar and a lot of water content. Because of that the freezing point is pretty high and will turn into a block of ice if left in the freezer too long. You can deal with this by adding sugar, alcohol or a lot of olive oil, but this takes you further away from pure tomato flavor. The high water content also contributes to a faster melting rate, so you can’t let it set out to soften like you would ice cream.
In the end it’s a balancing act that you have to pay attention to. It works for fabulous fresh tomato flavor, but you must serve it shortly after freezing.
Let’s Make Tomato Sorbet
Begin with garden fresh tomatoes.
Place the ingredients skins and all in a blender.
Blend thoroughly.
Strain and discard solids.
Freeze the sorbet per the manufacturers instructions.
Place in the freezer for an hour or two to freeze a little more, but keep an eye on it because if left too long it will turn into a block of ice.
Tomato Sorbet
Fresh tomato sorbet like eating one off the vine
- Prep Time: 30
- Cook Time: 30
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 8-12 1x
Ingredients
- 4 large ripe tomatoes, chopped skins and all
- 1/2 cup water
- 3/4 cup tomato juice
- 1/2 tsp olive oil
- 1/2 tsp vegetable oil (optional – to lower the freezing point)
- Juice of 1 ripe lime
- 1 tsp Tabasco sauce
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
Instructions
- Blend tomatoes, tomato juice, oil, lime juice, hot sauce and water in a blender or food processor until smooth
- Strain through a fine-mesh sieve and discard the solids
- Add salt and stir
- Place in the refrigerator for an hour to chill
- Freeze in an ice cream maker per manufacturers instruction
- Store in freezer until ready to serve, but not overnight! The high water content will freeze it into a solid block!
Notes
Thanks to chef Jose Andres for sharing his recipe.