Meyer Lemon Sorbet

Last season I used organic Meyer lemons that I purchased online from Katz and Company in Napa California (www.katzandco.com), and it was amazing. The Meyer lemons arrived in various stages of ripeness, and so I was able to make the sorbet a number of times as the lemons ripened. I understand that this is going to be a banner year for the Meyer Lemon crop in California.

I’ve experimented with a similar recipe for Meyer Lemon Sorbet. I added some home-made limoncello and the sorbet stays soft no matter how hard my frost-free freezer tries to turn it into a brick. The first batch I made was too sour, but I upped the water and boiled the lemon zest for just a minute and the results were fantastic.

I just made this sorbet today, with Meyer lemons from a friend’s CA friend backyard tree (they don’t grow in Montana and I have never seen them commercially). While I have made regular lemon sorbet before, this recipe is very easy and the results are truly incredible. Now I wish I had more lemons!

I’m in germany, I’ve never heard of meyer lemons, so I used “regular” lemons. I don’t even know if meyer lemons are available here at all. I only had 2 so I substituted orange juice for the rest of the cup of juice. I’d say a bit more than 1/3 of a cup, so it might have been nearly half and half. I also cooked the zest in the syrup in the hope of it getting more flavour and also of the zest getting softer. Next time I will probably strain it out as it’s kind of bitter and chewy.
I don’t have an ice cream maker so I froze it as per your alternative directions and wow it’s good! My 6 y.o. son even liked it (we had to try every time we stirred, you see) and he doesn’t like sour things at all.
It’s blended now and in a sealed container in my freezer, but I keep sneaking into the kitchen and getting “just a spoon full”. I think next time I need to double the recipe ;-)

I also like to strain my sorbet to remove the zest, but I have also found that adding a little mint to the syrup about half way through the simmer adds a great flavor to the finshed sorbet. Quite refreshing and a great snack!

Your sorbet reminds me of my own concoction. I adapted a recipe from the now defunct Velvet Turtle restaurant chain here in Southern California. Called Lemon Velvet, it was a favorite on their menu. I’ve changed it some, and I use Meyer lemon juice since I have a prolific tree. I package up the juice and some zest in freezer packages during the Meyer-lemon-off-season so we can have this any time of year. This has the most piquant taste; it’s also very easy to make since everything is already at chilled temperature, so it can be mixed and put immediately into the ice cream freezer.

Lemon Velvet Ice Cream
1 3/4 cups sugar
lemon zest from 2-3 lemons
1 cup fresh lemon juice
2 cups heavy cream
2 cups fat free half-and-half
1 dash salt

Combine the zest and juice in a blender to puree until the zest is in very small pices. Combine remaining ingredients, stir to combine well, then freeze according to ice cream maker’s instructions. Scoop into a container and freeze for a couple of hours before serving.

Note: the original recipe called for 2 c half and half, 1 12-oz can evaporated milk and 1 1/2 c whole milk. I also reduced the amount of zest, though it depends on the size of your lemons. I use Trader Joe’s fat-free half and half – it seems to give a nice softness to the ice cream (makes it easier to scoop out once it’s frozen solid too).

My first thought when I read this:
Put a scoop or two in a glass, add some tequila or vodka to taste (or whatever suits your needs), and enjoy.

One helpful addition I’ve picked up from Alton Brown is the addition of a little bit of vodka to sorbets and ices. If you add maybe a tablespoon worth before you put it in the churn, the sorbet will remain much more scoopable, and I’ve never noticed any alcoholic flavor from that small an amount.

It may not be a factor with this particular one, as the acid may do the same thing. I have found it to be perfect for watermelon or cucumber sorbets.

Jeez, Elise. I just cleaned the ice cream maker from the butter pecan recipe…

I made a lemon sorbet last year with buttermilk. Yes – buttermilk. Had a great tang and creamy texture, but still more sorbet than ice cream.

Meyer lemons are so foreign to us on the east coast, and I’ve passed on a lot of recipes calling for them as they’re supposed to be somewhat unique from your everyday grocery store lemons. Any suggestions on reputable mail-order sources out there on the “left” coast?

You will get more flavour out of that zest if you add it to the simple syrup and simmer it for about 10-20 minutes. Me persoanlly I don’t like the bits of zest to get in the way of the smooth melting sensation of the pure sorbet flavour, so I pass the scented syrup through a fine meshed sieve and then I add the syrup to taste because sometimes the lemons are very sweet to begin with.

I love the photo! So pretty at that bird’s eye view!