Thu 15 Feb 2007
To celebrate Valentine’s Day J and I decided that, instead of getting a reservation somewhere and potentially feeling crowded and rushed, we’d stay home and make some great food, like fettuccine alfredo (from scratch, damnit) and little gooey chocolate cakes for dessert. That’s right, it was very gourmet in this house last night. Sort of.
We started the night with a cocktail J found online (if you want to make fun of us for getting cocktail recipes off the Food Network website, try one of these, and then see how you feel). Upon making our second round of drinks, J started eating the sorbet necessary in the recipe right out of the container, and exclaiming, “I love sorbet!” Somehow, as sometimes happens when you are drinking sparkling wine infused with vodka, we ended up discussing the issue further, and J, completely confused, stopped the conversation to ask, “Wait a second, what’s the difference between sorbet and sherbert? Aren’t they the same thing?” He went on to explain that he’d always thought sherbet and sorbet weren’t only the same thing, but where the same word. And that FANCY people pronounced “sherbet” like “sorbet.”
“What??” I asked. “You thought what?” I told him this very much reminded me of the time we talked about wet nurses - how he thought wet nurses are nice women who give old people baths. In any case, it was another lesson learned, and the most important thing is that everything was delicious and we had a great night together, just hanging out and laughing and making a total, complete mess of the kitchen.
Belated Happy Valentine’s Day to all my favorite blog readers!
February 15th, 2007 at 9:06 am
Wait…so Sorbet and Sherbet aren’t the same thing?
February 15th, 2007 at 2:53 pm
seriously - I knew it was spelled sorbet, but thought it could be pronounced either way. Also - the sorbet we bought ysterday was just like “Italian ice” and not like the sorbet (actually sherbert I guess) from when I was a kid - the rainbow kind which I never liked as much compared to real ice cream
February 15th, 2007 at 4:57 pm
From Wikipedia: Sorbet (or sorbetto, sorbeto) is a frozen dessert made from iced fruit puree and other ingredients. The term “sherbet” is derived from the Turkish word for “sorbet”, şerbat which in turn comes from Arabic.
See, so Justin is right…kind of.
Now what’s the deal with Gelato?
February 16th, 2007 at 12:22 am
I thought one had dairy and one didn’t. Not to be nitpicky. lol.
J should know they are two different things!
e
February 16th, 2007 at 7:13 am
Cara and Justin,
I knew there was a difference between sherbet and sorbet as I have been a fan of both. Here’s what I found after a google search–hope this helps!
http://history.enotes.com/food-encyclopedia/sherbet-sorbet
Happy Belated Valentine’s Day! You might have to email me your recipes!
February 16th, 2007 at 12:23 pm
seriously though, can someone answer the gelatto question? it’s been pressing on my mind as of late.
February 16th, 2007 at 1:57 pm
from the “world of ice-cream” website:
GELATO = less fat + no air added = rich cremier taste
Premium ice creams are made with fresh cream (not condensed or powdered milk), real eggs, and natural flavorings. Quality ingredients aside, lesser ice creams also have more air whipped in. As much as half the carton may be air, in fact. More air–or “overrun”–means softer ice cream that scoops more easily and melts more quickly. Premium ice creams have very little air added; gelato has no air added at all. (There’s a minimal amount of air that’s incorporated naturally because of the churning process.)
Gelato and some premium ice creams are so dense that they require a slightly higher serving temperature, a perfect point where your scoop is firm but not hard and not so soft that it melts immediately. Gelato recipes usually include more egg yolks, more milk and less cream. It actually has less fat than regular ice cream, but gelato’s low overrun makes for an extremely dense, rich and creamy treat.
February 16th, 2007 at 6:03 pm
Ok this is funny in an eighth-grade snicker kind of way…
“…so dense that they require a slightly higher serving temperature, a perfect point where your scoop is firm but not hard and not so soft that it melts immediately. Gelato recipes usually include more egg yolks, more milk and less cream.”
Doesn’t reflect well on me, I know. But I giggled.
e
November 1st, 2008 at 2:00 pm
Amoxicillin….
Amoxicillin….