Thursday, August 11, 2011

Pear Sorbet




From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was an American poet of some renown. I'm sure he never dreamed his words would be used to review a recipe, but one of his poems sums up the dilemma I have with today's recipe. I suspect, wittingly or not, you've committed his verse about the little girl who had a little curl, to memory. I'm going to paraphrase the verse to suit the needs of my review, so I'll continue on and say, that when this pear sorbet is good, it is very very good, but when it is bad it is horrid. Horrid? Yup, like many recipes that use only a handful of ingredients, this one works only if you use top quality ingredients. That means your pears must be seasonal and ripe and that the wine you use must be sweet, not cloying, and of drinkable quality. A good Riesling would be perfect, but pear or apple cider are acceptable substitutes. Apple juice will overpower the flavor of the pears, so I can't recommend its use here. This is a fairly sophisticated sorbet and I would not serve it to everyone, but those with discerning palates will love it. Here's the recipe.

Pear Sorbet...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite

Ingredients:
5 small pears, peeled and sliced
3/4 cup sweet Riesling or sauterne (pear or apple cider may be substituted)
1/3 cup sugar
4-1/2 teaspoons lemon juice

Directions:
1) Combine all ingredients in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer, covered, until pears are tender, about 8 to 10 minutes. Cool slightly.
2) Pour mixture into a food processor; cover and process for 1-2 minutes or until smooth. Transfer to a 13 x 9-inch dish. Cover and freeze for 4 hours or until firm.
3) Just before serving, process again in a food processor for 1-2 minutes or until smooth. Spoon into dessert dishes. Yield: 4 servings.







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You might also enjoy these recipes:
Cherry Sherbet - The Pioneer Woman Cooks
Chocolate Sorbet - Wonderfoodland
Berry Basil Sorbet - Former Chef
Pina Colada Sorbet - Gina's Skinny Recipes
Limoncello Mint Sorbet - Culinary Cory

47 comments :

Banana Wonder said...

Oooh oooh what a delightful recipe! I have never seen pear in frozen form and I have no idea why - must be extra delish with that white wine as well. YUM!

Aldy said...

Elegant and delicious sorbet!!! Pears are one of my favorite fruits. Looks absolutely wonderful,Mary. And I love those lemon cookies :)

Have a lovely day!

Hugs,

Aldy.

Lifewithspices said...

so yummy n delightful..

Anonymous said...

I love sorbet.Mostly when we have a long meal and lot of courses I make light lemon sorbet and serve between meals to cleanse the paletet.However in the summer I can imagine pear sorbet as a welcome refreshment:)

Elin said...

Perfect for the summer...pear sorbet mmmm Mary ,I want some :)
Have a nice day,
Elin

Priya Sreeram said...

looks very delightful !

Ellen Whyte said...

Good stuff and the ginger noodles look good too...

Maris (In Good Taste) said...

Love the wine in here. What a gourmet sorbet!

Katarina said...

This sounds good and pear is a great fruit!

martine said...

thanks for that, perfect timing, we have a bumper crop
martine

Diane said...

I have never tried a pear sorbet, this sounds delicious. Diane

Alessandra said...

Pear sorbet is one of my favourite, but I never made it with sweet wine, thank you for the tip, I should try :-)

Ciao
Alessandra

Anonymous said...

I could really sink my teeth into a pear, one that has been sitting the fridge for about a day, I never had pear sorbet before, but I'd sure love to try it.

Karen S Booth said...

One of my favourite sorbets, and as I have pears on my old pear tree this year I may try this out!
Lovely photos.
Karen

Sam Hoffer / My Carolina Kitchen said...

What a lovely sorbet Mary. I just happen to know a couple of people with discerning palates (myself included of course). This sounds like a wonderful way to kick off fall weather when it arrives.
Sam

T.W. Barritt at Culinary Types said...

You got me with the poetry - and I'm sure the taste is poetry too!

Karen ( Back Road Journal) said...

We have a lot of pears trees in our orchard and this will be a wonderful way to use some of them. Thank you Mary, for sharing this recipe.

Anonymous said...

This sounds perfect to try as my first sorbet recipe!

Valerie Harrison (bellini) said...

This is refreshing sorbet Mary. I can't wait for tree ripened pears!

Clint said...

No kiddin'---this would freshen Clint's palate after a cheeseburger and some homemade onion rings. Perfect!

Kim said...

I love pear sorbot, it's so delicate... With a touch of Riesling it is so sophisticated, I would like it a lot!

Unknown said...

Oooooh... sounds so wonderful! As much sorbet as I have consumed in my life, I have never had pear sorbet!! Must try this soon :)

PeggyR said...

That sounds very refreshing.

Lynne (lynnesgiftsfromtheheart) said...

Elegant and delicious looking sorbet. Your lemon cookies would sure taste good right now with my early morning cup of coffee.
hugs ~lynne~

penny aka jeroxie said...

Oh! I think I can make this with maple syrup?

Adam said...

I love pairs (bosc especially), but have never made anything with them before, I must change this. And I am amused that the way you feel about this sorbet, is how I feel about 80s music :).

Valérie said...

Well, you've given me a reason to look forward to late summer, when pears around here will be in season. I love pear sorbet!

Joanne said...

Hmmm this sounds finicky but I'm sure I'd love it at its peak!

polwig said...

I can actually taste the sorbet now... perfect since the pear season is here.

spontaneous-euphoria said...

LOVELY for this warm summer! Gorgeous- a must try recipe x

Adam said...

I just realized I spelled pears "PAIRS". Sad. :).

Unknown said...

Love this, so simple yet so yummy sounding. I would love a scoop right now as it is blistering here. Just looking at it makes me feel cooler!

Beloved Green said...

I love pear, I love sorbet, I LOVE YOU! Wonderful post.

That Girl said...

So many pear flavored things are green. I love that this is the same color as the inside of a real pear!

Kim said...

pear and sorbet sound awesome duo! mmmm! have a great week mary!

Anonymous said...

Love pears and Longfellow. What a a great analogy.
Karen

Inspired by eRecipeCards said...

All these ice cream and sorbet posts I am seeing.... must have been hot last week!

Reshmi Mahesh said...

Wonderful recipe...looks delicious...

Ginny Hartzler said...

Looks refreshing! Do you know how to make gelato also, and how it is different from ice-cream, sorbet, and sherbet? It seems to be all the rage now, it is even in the grocery stores.

Baking Addict said...

I remember having pear sorbet in Italy and it was absolutely amazing!

Claudia said...

I don't know if I have a discerning palate - but I know what I like and I like simplicity, fresh, seasonal good ingredients and this beckons. On all accounts. I love the use of the rhyme!

Heather S-G said...

OH, I bet this is lovely when done right. I love the pairing of pear w/ Riesling...sounds perfectly refreshing :D

Unknown said...

The idea of pears in frozen form really sounds good right about now.

Ruth said...

I love the addition of dessert wine in this one! I'll bet the flavour is amazing!

Anonymous said...

This is the most wonderful recipe - probably the most inviting recipe I have read in a while.
Have a happy weekend.
:-) Mandy

What's Baking?? said...

Looks good!

Cooking Creation said...

Absolutely refreshing!

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