Vegan Cherry Almond Chocolate Chip Sorbet

What is the difference between sorbet and sherbet? When I looked it up it seemed sorbet was completely dairy free (typically made of fruit, water and sugar), while sherbet contained some dairy. While this Cherry Chocolate Chip Sorbet is completely dairy free, I did add in some coconut milk for a little extra creaminess, so I’m sticking to my judgement of calling this a sorbet!

Now that we have that all cleared up, on to this recipe and this photo shoot. I’ve been seeing all sorts of delicious ice cream and popsicle recipes popping up on Instagram and food blogs and it makes a lot of sense because it is HOT outside! Yet, I had yet to jump on the train and create one myself.

I’m not sure why exactly I chose cherries for my entry into the ice cream-ish world, but something told me that was the flavor I needed to choose. I couldn’t just do any old cherry sorbet though. I’m a chocoholic, so I had to find a way to put some chocolate in this recipe too – enter some roughly chopped dark chocolate mixed into the creamy, dreamy, vibrant cherry goodness. To add some more chocolatey goodness, I even made a chocolate sauce you can drizzle all over it to make it extra good!

All of this is quite interesting to me, because as I mentioned in my Chocolate Orange Avocado Pudding recipe, I was never a fan of fruit and chocolate combos (except chocolate covered strawberries – always a fan of that.) When I thought of chocolate and cherries I thought of those candies you would find in the candy shop that tasted like cough syrup coated in chocolate – bleh!

This does not however! I am so proud of this recipe because it actually tastes damn good and is addicting! I used fresh seasonal cherries from the farmers market, roasted them in the oven to really bring out the sweetness and combined them with a few other ingredients to create a sorbet that tastes truly gourmet. The almond extract adds just a little hint of something extra that compliments the other flavors and you don’t even taste the coconut in the coconut milk. It just lends a slightly creamier texture than if you just used water.

Aside from pitting the cherries, which was a tedious process and left my hands and nails looking like I committed a crime, I really loved shooting this whole process from start to finish. I’m doing my best to “milk my shoots” as much as I can and get as many shots out of them as possible.

I didn’t have an ice cream machine, although I’m strongly considering getting one now. My instructions are for how to make it without one, however, I feel you can use one and get amazing results still! Either way, I would love to know what you think! Leave your comments below and if you try this recipe let me know how you like it!

Vegan Cherry Almond Chocolate Chip Sorbet

admin What is the difference between sorbet and sherbet? When I looked it up it seemed sorbet was completely dairy free (typically made of fruit, water and sugar), while sherbet contained… Desserts sorbet, ice cream, vegan ice cream European Print This

Serves: 6

Nutrition facts: 200 calories 20 grams fat

Rating: 5.0/5

( 1 voted )

Ingredients

2 lbs fresh cherries, destemmed, sliced in half and pitted

1/3 cup + 2 Tbsp sugar

Generous pinch sea salt

A good squeeze of fresh lemon juice

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 tsp almond extract

1 cup full fat coconut milk

1/4 cup water

1.5-2oz dark chocolate, chopped

For chocolate sauce:

1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted if clumpy

1/4 cup pure maple syrup

1/4 cup non-dairy milk

1 Tbsp Tahini paste

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Pinch sea salt

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400F.
2. Destem, pit and slice in half the cherries.
3. In an 9x13 inch oven safe dish, spread out cherries and sprinkle with sugar  and salt. Toss to coat. 
4. Roast for 20-25 minutes. Set aside to cool to room temperature for 10-15 minutes.
5. Place cherries and all of their juices in a blender along with salt, lemon juice, vanilla extract, almond extract, coconut milk and water.
6. Pour mixture into a loaf pan or other freezer safe container. 
7. After 30 minutes, mix around mixture, making sure to get any bits that might be sticking to edge. Place back in freezer. Repeat this every 30-40 minutes for about 2 hours. During this time, at whatever point the mixture starts to thicken a bit, add the chopped dark chocolate and mix thoroughly.
8. For the chocolate sauce(optional): Heat milk, maple syrup, tahini, vanilla extract and salt over medium heat. 
9. Slowly add in cocoa powder whisking a little bit at a time until all clumps dissolve.
10. Take off heat. Let come to room temperature before using. If you refrigerate it, let it just sit out for a bit to thin out because it will get thicker in the fridge.
11. To serve: Scoop out ice cream, top with chocolate sauce if using, some shaved chocolate and a cherry – or just keep it naked and enjoy every bit of it!