 Replace your gazpacho with Tomato Sorbet for an even cooler summertime tomato treat. Photo courtesy Canard Inc.
July 2010 |
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Recipe: Tomato Sorbet
A Savory Summer Sorbet
This is Page 2 of a 2-page article. Click the black link below to view the other recipe. If you’re a fan of gazpacho and/or Bloody Marys, you’ll love this recipe.
Overview
Savory sorbets are refreshing and seductive. You start to wonder why they aren’t ubiquitous.
Great chefs are keeping these classic recipes alive. We had our first savory sorbet, actually a granita with herbes de Provence, many years ago at a now-closed, two-star Michelin restaurant on the Côte d’Azur. We had tomato sorbet at the French Laundry, served with a tomato tartare, made with tomatoes from the restaurant’s garden. (You can find the recipe in Thomas Keller’s French Laundry Cookbook.)
We’ve also had Rick Tramonto’s spring pea and mint sorbet; and our own wine editor’s beet sorbet and carrot cardamom sorbet.
Now, as tomatoes are coming into season, we’re ready to pounce on red (or yellow), ripe tomatoes and make Caprese salad with a large side of tomato sorbet.
On The Menu:
Tomato Sorbet With Turkish Salt
When tomatoes are in season, this sorbet is a perfect way to take advantage of summer’s bounty.
The key is to use the best tomatoes, preferably heirlooms. Since sorbets are an expression of the fruit with which they’re made—and since savory sorbets have no sugar to cover up subpar fruit—go for the best. You need strong tomato flavor, since turning the fruit into sorbet diminishes the flavor of the uncooked fruit.
If you can’t find good tomatoes, used canned San Marzano tomatoes. Makes about 1 quart, depending on the size of the tomatoes.
Ingredients
- 4 large ripe tomatoes, chopped
- 3/4 cup tomato juice
- 1/2 teaspoon good olive oil
- Juice of 1 lime
- 1 teaspoon Tabasco or other hot
sauce
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
- Optional: 2 tablespoons vodka or gin
- Fleur de sel or other sea salt for garnish
- Alternate garnish: Halved cherry tomato or grape tomato, red or yellow
- Mini waffle cones (optional)
- Green herbs for garnish: parsley, basil, chives, etc. (if served plated or in goblets)
Preparation
- Blend tomatoes, tomato juice, olive oil, lime juice, hot sauce and water in a blender or food processor until smooth.
- Strain through a fine-mesh sieve; discard solids. Stir in salt.
- Stir in optional vodka/gin and chill in the fridge, 2 hours or overnight.
- Freeze in an ice cream maker, as directed by manufacturer. Store in freezer.
- For mini waffle cones. Use 1” size scoop to top store-bought cones; garnish with a few grains of sea salt. For glass or goblet: Scoop and top with optional balsamic glaze (crema di balsamico, available in fine food stores or from Amazon.com and snipped chives or basil. Plated: Plate with a swirl of balsamic glaze and garnish plate with halved cherry tomatoes and fresh basil or flat parsley leaves.
- Consume within two days.
Variations: After you’ve mastered the basic recipe, try these variations:
- Play with different tomato-friendly herbs. Add a tablespoon of fresh basil or rosemary or two sprigs of thyme to the blend.
- If you like garlic, add two finely minced garlic cloves.
- Add 1/4 cup minced scallions or onions.
- Substitute the Worcestershire sauce for a tablespoon of red wine vinegar or balsamic vinegar.
- Try other riffs of your own design.
Serving Suggestions
THE NIBBLE staff loves tomato sorbet. In addition to the cone idea from Canard caterers, serve a scoop with:
- Cocktails: Especially on a hot day, put a scoop into a Bloody Mary or a short glass of vodka or gin
- First Courses: In a “shrimp cocktail,” using the sorbet instead of cocktail sauce; with a Caprese salad (mozzarella, tomatoes and basil); with “tomato tartare” like Thomas Keller; with sliced heirloom or beefsteak tomatoes drizzled with olive oil, a pinch of sea salt and optional sprinkle of fresh goat cheese or shaved Parmigiano-Reggiano
- Lunch: In seafood salad—crab, lobster or shrimp—or a seafood salad sandwich on toasted brioche
- Snack: Frozen into an ice pop
- Soup: In red or white gazpacho, cucumber soup or other cold vegetable soup
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Recipe courtesy Canard Inc. Other material
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