Cinnamon infused orange and Cointreau sorbet
Everyone loves ice cream and sorbets the range at the supermarket a convenient option for ‘afters’. Whether it is the brightly coloured packaging and expansive flavours of Ben and Jerry’s or the rich imagery used by boutique brands to conjure feelings of luxurious sexy indulgence; the freezer section of the supermarket can be pretty alluring. But for me it just isn’t enough! I want bespoke flavours, I want real ingredients, I don’t want synthetic strawberry flavouring, I don’t want any additives, preservatives or more numbers in the ingredients than a chairman of a bank would see on their payslip. If I wanted plastic and chemicals I would chew my pen top for dessert! I want 100% natural and zero packaging, which is impossible to achieve at commercial level.
With this mini rant in mind imagine my delight when Nina bought me a 2lt Cuisinart frozen yogurt-sorbet and ice cream maker with brushed metal finish. Before I had this fantastic wee accoutrement I still made sorbet. The difference now is its cleaner and more efficient process, which means I get to eat the fruits of my labour faster.
The first challenge I had was deciding what to make first, I had so many ideas and flavours. I decided to keep it simple (ish). After trying an amazing blood orange sorbet at the O’Connell Street Bistro in Auckland (so intense was the flavour of their sorbet that just the smell reminded me instantly of zesting oranges) I wanted to make my own. Unfortunately the Navel and Blood oranges got mixed up at the market so I ended up with an orange combo. What I like about this recipe is the very subtle warmth that the cinnamon adds to an icy afters.
Orange combo – before
Ingredients
- 6 oranges – ideally blood orange
- 350ml water
- 200gm caster sugar
- Zest of 2 oranges
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1 tblsp Cointreau
Method
- The base of pretty much most sorbets is a simple sugar syrup. Pour the sugar and water into a heavy based saucepan over a mild heat until the sugar has dissolved.
- Add the zest and cinnamon stick to the sugar syrup, allow to infuse for 30 minutes over a low heat.
Infuse the sugar syrup with zest
- Juice the oranges and set aside.
- After 30 minutes remove the sugar syrup from the heat.
- Remove the cinnamon stick and leave the syrup to cool. Add the Cointreau and set aside.
- Strain the cooled syrup through a sieve to remove the zest. By now the syrup will be pale orange in colour.
pale orange syrup
- Mix the orange juice with the syrup. If you have a ice cream maker follow the manufacturers instructions on the next steps (for freezing the liquid).
- If you don’t have an ice cream maker, despair not. All you need is an airtight container, a freezer and an electric whisk. Oh and patience.
- Pour the liquid into the container, seal and pop in the freezer for 6 hours.
- Remove the mixture from the freezer every 2 hours and whisk in a bowl, then return to the freezer. This will stop the hard flavourless white ice crystals forming. Repeat this several times until the sorbet is soft but frozen.
Orange sorbet with cinnamon stick – pretty aint it?
Oranges after – sorbet sensation
About the Author
Gareth Englishman in Sydney loves a whisky, pies and all things savoury. Digital Marketer by day, cook the rest of the time. Amateur writer, photographer & aspiring anthropologists.
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Sounds lovely – I had hibernated my icecream maker for winter but the cinnamon sounds like a lovely warm addition
Thanks for the feedback Rebecca. Wake it from hibernation and perhaps go mulled wine sorbet style.
As a taster I can confirm it was lovely and will need to be made again in the peak of summer! I am requsting tequila & lime sorbet next!