Bergamot Sorbetto (Sorbet)

Yield: about 3 cups

This makes the perfect intermezzo or dessert for that summer meal on the back deck. Bergamot is a citrus fruit, the tree is a cross between an orange and lemon. Eighty percent is grown commercially in a 60-mile acre along the coast in Calabria. We know its flavor from the scent in Earl Gray Tea.

Photo, Francine Zaslow

Ingredients:

2 ½ cups water
1 cup sugar
Zest from one lemon and one orange
¼ cup each of freshly squeezed lemon juice and orange juice
1 teaspoon bergamot extract *

Directions:

  1. In a medium saucepan over medium heat combine ½ cup water and sugar. Add the lemon and orange zests and heat, stirring frequently, until the sugar is completely dissolved.
  2. Remove from the heat and add the remaining 2 cups water and the bergamot. Chill thoroughly in the refrigerator.
  3. Stir the lemon and orange juices into the sugar syrup, then put the mixture in a stainless bowl or in an ice cream maker following manufacturer’s directions. When it is frozen, remove from freezer or ice cream maker and with an electric hand beater beat the mixture to incorporate air into the sorbetto. Refreeze and repeat this 2 more times and again just before serving. This will give the sorbetto a white creamy consistency.
  4. The Cook Shop in Brewster carries the extract.

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