Raspberries, Part I — Pinot Noir Raspberry Sorbet

It was a matter of a few days to work through the nearly ten pounds of raspberries that I had tucked away in the fridge. Needless to say, it was a very busy time in the kitchen.

In between loading and unloading the dishwasher, hand washing the "delicates", scrubbing out the oven for 45 minutes after a bit of a mishap, wiping down the counters (again and again), making more room in both the refrigerator and the freezer — I managed to make a few things that had raspberries in them. Pinot Noir Raspberry Sorbet; Brown Sugar, Almond, & Raspberry Coffee Cake; Peak of Summer Berry Crisp; Mascarpone & Raspberry Pancakes; and Freezer Jam. Well done, if I do say so myself!

It was the sorbet though that was the most pleasant surprise. It was divine. We had it an hour or so before dinner — couldn't do it after because we had a delicious crisp already on the menu... It was light, and sweet, and refreshing, and almost creamy. Emilia kept shouting "Mo!" after each taste, meaning "more, please!", in case you needed a translation. And don't worry — even though it calls for wine, the alcohol cooks out long before it goes into the ice-cream maker. So I was not being a bad mom by giving our 16-month-old Pinot Noir Raspberry Sorbet, thank you very much.

The recipe came from Tom Douglas's Seattle Kitchen, a cookbook that I hate to say I don't use often enough. However, my now two favorite raspberry recipes are in it — this sorbet and the crisp. The recipe yielded enough that I thought about bringing some over to our lovely neighbors, but I am ashamed to say that I have yet to do it.

2 pints fresh raspberries
1 ½ cups sugar

1 cup Oregon Pinot Noir (He recommends Adelsheim. However, I went to QFC and bought a not-so-fancy bottle for less than $10.00.)

2 cups water

Combine the berries, sugar, wine, and water in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to boil, stirring occasionally to dissolve the sugar, then reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and with a rubber spatula, force the mixture through a sieve. Chill the mixture completely, then freeze in an ice cream machine using the manufacturer's directions. Transfer to a container, cover, and freeze for several hours or overnight until form. The wine flavor begins to fade after a few days. (Recipe from Seattle Kitchen by Tom Douglas, Harper Collins, 2001.)