Chocolate Sorbet

Posted by in Chocolate Recipes on May 20 2010 | Leave A Comment
Chocolate Sorbet

Guess who got an ice-cream maker for Christmas? And when you have an ice-cream maker, like chocolate, and want a low-fat desert, then what better than a chocolate sorbet?

I’ve looked high and low for sorbet recipes. My first attempt was a bit of a failure – it wouldn’t churn properly and set so hard that it needed to be chopped up with a knife. Not good.

This recipe gets the seal of approval. It’s easy, and seriously yumbly. The brown sugar gives a more complex flavour than using white sugar, but if you don’t have any, just ignore it and use a cup of white sugar instead.

Secret hint of sorbet: Don’t reduce the sugar quantity – too little sugar and it will set too hard and be horrible.

Ingredients

  • 2 cups water
  • ½ cup soft brown sugar
  • ½ cup white sugar
  • 2 tbsp cocoa powder (unsweetened)
  • About 100g good quality dark chocolate (about 70% cocoa solids)
  • 1 tsp vanilla essence
  • 1 tsp Galliano Amaretto (or brandy, or cherry brandy) (optional)
Chocolate Sorbet
Chocolate Sorbet

Method

Bring the water to a boil, and add the sugars. Dissolve.

Add the cocoa powder, whisk in, and then leave on the heat for a minute or two.

Break your dark chocolate into pieces about 1 cm x 1 cm (a bit bigger or smaller does not really seem to matter). There is no need to chop finely or mess about with a food processor.

Add the chocolate pieces to the hot water / sugar / cocoa. Stir for a few seconds.
Turn off the heat.

Over the next 1-2 minutes, whisk a few times to make sure all the chocolate has melted and mixed in.

Leave standing to cool – about an hour; then add the vanilla and Amaretto and whisk in.

Refrigerate the mix for several hours.

After a few hours, the mix will seem to have separated with a semi-set layer on top – that’s OK, just whisk it again to mix, and then pour into your ice-cream maker.

Allow to churn until it seems to have a lot more resistance, and it looks glossy – about 20 minutes but times will depend on quantity, room temperature and your ice-cream maker. More churning seems to make smaller ice crystals and a smoother result.

Scoop the mix out of the ice-cream maker into a bowl, and place back in the freezer to harden – at least an hour; preferably overnight.

To serve: allow the large frozen container of sorbet to warm a little: 5-10 minutes out of the freezer makes all the difference. Form 2-3 balls per person using a scoop or a couple of spoons, and shave a little dark chocolate over (a vegetable peeler works well for this).

You might also like...

Comments On This Post

  1. Incredible. Love the inclusion of Amaretto as well.

  2. First I saw the recipe for your Chocolate Honey Sorbet and then the link to the Chocolate Sorbet, these both sound absolutely wonderful for these hot summer days. Definitely going to try them both and add them to my favorite chocolate recipes!

    Dodi

  3. Mai

    I actually went to your blog ydesertay looking for sorbet guidance! We just got an ice cream maker and I am thrilled. And! I owe you an email and a thanks for all of your great Brooklyn/NYC recommendations. Went to Blue Hill and Diner, among others. Had the best time! I ate myself into a coma. So worth it though.

Leave a comment




Chocablog: Chocolate Blog