Ice Cream 110 - Pineapple Sorbet and how to beat the Heat Index

Let me first say that I truly feel for those of you in the South and East.  You're experiencing 100 degree temperatures with close to 100% humidity.  I've experienced 110 degree weather in Phoenix and that's NOTHING compared to humit heat.  Because at least  when it's dry, there are ways to cool down.  A wet heat?  That's a whole different story.
For those of you who are fortunate enough to live in a non-humid place, let me explain.  Have you ever sat in a sauna?  Sure, after a workout, it can be a great relaxing break.  The humidity and the heat can help clear out the sinuses, assist your breathing, and sweat out some of the toxins.  Sitting in a swimsuit in a sauna is comfortable.  Now imagine you're in that same sauna wearing a turtleneck sweater, ski pants and a steel toed boots.  Every exposed area of skin heats up to fever temperatures.  Sweat all you want, it won't evaporate to cool you off.  The moisture in the air and the the moisture dripping off your head makes your hair either stick to your head of frizz out of control.  And every piece of clothing you are wearing is soaked, either by the absorbed water in the air, or your own natural moisture.

Sure, you can find some respite from the heat in an air-conditioned building, but the moisture remains, making everything stick to your body.  Want to take a cool shower for some relief?  Fine, but no matter how hard you try, you will never be completely dry.  And air drying your hair is a joke.  Even after all that, the minute you walk out the door, that wall of oppresive heat immediately hits you and you're back to a super-moist, soul-draining hell.  Parts of Minnesota reached a heat index (what the temperature feels like with all the extra moisture) of 124 degrees earlier this year.  That's deadly type heat.

The only way I found to escape the heat was to cool myself internally.  I devoured anything that was icy and flavorful.  Slurpees and snow-cones were a constant snack.  Popsicles helped occasionally.  In New Orleans, I'd have a hurricane a day, but waking up in weird locations wearing beads was not as much fun as you'd think it would be.  But what really worked for me were different types of ice cream.

Now eating ice cream every day, a couple of times a day, can really rack up the calories and fat grams.  Especially when you're adding peanut butter cups, chocolate syrup, caramel, etc.  So in search of a much lighter option, I turned to sorbets.

The big advantage to sorbets is that they are natually fat-free.  So sure, you still get all the sugar of ice cream, but your arteries will have fewer fat globules floating around.  All come from fruit juice or pureed pieces of fruit.  And you can use anything you want.  Be it a strawberry sorbet, raspberry sorbet, blackberry sorbet, lemon sorbet, peach sorbet, mango sorbet, pineapple sorbet, melon sorbet, or even watermelon sorbet, as long as it can be turned into a delicious paste in a food processor, or pressed into juice, it can be turned into a sorbet.  Combine any flavors you desire to make something a little more exotic.

Now making sorbet is just as easy as making ice cream.  The big difference is that there are no dairy products in it.  The recipe is very simple; it's a mixture of 1 part water, 1 part sugar and 2 parts pureed fruit or juice. 
The key to smooth sorbet is a long mix in the ice cream machine.  The more mixing you do, the more air that is whipped in, so as it solidifies in the freezer it remains easier to scoop.  My example above is a pineapple sorbet, because I had it lying around at the time.

Berry or Fruit Sorbet
Makes one quart

1 cup sugar
1 cup water
2 cups fruit
Juice from half a lemon

Pour the water and sugar into a small saucepan and stir until combined.  Increase the heat to medium high and cook until boiling.  Reduce the heat, place the mixture into a bowl and place in the fridge for at least an hour so the mixture cools completely.

Place the fruit you intend to use in a food processor and puree until it's thoroughly chopped.  If the fruit has seeds, pour the mixture through a strainer into the chilled sugar/water mixture.  If there are no seeds, just pour directly into the sugar water and stir. Add the whole mixture to the ice cream machine and run for at least 30 minutes.  Once the sorbet has frozen as nuch as it can, remove the sorbet to a freezer-safe bowl and place in the freezer for at least 2 hours.  Serve with more fruit on the side.

So make a batch of whatever type sorbet you like tonight and attempt to stay frosty when the oppesive heat descends upon your town.