Lime sorbet
“A lime a day keeps the doctor away”
– old naval saying (conceivably …)
Did you know that the concept of vitamins only appeared during the early 20th century? But by then, citrus fruits loaded with vitamin C had already helped many sailors avoid the dreaded scurvy (a debilitating, even fatal, C-vitamin deficiency illness) for at least more than a century.
The British navy started the practice of administering regular citrus rations, and others soon followed suit. And while lemons actually contain much more vitamin C than limes, the Brits preferred the latter: partly because limes were more readily available from the British Caribbean colonies, and partly because limes – being more acid – were believed to be more effective (a misconception, since what matters is the C-vitamin content, not the acidity).
Luckily, one does not need to be a sailor to enjoy limes, and even if they typically only contains about 25% as much vitamin C as lemons (!), that percentage is still pretty good for you. And limes taste so good!
If you – like me – are a sucker for the titillating flavour, it is difficult not to fall in love with this sorbet. The recipe strikes a good balance between sweet and sour. Somewhat to my surprise, even one of the young members of the family liked it a lot (grimacing her way through her scoop, then asking for more:-) .
The preparations are straightforward and extremely easy – the sorbet is made up of simple sugar syrup and lime. For the sugar syrup, combine water and sugar – shake or heat until the sugar has dissolved: ready! (read more about these two different ways of preparing sugar syrup here).
The lime flavour comes from the juice and the zest of the limes. And don’t skimp on the zest – just make sure you clean your limes well and grate away: the zest will provide a lot of flavour without adding any additional water (unlike the juice, partly composed of water) and thus help you avoid a too icy (in a negative sense) sorbet.
The level of sweetness should be just right for sorbet if you follow the recipe below. But if you like, you could always test this yourself – just clean a raw egg and begin the Egg Test! (Read more about the Egg Test here).
After you have churned the sorbet base, you may want to enjoy the sorbet right away … that is fine, although you should probably be quick about it: just churned sorbet is likely to melt on you really quickly. If you prefer a firmer, less slushy consistency, leave the sorbet in the freezer for at least about 2-3 hours before serving it.
If you plan to save the sorbet somewhat longer, however, you may want to consider adding a couple of tablespoons of neutral alcohol (like vodka) to the sorbet base – such a small amount will not really affect the taste of the sorbet but will make it freeze less hard.
You could also consider whipping up one egg white and add to the sorbet base towards the end of the churning – this will also improve consistency and texture, making the sorbet feel lighter and less solid-frozen. Myself, I’m quite fond of adding whipped-up egg whites to sorbets, but again – if you plan on enjoying your sorbet relatively soon after making it, I dare say it is not really necessary with any egg white. And in case you only have unpasteurised raw eggs at hand and worry about the possible health hazards, you might prefer to add the egg whites in the shape of some “health-safe” Italian meringue instead! Or why not try the trendy vegan alternative Aquafaba ? – much less complicated and same great results!
In conclusion – a deeply gratifying, refreshing sorbet that really captures the delightful taste of dazzling lime. Extremely easy to prepare, even without an ice cream machine.
No lime lovers should deny themselves this simply exquisite pleasure 🙂
- 4 limes, zest of
- 8 limes, juice of
- 500 ml (2 cups) simple syrup (made up of equal parts water and sugar; stir until dissolved; bring to boil, take off from heat; let cool. Alternatively, simply mix water and sugar together and shake vigorously until the sugar has dissolved)
- 250 ml (1 cup) water
- (optional) 1-2 tablespoons of gin or vodka (will make the sorbet softer, to the prize of adding to the time it will take for the sorbet to freeze sufficiently. This is usually not a problem if you have an ice cream machine but may be a factor when still-freezing, using the household freezer).
- (optional) 1 egg white, lightly whipped OR about 100-150 ml Italian meringue or Aquafaba
- Make the simple sugar syrup (see above). Let cool down.
- Grate and, if necessary, fine-chop the zest.
- Combine the juice, zest, simple syrup, and water.
- If using, add the gin or vodka.
- Churn in your ice cream machine according to instructions, possibly adding a lightly whipped egg white to the sorbet base for improved texture and consistency (usually not necessary if the sorbet is likely to be consumed very soon after being finished).
