Lemon Sherbet

Nothing really says Saturday morning better than lemon sherbet. I can tell you this from personal experience.

Some would baulk at the idea of starting the weekend on an icy sweet note instead of a warm one (think egg and bacon with toast).

Don't be mistaken, I love hot breakfasts but there are days when a citrus-y kick suits me better.

I believe yesterday was one of those days.

And yes, I acted on a craving. Ah, you know what I mean. Cravings are kind of hard to ignore. It happened mid-week when I know I wanted to make or rather taste anything lemony. I was browsing Serious Eats, one of the sites I lap up religiously and chanced upon the "Required Eating" section where Robyn Lee had posted up David Lebovitz's Lemon Sherbet recipe.

You must know also that I hardly give up any chance to try out lemon recipes. I'm a huge fan of lemon cakes, lemon curd and so on. But lemon sherbet, I haven't tried making. So I was naturally curious. I had intended to make cinnamon ice cream but thought that it could wait. Lemon sherbet just seemed more appealing then.

I already had lemons at home, meant for making lemon curd (my stash had depleted and I missed having it) so all I had to do was get some milk. I did that on Friday night and started preparing the easy milk and lemon zest mixture. I left it to chill overnight for best results.

Saturday morning came and I woke up feeling excited at the prospect of having some refreshing lemon sherbet. I was a tad sceptical though because I did not have an automated ice-cream machine. Mine did have a churning attachment but it lacked a self-freezing unit; meaning I had to use salt and ice. I understand sherbets are more tricky because you got to make sure it's cold and uniform. I tried any how.

The result? It was a good lemon sherbet but not a perfect one. I loved the taste but thought the texture could be better. The recipe was great - the problem was of course my retro ice-cream churner. But you know what? I was still happy anyway. I had my lemon sherbet and that was my Saturday pick-me-up.

Yes, I like my mornings sweet.

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Lemon Sherbet
by David Lebovitz
- makes about 1 quart (1 liter) -

Ingredients
3 cups (750 ml) whole milk
3/4 cup (150 g) sugar
1 lemon, preferably unsprayed
6 tablespoons (90 ml) freshly squeezed lemon juice (from 2 to 3 lemons)

Procedure
1. In a medium, nonreactive saucepan, mix 1 cup (250 ml) of the milk with the sugar. Grate the zest of the lemon directly into the saucepan. Heat, stirring frequently, until the sugar is dissolved. Remove from the heat and add the remaining 2 cups (500 ml) milk, then chill thoroughly in the refrigerator.

2. Stir the lemon juice into the milk mixture. If it curdles a bit, whisk it vigorously to make it smooth again. Freeze in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions.

*Note: I used raw sugar and added only about 1/2 cup instead of the required 3/4 cup and it tasted fine