Rainbow sherbet
Three colours, three flavours — orange, lime and raspberry in layers. An American children’s party favourite.
Rainbow sherbet was created in the 1950s at the American dairy Sealtest. At home you make three small batches and arrange them in a container in layers or dollops — scooping creates a colourful pattern. Each part has a similar composition, so they all freeze equally firm.
Type: Sherbet · Servings: 10 · Difficulty: Moderate
Equipment
Ingredients
- 200 g orange juice (fresh)
- 2 g grated orange zest
- 65 g granulated sugar (sucrose)
- 10 g dextrose (glucose powder)
- 80 g whole milk 3.5 %
- 15 g whipping cream 33 %
- 50 g lime juice (fresh)
- 60 g water
- 2 g grated lemon zest (lime zest)
- 70 g granulated sugar (sucrose)
- 12 g dextrose (glucose powder)
- 130 g whole milk 3.5 %
- 10 g whipping cream 33 %
- 180 g raspberries
- 5 g lemon juice (fresh)
- 65 g granulated sugar (sucrose)
- 10 g dextrose (glucose powder)
- 90 g whole milk 3.5 %
- 15 g whipping cream 33 %
Making the mix
- Orange mix: heat the juice with the zest, sugar and dextrose until the sugars dissolve, then chill. Whisking, pour in the cold milk and cream.
- Lime mix: simmer the water with the zest, sugar and dextrose for 1 minute, chill, strain and add the lime juice. Whisking, pour in the cold milk and cream.
- Raspberry mix: blend the raspberries with the sugar, dextrose and lemon juice, press through a sieve and stir in the cold milk and cream.
- Refrigerate all three mixes for at least 1 hour. Put the container for the finished sherbet in the freezer.
Method — Compressor ice cream maker
- Switch the ice cream maker on 5–10 minutes ahead. Churn the orange mix first for 15–20 minutes until it thickens. Transfer it to the pre-frozen container and return it to the freezer.
- Remove the ice cream maker bowl, rinse it with cold water and dry it. Churn the lime mix in the same way, then the raspberry one.
- Spoon the three colours into the container in large dollops, side by side and on top of each other. Smooth the surface gently; do not stir.
- Cover with cling film and leave to harden for 3 hours. Scoop across the layers.
Small batches freeze quickly — check them after 15 minutes. Keep the finished flavours in the freezer between batches so they don’t melt.
Total time: 6 h 20 min
Method — Ninja CREAMi and similar machines
- Pour each mix into its own CREAMi tub (no higher than the MAX line), put the lids on and freeze level for 24 hours.
- Process all three tubs one after another on the Sorbet program; if a mix is crumbly, run Re-spin with a spoonful of milk.
- Scoop dollops from each tub and arrange them alternately in a bowl or container. Serve straight away or leave to firm up for 30 minutes.
Programme: Sorbet (or Lite Ice Cream)
You need three CREAMi tubs. Each batch is about 350 g, so it fits the tub of both the small and the large model.
Total time: 26 h 35 min
Stages
- Preparation
- 40 min
- Cooking
- 10 min
- Cooling
- 1 h 30 min
- Churning
- 1 h
- Hardening in the freezer
- 3 h
- Total time
- 6 h 20 min
Serving and storage
Serve in cones or glasses so that all three colours show. At parties you can top it with soda water or lemonade as a "sherbet punch".
Best within 2 weeks, kept in a closed container with cling film on the surface. Do not refreeze once thawed.
Tips
- To stop the milk curdling, first mix the juice with the sugar and only then pour in the cold milk while whisking constantly. Slight thickening is fine; flecks are not — they mean the milk or juice was warm.
- The lime layer is naturally pale. For a vivid green, add a pinch of matcha or a drop of natural colouring from spinach or spirulina.
- Instead of lime you can use pineapple (blended, 150 g) — that version of rainbow sherbet is sold in the USA too.
- Fruit and juices vary in sweetness. Taste the mix (it should be sweeter than seems right) or measure it with a refractometer — aim for about 25–28 °Bx — and add more sugar if needed.
Why it works
Each of the three mixes has a similar proportion of sugars (about 24 %) and dairy. They therefore have the same anti-freezing power, are equally soft at −12 °C, and no flavour melts before the others when scooped.