Mango Sorbet

It’s mango season in South Florida and there are mangoes everywhere.  I got about 20 pounds, maybe more, from a couple of friends and I’ve eaten them fresh, made jam, mango butter, smoothies, milkshakes, and finally sorbet.  So many delicious mangoes!  A few days ago my boss brought me a bag of mangoes from his tree and those are still sitting on the counter, although I already have plans for them.  So, if you like mangoes and frozen desserts, try this sorbet because it is so good and it packs so much mango flavor.

Mango Sorbet

2/3 cups of granulated sugar
2/3 cups of water
2 pounds of ripe mangoes, more or less (2 or 3 mangoes, depending on the size
4 teaspoons of lime juice, bottled is fine
1 tablespoon of rum, dark or light is fine
a pinch of salt

Put the sugar and water in small pan over medium heat and cook just until the sugar is dissolved.  Allow to cool for about 30 minutes.  This is a simple syrup.

In the mean time, peel the mangoes with a knife taking care not to take too much of the flesh along with the peel. Remove as much of the flesh as possible from the pit and place the flesh in a blender.  Squeeze the pit into the blender to get any remaining juice.  Add the lime juice, rum, and salt, and blend until completely smooth.  Add the cooled simple syrup to the mixture and blend until combined.

Transfer the mixture to a bowl and place in the refrigerator to chill.  You can do this overnight, or if you have a thermometer, until the mixture is between 40 and 45 degrees Fahrenheit.  You can speed this process by placing the mixture in a bowl, then putting some ice and water in a larger bowl and placing the smaller bowl with the mixture in it.  This contraption acts like a double boiler but chills instead of heating.

When the mixture is chilled, pour into your ice cream machine and churn following the manufacturer’s instructions, then transfer to a freezer safe container and keep in the freezer until ready to eat. 

Makes approximately 1 quart

The rum in this sorbet does not come through in the flavor, let alone in the alcoholic effect.  What it does do is not allow the sorbet to freeze rock solid.  The results is a smooth, velvety sorbet.  It is absolutely delicious and entirely kid-approved.

Enjoy!