Lime Sherbet

If you regularly follow this blog then you know that I have a lime tree in my backyard.  The tree was planted by the previous owners and it was planted in a precarious spot on the side of our house.  If you have ever visited NOLA, you know that houses are very close together, so it is not such a great idea to plant a citrus tree in between the houses.  But alas, we bought the big tree when we bought our house.  The lime tree has almost doubled in size since we moved in two years ago.  Each year it requires trimming to keep it under control and properly growing between the houses.  My husband recently completed a thorough trimming of the tree which left us with hundreds of limes – enough to fill up an entire paper shopping bag.

We gave some of the limes away, my husband has been making pitchers upon pitchers of limeade, and I have used the limes in a few dessert recipes.  I made lime bars out of the Baked cookbook (kind of like key lime pie but in bar form) which were very good.  As you have probably predicted by now, I also used the limes to make a sherbet!  The resulting scoop was very refreshing and very tart, just the way my husband likes it.

In other exciting news, I will be attending the International Food Bloggers Conference right here in New Orleans this weekend!  I am very lucky that the conference is being held in the city where I live.  I hope to live blog and/or tweet (#IFBC and #IFBCNOLA) from the conference so stay tuned.  If you are attending IFBC and would to take home some fresh limes, let me know and I will be happy to bring you some!  The supply seems to be never ending.  Enjoy!

Lime Sherbet
Makes 1½ pints

The flavor of this sorbet is very tart.  My husband enjoys tart flavors so I made it like that on purpose.  If you would like the sorbet to be less tart, substitute water for some of the juice and increase the sugar content slightly. 

Zest from 2 limes
1 1/4 cups lime juice
3/4 cup sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup whole milk
1/3 cup cream
1 Tablespoon gin

Zest limes directly over a medium sauce pan.  Add juice and sugar and begin to warm over medium heat, stirring occasionally.  Bring mixture to a boil and boil for 2 minutes.  Remove from heat and strain through a fine mesh sieve into a medium bowl.  Whisk in salt. Cool to room temperature.

Once mixture is cooled, add milk and cream and stir until well combined.  Whisk in gin.  Cover bowl and place sherbet base in refrigerator to fully chill. Once chilled, pour into an ice cream maker and freeze according to the manufacturer’s instructions.  Place plastic or parchment over sherbet (to prevent ice crystals) and freeze until firm, at least 4 hours.