This may be the perfect summer heat cooler—Pink Grapefruit Sherbet. The slightly tart and bracing flavor hits all the right spots whether served as a light dessert, a palate-cleansing intermezzo to a heavy dinner, or as an afternoon respite from the sultry heat. 

Sherbet became wildly popular in the 1940s and 50s when cream, necessary for making ice cream, was at a premium. Here is a brief history of sherbet. Remember the ubiquitous rainbow sherbet of that era? Later in the century sherbet seemed to be almost entirely replaced by sorbet, which is lighter, lower in calories, and has no dairy at all . That’s no reason  we can’t still enjoy sherbet with its gentle touch of creaminess today, especially when it’s made from fresh fruit juices, as this recipe does. My Pink Grapefruit Sherbet is so easy to make and is a bit more satisfying as a dessert than sorbet.

For my other summery desserts see: Pink Lemonade Pie; Champagne Poached Nectarines; Key Lime Pie.

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Most ice-cream makers require that the bowl be put in the freezer overnight.

Zest 2 of the grapefruits, and set the zest aside.

Zest the fruit.

Squeeze the grapefruits.

Juice the grapefruits

I like to begin with a juicer, then get the last of the juice by squeezing the fruit in my hand. Juicing is really the only time-consuming element in this recipe.

Hand squeeze the fruits.

Strain the juice into a large measuring cup, pressing down on any pulp.

Press on the pulp.

Sprinkle the gelatin in a small saucepan. Cover it with the cold water, and allow it to sit for 10 minutes.

Moisten the gelatin.

Place the saucepan over very low heat, stirring constantly until the gelatin is completely dissolved and any graininess disappears.

Dissolve the gelatin.

Add the sugar, salt, the grapefruit zest, and juice. Stir over low heat until the sugar is dissolved and the mixture becomes lukewarm.

Warm the syrup.

Taste the syrup for sweetness. The amount of sugar will depend on the sweetness of the grapefruits. If the syrup is not sweet enough, add a bit more sugar, stirring over the low heat until it is dissolved. Chill the grapefruit syrup until it is very cold.

Strain the syrup into the frozen ice-cream bowl to remove the zest.

Strain out the zest.

Add the cold heavy cream to the syrup. The juice is not really a pink color, so I added the tiniest drop of pink food gel for a more attractive dessert. This is, however, optional.

Run the ice-cream maker until the sherbet begins to thicken and mound up.

Churn the sherbet.

You may serve the Pink Grapefruit Sherbet as soon as it is finished in the ice-cream maker if you like a fairly soft sherbet. If you prefer a harder sherbet, transfer it to a tightly covered container and freeze it.  

Freeze the sherbet.

You may need to remove the Pink Grapefruit Sherbet from the freezer 10 minutes or so before serving in order to be able to scoop it out easily into attractive dessert glasses or cups.

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