Joy the Baker

Sweet Plum Sorbet

by 44 Comments

Sweet Plum Sorbet

I always wanted a ponytail.  A ponytail I could position extra high on my head with hair long enough to cascade down to my shoulders, cheerleader-style, youthful, bouncy.  The kind of hair, that you can flip around to express various emotions, from bitchy to bored to flirty.  

I don’t have ponytail hair.  Never did.  

What I’ve always had is a fine, curly, frizzy, perfectly acceptable, head of hair that I’m completely grateful for.  It’s just not ponytail hair.  It’s not hair I can whip around to express my enthusiasm for life.  

That’s how hair works, right?  

Summer fruit, all of the gorgeous peaches, apricots, strawberries, and plums… they’re like a gorgeous, shiny, lustrous, perfectly bouncy, high ponytail.  Showing off, effortless… a little enviable even.  

Luckily, no matter what hair grows from our head, high ponytail or not… it’s our time.  It’s Summer and the markets are bursting with sweet fruit flavors.  Let’s get at em!

Sweet Plum Sorbet

Plums are perfect just as they are.  Deep purple skin.  Tart with just a hint of snap when you bite through.   Sweet insides.  Sour as you reach the pit.  They’re exactly right.    

Sweet Plum Sorbet

These plums are golden on the inside, but the deep purple skin is dark enough to tint the finished sorbet a lovely shade of fuchsia.  

Sweet Plum Sorbet

Pitted and sliced plums are boiled in a mixture of sugar and water.

Boiled to softened.  Boiled to almost jam.   

Sweet Plum Sorbet

The plums will fall apart.  The skins will separate from the fruit flesh and tint the sugar water a lovely purple.  

Sweet Plum Sorbet

A blender gets us one step closer to sorbet.  

The cooked fruit and sugar mixture is blended completely.  Skins and all.  No need to strain.  Everything is everything.  

The mixture will be hot (it was boiling fruit) when it goes into the blender.  You may need to blend in two batches.  Don’t be cavalier.   

Sweet Plum Sorbet

The blended plum will need some quality chilling time in the refrigerator.  Literal chilling… not just relaxing.  

It helps if the mixture is completely cold before it’s churned into a bright pink sorbet.  

Sweet Plum Sorbet

Smooth and glossy, soft and sweet.  This sorbet is perfectly scoop able, bright, and sweet.  The high proportion of sugar makes this sorbet creamy smooth and not icy.  I also love the little bits of skin.

Top with chopped salted pistachios and even a bit of chopped dark chocolate to balance the plum sorbet sweetness.

It’s Summer!  Ponytail or no… what a good life it is!  

Print

Sweet Plum Sorbet

  • Author: Joy the Baker
  • Prep Time: 720
  • Cook Time: 30
  • Total Time: 12 hours 30 minutes
Scale

Ingredients

  • 2 cups water
  • 2 1/4 cups granulated sugar
  • just over 1 pound of ripe plums (I used 9 medium purple plums), sliced into chunks, pits discarded
  • pinch of salt
  • 3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
  • 1 tablespoon vodka (optional)
  • 1/2 cup coarsely chopped, shelled salted pistachios

Instructions

  1. In a large saucepan over medium heat, stir together water and sugar until the sugar is dissolved.
  2. Add the sliced plum, a pinch of salt and stir. Allow to simmer for 10 to 15 minutes, until the plums begin to soften and breakdown. You might even find that the skins separate from the flesh of the fruit. The sugar water will be tinted purple. That’s exactly right.
  3. Once the fruit is softened, remove from heat and transfer to a blender. You may need to do this in two batches but I managed it in one. Add the fruit and liquid to the blender, make sure the lid is secure, place a clean towel over the lid and blend until smooth.
  4. The mixture will still be hot. Place in the refrigerator (in the blender… why not?) until chilled through. Leaving it overnight to chill is best.
  5. When ready to churn, remove from the refrigerator and stir in the lime juice and vodka (if using). Follow your ice cream machine instructions to churn to a thick, soft, sorbet. Transfer to a freezer-safe container and allow to rest in the freezer for at least 4 hours before scooping and serving.
  6. Top with shelled, salted pistachios just before serving. Enjoy!

