Tangy Peach Sherbet

Peaches have begun to appear at the farmers markets in Louisiana.  Each basket invites you to buy them with their orange and pink hues and fuzzy skin.  Juicy and sweet, this fruit makes a perfect frozen treat.  Last season I made a traditional Peach Ice Cream as well as Spicy Peach Chocolate Chunk Ice Cream.  This year I decided to try something a little more tangy.  I present to you my version of Tangy Peach Sherbet.  Enjoy!

Money Saving Tip:  If you purchase your peaches at a farmers market, ask the farmer if he/she is selling any "seconds" or ugly bruised peaches.  The fruit is sometimes bruised if squeezed too hard during picking or damaged during transport, but otherwise there is nothing wrong with them.  Seconds are typically sold at a discount (I bought mine for half price).  Peaches do not need to be pretty when you are using them in ice cream, and the seconds are usually sweeter and juicier.

Tangy Peach Sherbet
Adapted from recipe by David Lebovitz, Perfect Scoop

To give this sherbet its tangy taste, I used creme fraiche as the milk base.  Creme fraiche can be found in most well-stocked grocery stores, or you can make your own.  Feel free to subsitute an equal amount of plain full-fat yogurt to make frozen yogurt. 

1 1/2 pounds (675 g) ripe peaches
1/2 cup (125 ml) water
3/4 cup (150 g) sugar
1 cup (8 ounces) creme fraiche
A few drops of freshly squeezed lemon juice

Peel the peaches, remove the pits, and cut fruit into small chunks.  Place peaches in a medium nonreactive saucepan, add water, cover and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally until soft and cooked through (about 10 minutes).  Remove from the heat, stir in the sugar, and transfer to a medium bowl.  Chill in refrigerator until compeltely cool.

When the peaches are cool, transfer to a food processor or blender.  Add creme fraiche and puree until almost smooth (leave some peach chunks).  Mix in a few drop of lemon juice.  Pour into an ice cream maker and freeze according to the manufacturer’s instructions.  Place plastic or parchment over ice cream (to prevent ice crystals) and freeze until firm, at least 4 hours.

Comments

[Di]

That sounds really good right now! Thanks for the tip about the bruised peaches; I never would have thought of that. We just started going to the farmers market again; my girls really enjoyed it.

[Gloria Kelley]

OMG!!! A blog devoted entirely to ice cream?? I found you by accident and now I'm already regretting it. This could be my downfall. I love making ice cream and now your site has added a new dimension to my already expanding hips. Great site. This peach sorbet is right up my alley.

[Christy Lorio]

This sounds ridiculously refreshing! Makes my peach b'fast smoothies seem blah all of a sudden.

[southern hostess]

This looks amazing! Love your blog.

[Lindsay]

Thanks everyone for the positive comments! You should definitely try out this recipe or my original peach ice cream recipe if you love peaches! Good luck!