It's hot. I am 5,000 months pregnant. Let's have a sorbet party my friends. Then maybe in a few months it can be a sangria party or a fall whiskey cocktail party. But for now, let's indulge in some cold, fresh sweet treats.
Honeydew Lavender Sorbet. I am ready to eat this on repeat for the rest of the summer. It's just the right amount of sugar sweet with all the good flavors of honeydew melon. AND then...when you're just being pleased by that honeydew taste this subtle, floral lavender flavor comes through in the most perfect way.
By perfect I mean it doesn't taste like soap, because that's the trick when it comes to cooking with lavender. You need enough to taste it but not so much you relive getting your mouth washed out for saying bad words.
How to make the perfect sorbet
The key to making sorbet the perfect consistency and flavor all comes down to sugar content. So while this recipe has totals for ingredients, you add a little, then test it, then add more if needed. That might mean adding a little more lavender simple syrup or adding a little water or fruit juice. It all depends on the natural sugar content of your fruit sorbet base.
Preparing the sorbet base
You'll need a few kitchen tools to get started. These are some of my personal favorites:
- Ice cream maker
(I use an attachment for my KitchenAid Mixer) - A food processor or blender (I have a Nutri Ninja that has both a food processor and blender attachments - I love it!)
- a fine strainer, and
- a spatula
- Oh, and an egg. But the egg isn't part of the recipe, it's a kitchen tool.
(I use an attachment for my 
)After pureeing the honeydew melon into a liquid, you still will want to strain it through the fine strainer. Use the spatula to move around the pulp that stays but don't push it through. Then go ahead an clean that egg.
Egg Test
We can thank The Kitchn for this tip resulting in fail proof sorbet texture. Starting with about half your cooled lavender simple syrup, add it to the honeydew sorbet base. Then lightly float the egg on top to test the sugar levels and watch for this:
- Nickel sized amount off egg showing - your sorbet base is perfect! Congrats and move on to the next step
- Dime sized amount of egg showing - you need more sugar! Add more of the simple syrup
- Quarter sized amount of egg showing - you need less sugar. Add in more honeydew base if you have it or a little water.
Corn Syrup Option
While we're cutting out some fat by making sorbet versus ice cream, let's be real. There's a fair amount of sugar going on in here. After spending a questionable amount of time freezing my hands off in the ice cream isle checking ingredient lists on name brand sorbets, almost all of them use corn syrup to achieve that creamy but non-dairy texture.
After testing two batches - one with corn syrup and one without - here's the scoop. They both taste amazing. The batch with the corn syrup had a much better, smoother and less icy texture. So the corn syrup option is up to you my dears.
Prep a little, enjoy a lot
Honeydew Lavender Sorbet is simple to make, but it does take a bit of time to get things chilled and frozen between the steps. My recommendation is to make this a few days before you plan to eat it so you can make it at your leisure.
At the end of the last freezing you'll have roughly 1 quart of delicious, fresh, perfectly summer Honeydew Lavender Sorbet at a fraction of the cost of a grocery store pint. So let's sit back, relax and dig into a scoop of that!
Did you make this recipe? I'd love to hear about it. Any requests for other sorbet flavors? Tell me in the comments.
Pin this recipe for later ????
Honeydew Lavender Sorbet
Ingredients
- 2 pounds honeydew melon (about 4 cups after cutting into cubes)
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 cup water
- 5 sprigs fresh lavender (or 2 teaspoons dried culinary lavender)
- 2 to 4 tablespoons lemon juice
- optional: ¼ cup light corn syrup (see notes)
- 1 large egg for testing sugar content
Instructions
- Freeze Ahead: Make sure the ice cream base is in the freezer for at least 24 hours.
- Cut + Blend: Remove the seeds and skin from the melon and dice into 1 to 2 inch cubes. You should have 4 to 5 cups of chopped fruit. More or less is fine, you will adjust with the amount of simple syrup you use. In batches, blend the honeydew until it is liquified.
- Strain: Strain the honeydew juice through a mesh strainer. Use a spatula to move the solids around without pushing through.
- Steep the Syrup: Combine the sugar, water and lavender in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Boil for 2 minutes, turn off heat and let steep for 5 minutes. Strain out lavender and cool completely.
