Quince and Ginger Sorbet

This divinely pretty pale pink sorbet is studded with zesty nuggets of stem ginger. Serve with a crisp biscuit, or garnish with a scarlet trickle of
Japonica Jelly or a slice of Spiced Roast Quince, or both.
Makes about 1.2 litres

quinces 2-3, weighing about 600g in total
water 1.1 litres
vanilla pod 1, split lengthways
sugar 400g
lemons juice of 2
stem ginger 3 chunks, very finely chopped
ginger syrup 3 tbsp from the ginger jar

1) Quarter the quinces, remove the peel, then cut out the cores with a small knife. Chop the flesh into chunks.

2) Put the chunks in a saucepan with 700ml of the water and the vanilla pod. Bring to the boil, then cover and simmer over medium-low heat for 50 minutes or until the quinces are very soft.

3) Meanwhile, pour the remaining 400ml of water into a saucepan. Add the sugar and dissolve over medium heat. Bring to the boil and boil hard for 5–7 minutes, or until the bubbles look syrupy. Pour into a jug and leave to cool.

4) Drain the quinces, discarding the liquid. Purée the flesh in a food processor until very smooth. Scrape into a bowl and stir in the syrup – there should be about 700ml. Add some more water if necessary. Mix thoroughly, then push through a fine-meshed sieve to get rid of the gritty texture.

5) Stir in the lemon juice, chopped stem ginger and the ginger syrup. Leave until completely cold, then chill in the fridge for at least 1 hour.

6) Freeze in an ice cream maker following the manufacturer's instructions. If you don't have an ice cream maker, still-freeze in a shallow container for several hours until the mixture begins to harden around the edges. Transfer to a deep bowl and whisk until smooth. Freeze again, then repeat the whisking process once more before the final freeze.

7) Pack into freezer-proof container, cover the surface closely with cling film, seal and freeze.

Recipe © Christine McFadden from The Farm Shop Cookbook published by
Absolute Press/Bloomsbury