I Want It Now

It is the perversity of human nature to want what is unattainable. I am particularly guilty of this when it comes to the seasons. I moan about the cold, the rain, the gray skies of winter and imagine perfect happiness will come with the sunshine. But there is nothing that convinces me of the charms of hot soup for dinner, wrapping up in a blanket to read a book, and a crackling fire like the onslaught of summertime heat. I melt, I pine, and I moan some more.

Is perfect happiness attainable? Is it possible to want something and have it right away? Or at least in an hour?

The answer is yes, if you have a ripe cantaloupe on the counter and an ice cream machine ready to kick into action.


This gorgeous sorbet is adapted from The Perfect Scoop, by David Lebovitz. I know, I know, you're saying, "Will she ever get off this Perfect Scoop kick?" No. Not while it's hot and there are still recipes untried. So quit whining and get churning. You know you want it. The cool, refreshing sorbet perfectly captures the full, juicy cantaloupe flavor, piquantly set off by fresh lime juice. Mmmmm. You might be having summer meltdown, but this sorbet can help you hang on till soup weather.

Cantaloupe Sorbet

One 2-lb (1 kg) ripe cantaloupe
1/2 cup (100 g) sugar
Pinch of salt
1 tsp freshly squeezed lime juice, plus more to taste
2 Tbsp dry or sweet white wine or champagne (optional)

Cut the melon in half and scrape out the seeds. Cut the melon halves in quarters and remove the melon in 1 inch pieces, being careful to leave all the green with the skin.

Puree the melon in a blender with the sugar, salt, and lime juice until smooth. Taste, and add additional lime juice if desired and the wine, if using. The addition of alcohol prevents the formation of ice crystals. I made it without alcohol and had no problems with the texture.

Chill the mixture thoroughly in the refrigerator, then freeze it in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions.