Mixed Berry Sorbet

Berries were on sale this week so my fridge was overflowing with them. What better way to try out my new ice cream machine (my old one conked out last week) than to put those berries to good use in a refreshing sorbet. I used blackberries, raspberries and strawberries as that's what I had, but you could use one type of berry or mix what you like.

Berry Sorbet

5 cups berries

2 cups water

1 cup sugar

juice of one lemon

Make a simple syrup with the water and sugar by heating it to a boil and simmering for 5 to 8 minutes stirring occasionally till thickened. Remove from heat and let cool, stir in the lemon juice then chill in refrigerator until cold. Purée half the berries and half the cooled syrup in a blender. Pass through a sieve to remove the seeds and solids. Repeat with the remaining berries and syrup. Freeze in an ice cream maker following the manufacturer's directions or alternately, freeze in ice cube trays and purée in food processor or blender after frozen. Makes about 1 1/2 quarts.

The new machine I bought is the Cuisinart 2-quart Pure Indulgence. A couple steps up from my last machine, it made a nice smooth sorbet in 30 minutes. I needed to pop it in the freezer for further firming.