Summer strawberries are the star of this refreshing, homemade Fresh Strawberry Sorbet Recipe. Super easy to make and dairy free!
My daughter texted me in all caps. STRAWBERRY SORBET IS THE BEST THING EVER! She was with a friend up in the mountains and they had stopped by an ice cream shop.
My daughter has never had real ice cream, because she is allergic to dairy. And she hasn’t been in love with the dairy alternative ice creams available. But a whole new world opened up to her on that day when she first had a strawberry sorbet.
Since then, she has been begging me to make it at home. I finally did, and she said it was even better than what she had at the ice cream shop!
Today’s Freebie!
What is in a Sorbet?
Sorbet is a frozen treat consisting of a very simple combination of fresh fruit (or fruit flavoring) and sweetened water. (Typically, water and sugar are boiled together to make a simple syrup). Sometimes corn syrup is added to improve the texture and make it more smooth.
It’s the perfect frozen dessert for hot summer days, especially for those with special diets (like my daughter, who can’t have dairy or eggs).
Ingredients for Strawberry Sorbet
This recipe for homemade Strawberry Sorbet has only five simple ingredients:
- Fresh strawberries
- Sugar
- Water
- Lemon juice or lime juice
- Corn syrup
How to Make Strawberry Sorbet
As with most sorbets, you’ll need a sugar syrup (otherwise known as a “simple syrup”.)
For this recipe, you’ll need one cup of water and one cup a sugar. Simply combine water with sugar in a small saucepan and heat on high heat until it comes to a boil.
Then reduce the heat and simmer (without stirring) on medium heat (or low) until the sugar is completely dissolved. Then pour it into a bowl and let it cool completely.
While the simple syrup is cooling, you’re going to add about four cups of strawberries (one quart) to a blender. I highly suggest a high-powered blender, like a Blendtec or Vitamix. This will really help pulverize the strawberry seeds. If you use a regular blender, the seeds will remain, and you will need to decide whether to strain them or not.
To the blender you’ll add 4 tablespoons of fresh lemon or lime juice.
Pulse the blender to chop up the strawberries, then turn up the speed and process until the strawberries are completely pureed.
If you want to strain the seeds, pour the strawberry puree through a fine mesh strainer over a large bowl. At first, I tried straining the mixture, but no seeds were appearing because they had all been pulverized!
Pour the fruit puree into a large bowl and then add the cooled simple syrup and 1/4 cup of corn syrup.
Mix well and then chill for at least an hour. When you bring it out of the fridge just before adding to your ice cream maker, there should be no separation. It should be a consistent color, like in the picture below. (If you have opted not to use corn syrup, your sorbet mixture will probably have separated. Just stir it up again. No big deal!)
Pour it all into your ice cream maker and follow the manufacturer’s instructions. (I recommend the Cuisinart ICE-21 1.5 Quart Frozen Yogurt-Ice Cream Maker. For comparisons with other ice cream makers, read Which Ice Cream Maker is the Best?)
Churn 20-30 minutes. When mine started to overflow, I knew it was done 🙂 But generally speaking, you want the sorbet to reach soft-serve consistency. You don’t have to wait for it to overflow 🙂
Transfer into an airtight container and freeze for several hours or overnight. If you can wait that long 🙂
Can You Make Strawberry Sorbet Without Sugar?
I know and you know that sugar is bad. So can you make Strawberry Sorbet without sugar?
The short answer is no. You can possibly omit the corn syrup, but sugar is a must.
Sugar acts as an anti-freezing agent (chemically). If you try to use any other type of artificial sweetener, you will get sorbet that is hard as a rock (with Stevia) or that never sets up (with xylitol). You can read more about this in my post Can You Make Ice Cream Without Sugar?
Keep in mind that if you choose to reduce the amount of sugar, it will affect the consistency of your sorbet. For the best texture, I highly recommend that you follow the recipe as written.
Have more questions about sorbets? Be sure to scroll past the recipe for all the FAQs!
This recipe for Fresh Strawberry Sorbet comes from the Cuisinart Instruction and Recipe Booklet that accompanies the Cuisinart ICE-21 1.5 Quart Frozen Yogurt-Ice Cream Maker.
Today’s Freebie!
Fresh strawberries are the star of this refreshing, homemade sorbet. Super easy to make and dairy free!
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 cup water
- 1 quart fresh strawberries, washed and stemmed (about four cups or a little more)
- 4 tablespoons fresh lemon or lime juice
- 1/4 cup light corn syrup
Add the water and sugar to a small saucepan on the stove. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer the mixture without stirring until the sugar has completely dissolved. Remove from the heat and allow to cool completely.
Add the strawberries and lemon or lime juice to a blender or food processor. Pulse 8-10 times to chop up the strawberries. Then blend on high speed until the strawberries are completely pureed, with no lumps.
If desired, strain the strawberry puree through a fine mesh strainer to remove any seeds.
Mix the strawberry puree, cooled sugar water, and corn syrup. Refrigerate for at least one hour.
Pour into your ice cream maker and follow the manufacturer's directions. Sorbet is ready when it reaches soft-serve consistency. Transfer to an airtight container and freeze for several hours or overnight.
How do You Make a Sorbet Not Icy?
Again, this is where the sugar content is key. Not enough sugar=icy sorbet. This is also why corn syrup is typically used in sorbets.
What’s the Difference Between Sorbet and Gelato?
Sorbet is completely dairy-free (and vegan). Gelato has dairy (although not as much as ice cream), and is thicker and denser than ice cream.
For a great explanation of the difference between ice cream, gelato, sherbet, and sorbet, visit this Masterclass article.
Is Sorbet Healthier than Ice Cream?
Sorbet has fewer calories and fat than ice cream (since it has no dairy products). You get some vitamins from the fruit used in the sorbet as well.
However, ice cream has nutrients such as calcium, iodine, and potassium (which are not found in sorbet).
So which is healthier? It’s really a toss-up!
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Yum!! I just got strawberries too!!!
What a refreshing treat! Looks lovely!
I have to agree that the dairy alternatives to ice cream just aren’t very good! I love sorbet and this looks absolutely refreshing and a great way to beat this heat!!
Looks great my children love it. I will surely make it. Thank you,.
Hello, i just purchased a cuisinart frozen yogurt, ice cream and sorbet maker off facebook but i didn’t receive and instruction manual or recipe book with it, , how would i get them both, really looking forward to using it. Thank you.
Hi Diane! I just found the manual online. Here is the link for you: https://www.cuisinart.com/share/pdf/manuals/ice-21.pdf
Question- what would 4 cups of strawberries puréed measure out to be? The quart of strawberries I bought didn’t come close to 4 cups before I puréed.
That’s a really good question. I don’t know the answer to that. I always put my strawberries into a four-cup liquid measuring cup before putting them in the blender. With this recipe, getting an exact amount of strawberries isn’t critical.