Aliantha sorbet

[Prebe]

Can anyone recall all of the fruits (and other things) SRD says aliantha taste like? I seem to recall my mouth watering every time I read his vivid description of the treasure berries.

I'd like to try my hand at a "Faux Aliantha Sorbet", as I have been quite lucky the last couple of times I have made sorbets.

Edit: OMFG! does that sound like Niles Crane or what!!!!!

[A Gunslinger]

Peaches, hint of lime and saltyness.

[Prebe]

Thanks Guns. That's right! Somehow I seem to remember melon too. Is that wrong?
Getting the saltyness in there is going to be a challenge, but not uniteresting I think.

[wayfriend]

Melons were ussusumiel.

I think that peaches, limes, and saltyness lends itself more to a marguerita than a sorbet, but heh that's the way I think.

[A Gunslinger]

using actual salt will make your sorbet prone to melting. perhaps there is some other ingrediant that might taste salty without being TOO salty. Menolly??

[stonemaybe]

Olives ?

[Menolly]

Hmm...

Prebe, do you use simple syrup when you make sorbet? I'm thinking you may be able to add salt as you're boiling your simple syrup. But, I am unsure on this one.

[Prebe]

I do Menolly. And I think I'll try adding a touch of salt at this stage as you suggest (not enough to dercrease freezing point of course Guns, as that would most certainly make it completely ineddible ).

Thanks wayfriend. I must have been thinking of ussusumiel.

Though you may think it funny Stonemaybe, you might just have given me the slight hint of savouryness I was looking for. One green olive (sans pimento of course) to a pint of juice should do the trick. I'll let you know how my experiments turn out.

[Menolly]

If olives don't work, you could always try capers...

[Prebe]

Another marvelous idea Menolly. I can't wait to get into the lab and start experimenting. The only problem that remains is getting good peaches this time of year. South african might be an option.

[Menolly]

In fact, I would simmer the capers in the simple syrup, instead of or in addition to adding salt...

[Prebe]

1st case report June 2007
Materials and methods
3 large ripe Spanish peaches (not overripe)
1 lime fruit
100 g of white sugar
75 cc of water
6 large capers berries (in brine)

Peaches scalded and peeled. Put in blender with simple syrup (see below) and the juice of one lime fruit. After liquification the mixture is put in the sorbet machine (put the whole thing in the freezer if there's room. That makes the mixture freeze from above as well). When I could see that the sorbet was getting a structure I added the very finely chopped capers (see below). Frozen for 4 hours.

Simple syrup: sugar + water in saucepan. Melt completely. turn off heat. add grated zest of one lime fruit.

Capers: Drain, chop very finely. rinse the chopped capers in a sieve and dap dry with kitchen paper.

Results
A very tasty and refreshing sorbet. Consistency was perfect. I bit to much on the limey side. I think that the zest of half a lime would be perfect. Not quite savoury enough. I suspect that 8 or even 10 capers berries would do the trick. They almost disapear completely.

Conlusion
Perhaps rinsing after chopping of the capers is to much. The idea of this procedure was to avoid salting the actual sorbet, but to contain the saltiness in the tiny chunks of capers presumably having the effect, that the saltyness would be an aftertaste release only by chewing. Not by just letting the sorbet melt in your mouth. I guess that slightly bigger chunks and a few more capers will do the trick. Stay tuned!

[Menolly]

Excellent Prebe!!

Keep us updated!!

[Avatar]

Haha, sounds interesting.

--A

[danlo]

prickly-pear has a wild aliantha-ish taste--especially prickly pear marguaritas!!!

[Wyldewode]

Heh. . . great thread! Though I have to admit upon first reading the title I was thinking. . . "Aliantha (the boardmember) made sorbet?" And then. . . "A sorbet made of the (person) Aliantha?" Much relieved to sort out the matter!