- Refrigerate the sorbet base until chilled. Put in a (preferably rather flat) freezer-safe container, cover with plastic film and lid, and put in the freezer. After about 45 minutes, take out and churn the sorbet with a fork or similar, evening out what has started to freeze and breaking (too) large ice crystals in the process. Return the sorbet to the freezer and then repeat the churning every 45 minutes or so for at least 3-4 hours.
- You could also gently whip up and add 1 egg white to the sorbet once it has started to gain some consistency (like after 1-2 hours in the freezer) - that will also make the final sorbet "lighter/softer" and improve the consistency.
Made this today and it is so delicious and fresh. I was worried about it being too tart with all the lime juice but it is the perfect mix of sweet and sour. Thanks for the recipe!
Dear Sherryn,
You’re welcome! It is one of my own favourites 🙂
Wow this is good! I made in cuisinart ice cream maker I have. Had to make in 2 batches since my machine could not hold all 4 cups of liquid. The proportions of lime to sugar are perfect! Whole family loved this. Thanks for the recipe.
Shaina, great to hear! Thank you.
Dear Anders,
I tried your recipe and really liked it, but I thought it may be a bit too strong. Would you say the juice of 8 limes is about half a cup?
Dear Andries,
Glad you liked the recipe! And if you would like to make the sorbet less strong, just use less lime juice (add some more sugar syrup instead). And about the measures, I would probably expect that you would be able to get close to 1 cup of juice from 8 limes (granted, this can vary depending on the limes used and how diligently you press them 😉 )
This is so delicious!! Just made a batch in my KitchenAid icecream maker and it handled the whole quantity without problem. I was too impatient to cool the mixture for very long, but about half an hour in the fridge and it worked perfectly. Just finished putting it in the freezer but had to eat a bit straight out of the bowl – yummy!
Dear Caitie,
So happy to hear that you found the recipe delicious!
How many portions does this recipe serve? I’ve got to make enough for 32 small portions to serve inside a lime. So about two small scoops. Thanks!
Aimee,
The recipe should probably yield about 800 ml (about 3 1/2 cups) of sorbet. Since you probably know best how small your “small scoops” are, size-wise, I leave the rest of the calculations to you 🙂
Good luck!
What do you think about using triple sec instead of gin or vodka?
Ally,
I think that could be very tasty: certainly a bit more towards the “dessert side” of things than a palate cleanser but the combo of flavours sounds very nice 🙂
Your recipe is excellent I am going to make it. I’m confused do we have to have a lid on or can we just use a plastic wrap cause I don’t have a ice cream maker so… Why do we need water in the recipe?
Thank you so much very useful???
Dear Areej,
Thanks for the kind words!
Plastic film is fine but for prolonged storage, you might want to use a lid too. The water in the recipe is necessary in order to bring forth the ice crystals necessary for making the sorbet.
I like the idea of adding the lightly beaten egg white. How close to the end of freezing in the ice cream maker? Also, what is your definition of lightly beaten? With a fork? Until soft peaks form?
Hi Charlotte,
You could add the egg white when the ice cream begins to take on a somewhat firmer shape than the original liquid, so to speak. I admit that concepts like ‘lightly beaten’ are quite open to interpretation but in this case, you could simply whisk the egg white with a fork; that should work just fine!
help – my sorbet is not freezing after 2 hrs
Hi James,
Are you still-freezing the sorbet? If so, you have to count on more than two hours (depending on your freezer, probably about 4 hours or so).
If you have an ice cream machine and the sorbet still won’t freeze properly, I would suspect that you may have used too much sugar.
I’m curious about the amount of simple syrup, you say 500ml but the recipe given only makes about 375ml. Should I use the quantity or the recipe. Very excited to try this as my husband adores anything lime.
Dear Dianne,
I think you may be right about that part of the recipe being a bit misleading: I have adjusted the text (the main important point about simple syrup is to make sure that the proportions of water and sugar making it up are correct) and I hope that both you and your husband will enjoy the result!
Do remember to check that you have gotten the correct level of sweetness with the Egg test – if too sweet, you can always add more water (and if not sweet enough, you can always add a little extra sugar to get it right!)
