In your quest for great zest, seek lemons that are plump and heavy for
their size. Bright yellow fruits with glossy, fine-grained skin are the
juiciest. Timesaver: Slightly soften 2 cups of your favorite lemon sorbet and
stir in the finely chopped mint or fresh-grated lemon zest.
INGREDIENTS
*10 mint sprigs, stemmed, plus 4 teaspoons
finely chopped
*3 thyme sprigs
*3 cups sugar
*3 cups lemon juice
*1
teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
DIRECTIONS
Combine 1 cup water and 1 cup sugar in three
small saucepans. Add the mint leaves to one pan and the thyme sprigs to another.
Bring all three to a boil, remove from the heat, and steep for 12 minutes.
Strain each steeping mixture into a separate bowl, stir 1 cup lemon juice into
each, and cool completely. Process each batch separately -- starting with plain
and ending with thyme -- in an ice cream maker according to manufacturer's
instructions for sorbet. Stir the finely chopped mint into the mint-infused
sorbet once it has set. Stir the lemon zest into the plain lemon mixture when it
has set. Place a film of plastic wrap directly on the sorbet surface in an
airtight container and freeze until firm -- about 1 hour.