- Build the base: If using the corn syrup, whisk into the honeydew base. Whisk in half the simple syrup then test the base using the egg test. Wash and dry a large egg and lightly float into the base. You want to see a 1-inch circle, about the size of a nickel, of the egg. Too little egg - add more simple syrup. Too much egg - add more honeydew juice or water.
- Add the tart: Stir in the lemon juice 1 tablespoon at a time, tasting after each addition until you reach the right acidity.
- Chill + Churn: Chill the honeydew lavender sorbet base for at least 1 hour. After completely chilled, pour into the ice cream maker and churn for 10 to 15 minutes.
- Freeze: Freeze the churned sorbet a storage container for at least 4 hours. Let soften on the counter for 5 minutes before scooping.
Notes
Nutrition
Jake Sterling says
A comment about the corn syrup option. Regular corn syrup, like Karo® is NOT the same thing as high fructose corn syrup, which is the pernicious kind that seems to be added to most prepared foods nowadays. Regular corn syrup is just glucose, not fructose. It's a whole different sugar. That said, if you are still uncomfortable with ANY corn syrup, you can get the same, anti-icing benefit in sorbets with invert sugar syrup, like Lyle's Golden Syrup®—it's called treacle in Great Britain (not to be confused with black treacle, which is molasses). Golden syrup, or treacle, has a mild but yummy caramel flavor. It is also slightly less sweet than corn syrup but you don't have to use more for the anti-ice effect.
Another thing you can do to combat iciness is to mix about 1/8 tsp. of Guar Gum with the sugar before adding it to the wet ingredients. (Mixing it with sugar prevents it from clumping.) Guar Gum is extracted from Guar Beans and is pretty safe, though there is a very rare allergic reaction similar to what some people have to peanuts or fava beans, so be aware.
Lauren says
Wow! Thank you so much for all that insight and information about alternatives! I definitely need to check them out. So glad you loved the recipe.
Jessica Pinney says
This sorbet sounds like a summer dream come true! Love your note about the corn syrup. I make all my sorbets with it now because the consistency is perfect.
Nicole says
Your photos are gorgeous! This looks so pretty and delicious!
Michele says
I had to laugh when you said you were 5,000 months pregnant! LOL! I remember being pregnant in the summer. My baby was late. I cried!! But this sorbet sounds like it hits the spot on a hot day. Honeydew is so sweet and delicious. It's perfect for making sorbet. Hang in there! Soon!
Lauren says
Oh my goodness, I don't want to even think about being late ????. Thanks for the support!! ????
Kelsey says
The flavors of this sorbet is spot on! I have to give it a try very soon! I love the lavender in there the most!
Michelle Blackwood says
Wow this sorbet has the perfect flavor combo. I love lavender and has it growing in my garden. I'm definitely going to try it.
Natalie says
Wow this looks gorgeous. And so refreshing. I'm having a party next week in my backyard. I can't wait to make this for my guests. They will be surprise and delighted. I'm sure of that.
Nicoletta Sugarlovespices says
Love the texture of sorbets and this looks like a winner. Plus, honeydew, so underrated and so awesome. That touch of lavender is spot on!
prasanna hede says
Wow love the color of this sorbet. Adding Lavender is so interesting ,I need to keep this on my list,very interesting recipe.
Julie says
It is so hard being super pregnant in the summer -- hang in there and keep eating this to cool down! Also, that egg trick is amazing!
Lauren says
Thanks for the support! Almost there! ????
Christine says
This sorbet sounds amazing and refreshing!! Also the photos are gorgeous. Love all of the bright colors!
Lauren says
Thank you!!
Martyn says
I love sorbet and have never thought of Lavender, it sounds very interesting - I might have to give it a go 🙂 I bet it compliments the honeydew really well!
Patti @ Patty Cake's Pantry says
I love sorbets this time of year, and I would never have considered combining lavender and honeydew, but I know the combination will be amazing. The egg test is a great tip to make sure you have enough sugar especially since the melons all seem to have different sweetness. This is a great recipe, and I can't wait to give it a try.
Lauren says
Thank you Patti!
Tara says
So yummy! Love the flavor combo and all my dairy free friends are going to love this recipe