Fantastic consistency with the vodka and the egg whites. I added them right from the beginning in my ice-cream maker, and the final consistency is lovely and smooth and frothy and … just yum! Possibly a bit on the sweet side for our family, so will try with about 200 gr sugar to 300 ml water next time to make the syrup – genius, by the way, to just stir until the sugar dissolved; saves all the pesky waiting until the mixture has cooled down. Thank you!!
Christine,
Thanks a lot! Great to hear that it worked out so yummy for you, and good luck with finding your family’s preferred ‘sweet spot’.
Just remember that reducing sugar in sorbets unfortunately also affects the overall consistency. If in doubt, the good ‘ol Egg-test might give you an indication of where you’re heading …
Ps. I take the liberty of recalling that the Egg test is quite well described in the post on Clementine sorbet 😉 .
How would you recommend adjusting recipe for 8-10 servings and if I wanted to make tequila lime sorbet? Not sure how much tequila and when to add it.
Hi Deborah,
It depends on the size of the servings but a double batch should most certainly be enough even when preparing for ice cream-greedy guests 🙂
If you want to make tequila lime sorbet, it depends on what kind you want: there are recipes out there which basically have similar alcohol-strength as the drinks, but I’ll assume that you may be more interested in those which still carry the flavour of alcohol but won’t get your guests drunk. Luckily, relatively small amounts of alcohol are usually required to achieve such results: For one batch, test with adding (depending on desired strength) about 4-6 tablespoons of tequila. The alcohol could preferably be added during or at the beginning of the churning: the more you add, the longer will it take for the sorbet to freeze properly. If you add too much, it won’t freeze at all and you risk ending up with alcoholic sludge instead of sorbet so here, it is clearly better to err on the side of caution. Best of luck!
Hi Anders,
If I want to use Agar agar for this recipe, how much should I use? and how disolve it. I think I used too much already and my sorbet ended up with little pieces of gelly. By the way, the flavor is amazing, thanks a lot.
Hi Lucina, and so happy to hear that you find the flavour amazing (as do I 🙂 )
How much Agar Agar to use obviously depends on how stable you want your sorbet to be (and also on whether you use Agar agar powder or flakes). My guesstimate is that you might start out with, like, 1/2-1 teaspoon of Agar powder and see where that brings you.
As for dissolving the Agar, you probably already know that it first needs to be heated to produce its desired gelling effect (Agar’s setting and melting temperature are, respectively, 33°C/95°F and 80°C/175°F). I would suggest that you add the Agar to the simple syrup, bring it close to a boil, let it simmer for a few minutes and – once it cools down a little – whisk (or even blend) it well. Then add the rest of the ingredients and let the sorbet base chill in the refrigerator for a couple of hours or so. If you still worry about any small pieces of gelly forming, run the base through a mesh sieve right before churning the sorbet. Best of luck!
Hi Anders,
Thanks for the agar agar tip. It worked perfect, the texture after a week is very smooth.
Hi Lucina,
So happy to hear that!
In fact, I should thank you for posing the question: just a few days after I replied to you, I was making this sorbet for an outdoor party … in the middle of a heatwave. Without some stabilisation, the sorbet would probably have turned into liquid in, like five minutes. What to do? I remembered your question and decided to test my own advice! And with the help of the agar agar, the sorbet stayed nicely in shape just long enough for the guests to finish it off in true sorbet-style 🙂
What if I got 2 cups of juice from 7 limes? How will this affect the proportions, do I continue on with the measurements or do I add double the amount of simple syrup to the lime juice?
Wow, Kawena – your limes must be big ones! In that case, I would suggest that you simply double the recipe.
Made a big batch of this for my kids birthday party and they absolutely loved it! Think I messed up the proportions though and put too much vodka in it. Some of my son’s friends thought it tasted weird at first but they were all coming back for seconds and thirds!! I went inside to make another few batches but when I came out most of the children were passed out in the yard. A few of them are still awake and they keep telling me that “I’m the best dad in the whole world!” I think one of them is allergic to limes though because he ate a whole bunch of it and threw up on the dog. Unfortunately, he’s a white poodle so I think he’ll need a haircut to get all the green out.