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 6

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Comments

  2. Richard Hauber

    Great recipe! I used Santa Rosa plums. Instead of vodka, I used slivovice (home made plum liquor). Thanks!

    Reply

  3. Glenda

    I made this last night I added ginger and cut the sugar and water down to 1 ½ cups each, kept the plums at 1 lb. Very good but still very sweet, I would reduce the sugar more if I make it again.

    Reply

  4. Tessah

    Yum! Outstanding with the local plums NY offers in late July (I think ours were Geneva Mirabelle?). The plums I used were VERY small and tart/sweet combo. One pound was made up of 16 of them which was about 2 1/2 cups in volume. Can’t say enough how delicious the flavor was!

    This is one of those READ ALL THE WAY THROUGH first recipes. It was my first time using an ice cream machine and my first time making sorbet. I thought the maker was supposed to be miraculous so it didn’t occur to me I might have to start the day ahead of time (I thought I was doing well to have the bowls frozen). The ensuing ‘slushie’ was entirely my fault, and it had set up really nice by the next day (the leftovers). However, the flavor was OUTSTANDING. I skipped the vodka and it still had a stellar texture (the next day). In terms of speeding up the process, I was able to chill the blender mixture much quicker using a ice/salt bath and when 20 min. in the first frozen bowl didn’t produce sorbet texture, the second round did. For me, it was after that where I really *needed* more time (I had 2 1/2 hours). Overnight worked wonders for the leftovers.

    Reply

  5. Suzie Bender

    I made this sorbet last weekend and it was beyond amazing and really easy to make! My mind is now spinning with glee to use other fruits and spirits! I was wondering if I could substitute peaches or nectarines and add Bourbon? Would cooking the peaches bring out the color as in the plums?
    Maybe Mango & Rum??

    Reply

  6. Mike

    I love sorbet and cherries – only thing is the humungous amount of sugar in it puts me off… think I’ll still make it though, it does look sublime!

    Reply

  7. Jessie

    Made this according to the recipe, and wish I hadn’t. The amount of sugar was beyond excessive, and I’m disappointed that despite my gut feeling I didn’t cut it. It’s now so sweet that, despite my sweet tooth, I can’t eat it. Frustrating waste of ingredients :(

    Reply

  8. Anabel

    This looks so so pretty! Do you think peaches are similar enough to plums in terms of water content and texture that I could just swap them in? Thanks!

    Reply

  10. Jelli

    Loving the sorbet, Joy, as much as I loved your giggleworthy ponytail anecdote. The color in this sorbet is stellar and I love how simple it is. Now, if only plums grew here in Costa Rica. Pinning!

    Reply

  26. Sheila S

    As a kid, with a mop of wild red curls, I so yearned for the long, sleek, shiny black tresses of a Polynesian maiden! Until today, one’s ever offered me sorbet to make up for my loss – thank you!

    Reply

  27. Rachel

    I love the line, “literal chilling…not just relaxing.” That’s a good line for summer. Oh, and the recipe looks delicious, especially with vodka and salted pistachios. Thanks!

    Reply

  29. Sydney | Modern Granola

    This looks absolutely gorgeous! I love your writing, too. I’ve never thought about using ponytails like an extension of a hand gesture, but it’s so true. I totally want to try plum sorbet now! Thanks for the recipe!
    xx Sydney

    Reply

  33. Maria

    I don’t have an ice cream machine but I really want to make this! I’m hoping it will turn out well if I blend it, freeze it in cubes, and then re-blend it.

    Reply

  38. Jenna

    Love summer fruit. It totally does show off especially in these pics, it looks delicious! I’ve never had good ponytail hair either haha!

    Reply

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