Melon Sorbet
I recently made a tiktok about this melon sorbet. Below is the transcript. I am proud of what I said and what I wrote so I wanted it to be here as well.
Hey my dudes
Llet’s make melon sorbet and have a chat.
I don’t really talk too much about my time working in fine dining on my social media. I think I’m just afraid of what my former coworkers will think of me and what they would say if I started speaking about my experiences. I will say it was a hard couple years.
Anyways, I was once the pastry chef of a 3 Michelin star restaurant and one summer we put melon sorbet on the menu. It was, as so many of my desserts were, a collaboration between my head chef and I. Though I still have nightmares about him he has the best palette of any chef I ever worked with. We paired this melon sorbet with tiny wild strawberries and compressed nasturtium leaves, every leaf punched out so as to be the exact same size. It was served up in the lounge as an extra dessert and tableside we would pour krug champagne over the sorbet, creating a very adult ice cream float. It was absolutely delicious and, as we were sponsored by Krug, it felt like a very appropriate tie in.
About a week or two after the dish went live I was sitting in the weekly manager meeting when one of the assistant general managers spoke up. “We have a problem with the sorbet in the lounge,” he said “none of the servers have been taught to pour the champagne.” Some would pour a couple tablespoons and some would pour half a cup. I looked at him like he was crazy. I had presented this dish to all, the entire restaurant, the whole staff. We presented it, talked about it and then it went live. We did this with every new dish but it was not enough. I had not checked that the service staff knew how much to pour. I was shocked.
They saw me pour in the tasting, their job is to pour champagne and yet this AGM claimed they needed extra training. At no point had this AGM or anyone else come and talked to me. No, he had to bring it up in the manager meeting in front of the CEO and our chef owner and all the other management at the restaurant. And, obviously, because this was a 3 star restaurant, this was a crisis.
I had failed again.
Because, as one of the sous chefs put it, I obviously must not care enough.
I was told to change the dish so the only responsibility the front of the house would have would be to bring it to the table. We changed the champagne pour over to a champagne gelé and the dish stayed on the menu for another month or so. I was angry over the situation for a long time, I was trying my hardest and yet it was not enough. I was missing the mark and instead of coming to me, letting me know there was a problem that needed to be fixed, I was thrown under the bus.
I’ve spent a long time in both therapy and by myself unlearning the perfectionism, anxiety and imposter syndrome fine dining gave me. I make my version of the melon sorbet every summer, mostly because it’s delicious but also to remind myself that I’m not in that environment anymore and I no longer need to be perfect. Sorbet can just be sorbet and I can just be myself.
Serving
This melon sorbet is delicious on its own. However with a few extra ingredients you can elevate it to something really special.
To make this into a stellar dessert: find the sweetest strawberries you can and cut them into quarters. Scoop the sorbet into a bowl and cover with the strawberries. Over the top sprinkle some herbs. We used nasturtium but everything from basil to tarragon to mint will work with this. Once at the table pour over your favorite sparkling wine or sparkling apple juice. Eat immediately and enjoy.
Melon Sorbet
Ingredients
- 75 ml lemon juice
- 500 g melon puree
- 200 g sugar
- 200 ml water
- 20 g cornstarch
Instructions
- In a small pot, combine the water, sugar, and cornstarch. Place the pot on the stove and bring the mixture to a boil.
- Once it starts boiling, stir vigorously for one minute to ensure the cornstarch is cooked through.
- Turn off the heat and check the mixture’s texture by sampling a small bit off a spoon. You’re not really tasting it, but feeling the texture against the roof of your mouth. If it still feels floury, cook for another minute. If not, pour the mixture into a container and let it cool in the refrigerator.
- While the mixture is cooling down, cube the melon and blend it until it is thoroughly pureed. Ensure that the melon is well blended.
- Juice the lemon and strain out any seeds.
- Once the sugar mixture (slurry) has cooled down, blend it into the melon puree along with the lemon juice. Blend everything really well to ensure a smooth consistency.
- Transfer the mixture to an ice cream maker and follow the manufacturer’s instructions for churning.
- Once the sorbet reaches a desirable frozen consistency, transfer it to a container and place it in the freezer until ready to serve.
- When you’re ready to enjoy the sorbet, scoop it into serving bowls or glasses.
- Enjoy!