Low(er) Carb Kiwi Sorbet

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Kiwi is a low carb fruit that comes in at 53 on the glycemic index. Kiwi is full of fiber, and, according to Wikipedia, is a rich source of vitamin C, A and E. The skin of the kiwi fruit is a good source of antioxidants although I don't eat it - too fuzzy.

Again, according to Wiki, "raw kiwifruit is also rich in the protein-dissolving enzyme actinidin", which makes "raw kiwi unsuitable for use in desserts containing milk or any other dairy products... because it soon begins to dissolve milk proteins." This effectively eliminates kiwi ice cream, kiwi panna cotta, kiwi creme brulee and a host of other kiwi-dairy impossibilities.

Beachnight friends Mark and Ilene have kiwi vines growing at their place which are loaded with fruit. They brought us a large shopping bag full earlier this month which we ate, and ate, and ate, until we could eat no more.

That's when the idea for a sorbet popped into my head. Wow! Was that ever a good idea. If you have kiwis hanging around and don't know how to use them up, I suggest you try this.

I used Splenda-Sugar Blend to make the simple syrup for the sorbet base, cutting the sugar content by just half. You have my blessings if you want to lower the carb count even more and use Splenda granular.

Kiwi Sorbet
Adapted from The Ultimate Ice Cream Book by Bruce Weinstein
Ingredients:
1 1/2 pounds ripe kiwis, peeled and cut into chunks
3/8 cup plus 1 tablespoon Splenda-Sugar Blend
3/4 cup water
juice of 1 lime
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract (no sugar added)

Preparation:

In a medium saucepan, combine the Splenda-Sugar Blend and the water and place over medium heat, stirring to dissolve. Raise the heat and bring the mixture to a boil, maintaining the boil for 1 minute.

Remove the pan from the heat and allow the mixture to cool to room temperature.

Place the cut kiwis and the cooled syrup into a blender and pulse a few times to start the blending.

Add the lime juice and vanilla and blend on low to medium until smooth.

Refrigerate until very cold, overnight is best.

Using an ice cream maker, process the kiwi mixture according to the manufacturer's directions. The sorbet will be at a soft-serve stage after about 25 minutes. It can be made firmer by freezing it in an airtight container for several hours.

Cooks' Notes:

If you freeze the sorbet for longer than a few hours, you'll have to let it thaw a bit before trying to scoop it out of the container. The longer it freezes the harder it gets to scoop.

The sorbet has a lovely soft green color that my camera didn't pick up well, so I tweaked this in PhotoShop. I hope it translates well to other computers.