Roasted Cherry Sorbet Recipe on Food52 (2024)

5 Ingredients or Fewer

by: EmilyC

June29,2015

4.5

2 Ratings

Roasted Cherry Sorbet Recipe on Food52 (1)

Makes 1 quart

Jump to Recipe

Author Notes

If you’re a fan of cherries in frozen form, then go turn on your oven! The extra step of roasting pays huge dividends since it intensifies the flavor and color of the cherries. By all means use the best cherries you can lay your hands on, but I can attest that even imperfect cherries can be churned into a near-perfect sorbet if you follow this method.

One of my favorite parts of this recipe is that by roasting your fruit, you can bypass the step of making a simple syrup. Just add the water to the roasting pan after the cherries have slackened and released their juices, and your oven will make a simple syrup for you.

Despite its simplicity, sorbet can be tricky to get right. Not all fruit sorbets need a simple syrup, but cherry benefits from the added water to thin out the fruit purée; otherwise you’ll get a thick, jammy texture. Also, don’t be tempted to dial back on the sugar because you’ll risk a harder, icier sorbet. That’s the beauty of the lime juice in this recipe—you can balance the sweetness to your personal taste. —EmilyC

Test Kitchen Notes

WHO: EmilyC is an environmental scientist and a killer home cook.
WHAT: Roasted fruit amps up cherry sorbet in a big way.
HOW: Make your whole house smell good by roasting cherries with sugar until syrupy. Then blend them with lime juice, churn like ice cream, and freeze until firm.
WHY WE LOVE IT: EmilyC won't let you down after the work of pitting 2 pounds of cherries. Roasting the fruit makes for an deep cherry flavor (and color!). A scoop would be right at home in a glass of bubbly on a hot summer day, too. —The Editors

Test Kitchen-Approved
Your Best Non-Dairy Frozen Dessert Contest Winner

What You'll Need

Ingredients

2 poundsfresh sweet cherries (such as Bing), stemmed and pitted
1 cupgranulated sugar
Generous pinch of kosher salt
³/₄ cupwater
1 to 2 tablespoonslime juice, or to taste

Directions

Heat oven to 400° F.
In a 9-x-13-inch roasting pan with sides, mix the pitted cherries with the cup of sugar and a generous pinch of salt. Toss well to evenly coat. Roast for 30 to 35 minutes, until the fruit has softened and its juices are bubbling and starting to thicken. Add the water, then roast for another 5 to 10 minutes or until the juices start to bubble again. This step essentially creates a simple syrup in the pan. Remove from oven and let cool to room temperature.
Transfer the cherries and all accumulated juices into the jar of a blender, and blend well. Add lime juice to taste. Keep in mind that the freezer dulls sweet flavors, so aim for a base that tastes slightly too sweet before churning. You should have about 4 cups of purée.
Strain the purée through a fine-mesh strainer, pushing gently down on the solids to extract as much juice as possible. Scrape the underside of your strainer to get all of the purée. Straining is optional, though I find it worthwhile to get a smooth, velvety sorbet.
Cover and chill the purée until very cold, at least one hour or overnight.
Pour the chilled base into the ice cream machine and churn according to manufacturer directions, or until the sorbet is thick.
Transfer the sorbet into a freezer-safe container, and press plastic wrap against the top to prevent ice crystals from forming. It should keep well for up to a month.

Tags:

Sorbet
Frozen Dessert
Ice Cream/Frozen Desserts
American
Lime Juice
Cherry
Fruit
Make Ahead
Serves a Crowd
5 Ingredients or Fewer
Grill/Barbecue
Father's Day

Contest Entries

Your Best Non-Dairy Frozen Dessert

See what other Food52ers are saying.

Laurie
gingerroot
Shelley Matheis
Rose Orbison
cookinginvictoria

Recipe by: EmilyC

I'm a home cook. I love salads. Two things you'll always find in my refrigerator are lemons and butter, and in my pantry good quality chocolate and the makings for chocolate chip cookies.

Popular on Food52

30 Reviews

ErikinCA July 4, 2021

Also wondering if this can be made without an ice cream machine or what can be used in place of an ice cream machine :)

Beth W. May 31, 2021

This recipe was easy to follow and the flavor was wonderful, but I had one issue. I checked the cherries about halfway through roasting and the cherry-sugar mixture had bubbled up in mounds above the top of the 9 x 13 roasting pan and was about to spill over onto my clean oven! I pulled it out and slid a jelly roll pan under it and put it back in for the remainder of the time. When I went to make the puree so much of the cherry mixture was stuck top the sides of the pan that I only ended up with 3 cups of puree. Did I do something wrong? I felt like I should have replaced the liquid that I lost before I churned it, but thank heavens it tasted great anyway.

Lynne August 20, 2020

Absolutely delicious!!! Roasting brings so much depth of flavor. One of the best desserts that cries out “Summer!!!!”

Linda June 25, 2018

Loooove cherries! Could this be make without an ice cream maker? Thanks

cosmiccook July 19, 2017

So would a liqueur in lieu of or combo of --water--maybe a cinnamon or other spiced water amp the flavor up even more? What about almond milk?

cosmiccook August 17, 2016

Sorry I meant author's notes about frozen cherries! Not enough coffee yet

EmilyC August 17, 2016

Hi there -- in my headnote, when I wrote "if you're a fan of cherries in frozen form," I meant cherry ice cream, sorbet, etc. Sorry for the confusion! I've never used frozen cherries to make this sorbet. Like you, I think they'd work, though I'd suspect you'd want to add less water in Step 2. I suspect you could use a food mill with the fine strainer versus a blender, and while the texture of the sorbet might not be quite as smooth, I think it'd work fine.

cosmiccook August 17, 2016

Hi Emily, can't wait to try this recipe. Could you clarify about the cherries p lease? In your description paragraph you say use "frozen" cherries but the first step in your recipe says 2 pounds fresh sweet cherries (such as Bing), I while I expect you could use either frozen cherries tend to contain more water which could make a difference in the recipe. Also could you use a food mill with the fine strainer?

MtIdaho August 7, 2015

Could anyone tell me roughly what 2 lbs. of pitted cherries would measure out to? I have several bags of pitted cherries in the freezer, but I didn't weigh them before pitting... would love to try this recipe with them.

EmilyC August 7, 2015

4 cups of pitted cherries should be around 2 lbs!

Laurie August 4, 2015