Encore recipe - Ruby Red Grapefruit Sorbet

Every winter, I eagerly scan the citrus section of my grocery store. I'm on the hunt for grapefruit-- and not just any grapefruit. I am looking for Texas Ruby Red Grapefruit.

For those of you who might remember the grapefruit diet craze of the 70's, I jumped in on the promise that grapefruit burns fat.  I quickly learned that the Ruby Red's were sweeter than the pink or yellow grapefruit that I see year-round. Ruby Reds, at the peak of their season (usually January)  are so naturally sweet, that I didn't need any kind of sweetener.  While I love grapefruit slices in salads, a friend of mine mentioned that she once had a grapefruit sorbet that was really good. That gave me an idea, so I searched the internet for a recipe. The recipe I settled on used vodka (fine by me).  The idea is that vodka doesn't freeze, so adding just one tablespoon acts like an "anti-freeze"-- hence, the sorbet won't freeze into one solid ice block.   I originally posted this recipe one year ago-- December 2009. While organizing my new recipe index, I decided to re-shoot and update how to make this sorbet, since my earlier post had only one photo:

I was happy to recreate this frozen treat, so let's begin by making a simple syrup:

 To one cup of sugar, add 1/2 cup water. Bring to a boil, and stir to dissolve sugar. Remove from heat and cool completely. (I pop it into the freezer, for about 15-20 minutes to quick chill this.) You can make this a day ahead, and chill it in the freezer, too.

You need two Ruby Red Grapefruits (I bought them on sale 2/$1.00):

Grate the zest of one grapefruit (I used about 1 tablespoon of the zest), and juice them-- which yields about 2 cups of juice. Add the zest to the juice...

Measure 1 Tablespoon of vodka-- obviously, this isn't kid-friendly. It's mom friendly. Indulge. You can skip the vodka, though.  The recipe will still work. You also don't have to use grenadine, but I happened to have a bottle of it.

You need about 1 teaspoon of the grenadine (it's just for color)...

Just like that!  I put the whole container into the refrigerator. You could set this in a metal bowl with ice cubes-- but I don't. I just wait for at least an hour-- or more.

If you don't own an ice cream maker, I highly recommend buying one. This model retails for about $50.00, but I found it on clearance for $15.00.  The bowl stays in my freezer, so I don't need to deal with ice and salt. Easy!  I mixed the simple syrup into the grapefruit juice blend, turned on the machine and poured the mixture in... and I wait for about 20 minutes.

You want to freeze this for at least two more hours.  When it's time to serve, let it sit for about 10-15 minutes to soften enough to scoop easily. Maybe some of you folks are shivering from cold winters, but I can only buy this grapefruit this time of year! We're soaking wet in California, but I still find this treat to be refreshing. I just love it! My husband likes it, too.

There's something about this sorbet that truly is a "palate cleanser".  It's a light dessert, not too loaded with sugar-- and, unless you put in more than 1 Tablespoon of vodka-- you won't get loaded!  What makes me sad is that I haven't seen another Texas Ruby Red Grapefruit since I bought my own two.  What happened? I've found website that will ship them to me, but I don't want to pay $2.00 each, and get a case of them. Sigh.

This is the sorbet recipe that I use for blood oranges and even Myer lemons-- which are all in season right now.

If you'll excuse me, I think I'll have a small scoop.  I sure hope these red globes of sweetness will make an encore appearance, so I won't have to wait another year!

Enjoy!