Cantaloupe and Sun Tea Sorbet

Method

You can leave your ice cream maker in the closet: this food-processor method, developed by frozen dessert queen Jeni Britton Bauer, results in an ultra-smooth sorbet.

• 3/4 cups water
• 1/3 cups corn syrup
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup loose-leaf black tea
• 1 small (about 3 pounds) cantaloupe, rind and seeds removed, sliced, and chilled

Make the tea: combine the water, corn syrup, sugar, and tea leaves in a clear glass jar. Screw on a lid and place the jar outside in direct sunlight until the sugar is dissolved and the liquid is dark, about 2 to 4 hours, shaking the jar every hour. (Can be made a day ahead.)

In a food processor, purée the cold cantaloupe and measure out 2 1/2 cups purée. (Save any remaining purée for another use.)

Using a tea strainer or a fine sieve, strain the sun tea, pressing on the tea leaves to extract as much liquid as possible. Discard the leaves. Combine the tea with the reserved cantaloupe purée. .

Refrigerate the sorbet base until cold, at least 1 hour.

Pour the mixture into a large, shallow baking dish and place in the freezer. Scrape the ice crystals with a fork every 30 minutes. When the base is completely frozen, transfer to a food processor and purée until smooth. Quickly transfer the mixture to a new container and freeze again until serving.

Alternatively, process the base in an ice cream machine until smooth, thick, and frozen. Transfer the mixture to a new container and freeze again until serving.

Yield

1 quart