Cantaloupe Sorbet Recipe

I am not really a fan of cantaloupe (give me a honeydew or watermelon any day) but I found myself with an abundance of them on the same day we were having visitors.

I found a great recipe from SimplyRecipes for melon sorbet, and after reading a little more about making sorbet, I decided to make it my own way.  You will want to have an ice cream maker, but if you don't, you can put the resulting mixture into a shallow container in the freezer and stir it every 20 minutes or so until you have the right consistency.  If you freeze it longer, you may need to let it sit on a counter for a couple of minutes before serving it.

Cantaloupe Sorbet

5 cups diced ripe cantaloupe
2/3 cups sugar (a little less if your cantaloupe is very ripe and sweet)
1/2 cup water
2 tablespoons honey
1/4 cup of lemon juice
Pinch of salt

Bring sugar and water in small saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring until sugar is completely dissolved and mixture comes to a boil.  Remove from heat.

Place remaining ingredients in blender or food processor.  Process until smooth and soupy.  Add cooled sugar-water (simple syrup).  Process again until well incorporated.  Refrigerate at least 3 hours, covered, until mixture is very cold.

Place cooled mixture in ice cream maker and follow manufacturer's instructions to complete the sorbet.  (My ice cream maker never stopped churning the sorbet, so check on it!)  When the sorbet is ready transfer it into an airtight container and freeze for a firmer sorbet.

Alternately, place the cooled mixture in a shallow container in the freezer.  Stir the mixture every 20-30 minutes until desired consistency is reached.


Review:

Having now made the sorbet, and served it to guests, I think it's a keeper.  The cantaloupe I used was VERY ripe, so next time I'll use less sugar, but otherwise it was delicious!