Creamy, laced with with shreds of coconut, and refreshing, but with a little heat from ginger--this sorbet is a classic. It's from Spice Dreams: Flavored Ice Creams and Other Frozen Treats by Sara Engram and Katie Luber (Andrews McMeel, June), which is all about adding spices like basil, cardamom, chile, mint, and thyme to frozen desserts. The combination of ginger and coconut is spectacular--now I'm curious to taste the other pairings Engram and Luber have come up with.
Coconut-Ginger Sorbet
Makes about 3 cups
3/4 c sugar
3/4 c water
1 t ground ginger
1/8 t salt
1 (14-oz) can coconut milk
1/4 c sweetened flaked coconut
1/4 t vanilla
Combine the sugar, water, ginger, and salt in a medium, heavy saucepan. Heat the sugar mixture over medium heat, stirring gently, until the sugar has completely dissolved and the syrup is clear, about 5 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and let steep for 1 hour.
Combine the coconut milk, flaked coconut, and vanilla in a medium bowl. Strain the syrup mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into the coconut milk mixture. Whisk until the syrup and coconut milk are completely mixed. Cover and refrigerate until completely chilled, at least 4 hours or overnight. The sorbet mixture may be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Freeze the chilled sorbet mixture in an ice-cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions. Transfer the sorbet to an airtight container and freeze in the freezer for 2 to 4 hours before serving.
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