Blood Orange Sorbet

Last March, I made this batch of blood orange and pink grapefruit marmalade that was totally disappointing in the colour department. The blood oranges? Mostly orange, little blood.

I had no idea what to label the jars. They sure didn't look like they'd been made with blood oranges.

Since that occasion, I find myself holding my breath every time I cut into one of these oranges. I'm convinced I'm going to be met with vibrant tangerine rather than the colour of oxblood.

And, since I was making a blood orange sorbet, I was especially nervous.

Because, you know, if it's not bloody looking, you're really missing the whole point of the blood orange.

Thankfully, they were all dark and purple-red in the centre.

You know what else I realized while making this dish? My kitchen looks like a murder scene afterwards.

It's just oranges. I swear. No one was injured. At least... no one was injured in making this particular dish.

For the record, this is a much more grainy sorbet than the pear one, but I also found it to be much more cleansing on the palate.

Blood Orange Sorbet

(from David Lebowitz)


1. Juice your blood oranges. The measure the juice.

2. For each 1 cup (250ml) of juice, figure 1/4 cup (50g) of granulated sugar to be added.
For example: Use 1/2 cup (100g) sugar for 2 cups juice (500ml).

3. Put the sugar in a small, non-reactive saucepan. Add just enough juice to saturate it very well. Heat, stirring frequently, until the sugar is completely dissolved.

4. Stir the sugar back into the reserved blood orange juice.

5. Stir in two tablespoons Grand Marnier or other orange liqueur of your choice.

6. Chill thoroughly, then freeze in your ice cream maker

I love that colour. Gorgeous.