“The stew was fiery hot, Hotah knew, though he tasted none of it. Sherbet followed, to cool the tongue.” (aDwD)

Sherbet

Our Thoughts:

Unable to decide which recipes to use, we tried three of them. We’ll start with the modern and work our way back in time.

Modern is YUM. The tang of the Greek yogurt pairs deliciously with the sweetness of the pom juice. This version took the longest to freeze, but was lovely and scoopable once it was.

The Oldish recipe is the most pomegranatey, having the most unadulterated juice in it. We tried molding it, which worked reasonably well, although might do better with a silicone mold.

The Traditional Sharbat is the strangest of the three, but I have a feeling that is just due to the recipe we used. We’ve had sharbat that was delicious, but sadly, this one falls short of expectations. The almond milk would better suit a fruit (haha!) like apricots, I think, rather than the pomegranate.

Verdict? We liked the first two about the same, and the traditional version not so much. Sherbet in just about any form, and any flavor, though, is just perfect on a hot summer day.

**Cook’s Notes: If you have an ice cream maker, the first two recipes will be wildly easier for you to make than the rest of us. However, they are still very doable without one.**

Modern Sherbet Recipe

*Cook’s Note: The preparation time for this recipe, without an ice cream maker, is around forever. Or a day.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups pomegranate juice
• 1/2 cup plus 2 Tbsp. sugar
• pinch salt
• pinch ground cardamom
• 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt

In a small saucepan, heat the pomegranate juice on low.  Add the sugar and salt.  Stir gently until the sugar is fully dissolved.

Transfer the juice mixture to a bowl and refrigerate until completely chilled. Stir in the yogurt.

If you have an ice cream maker, pour mixture into that and use as instructed. If not, place bowl in freezer and occasionally stir; ours had to freeze overnight.

Oldish Sherbet Recipe

This recipe comes from an old 1800s cookbook, by one Mrs. Rorer. My copy has delightful handwritten recipes in looping cursive, as well as straightforward, old-timey directions for coloring one’s pistachio ice cream green using clover, or lawn grass if no clover is readily available. Also, most of the ingredients are listed not by cups, but by pounds. As in, one pound of butter. That’s how you know it’s good. :)

• ~6 pomegranates, or 1 1/2 cups pomegranate juice
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 egg white
• 1 Tbs powdered sugar

Peel the pomegranates, and press the pulp through a sieve, reserving a few seeds for garnishing. Add the sugar to the juice and stir until dissolved. If using seeds, add 1/2 water. Place mixture in ice cream maker and follow those instructions.

If you don’t have an ice cream maker, place your sherbet mix in the freezer in a bowl, stirring occasionally. This will take a long time!

When the mixture is frozen pretty hard, take it from the freezer. In a separate bowl, whip the egg white into a froth, then add the powdered sugar and beat until it forms peaks. Stir this sugary egg mixture into your sherbet, mix all together, and place back in the freezer. We spent about half a day working on getting ours to freeze, then let it sit in the mold overnight.

**Yes, this recipe can also be used in a mold! Just pack the final mixture into your mold and freeze. When you’re ready to serve, turn the mold over onto a plate. If the sherbet doesn’t come out right away, you can either let it sit for a few moments at room temperature, or dip the bottom of the mold in cold water. Never use hot water!**

Traditional Sharbat Recipe

Sharbat is more of a drink than a dessert, but it can’t be beat for its cool and refreshing nature on hot summer days.

• 1/3 cup combined cashews, pistachios and almonds, finely crushed
• 1/2 tsp cardamom seeds, or a pinch of ground cardamom
• pinch of ground cinnamon
• 1 1/2 cups whole milk or almond milk
• 3 Tbs. sugar or honey
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cup your choice of sexy fruit juice- we used Pomegranate, but consider plum, apricot, mango, blood orange, etc.

In a mortar and pestle, grind the cardamom seeds.