Paraben Free Zesty Lemon Sorbet
Bright, tangy, and refreshingly simple, this frozen dessert is the kind of thing that makes you close your eyes on a hot day and just enjoy the moment. It's built entirely from real, whole ingredients — fresh lemon juice, lemon zest, sugar, water, and a pinch of salt — so you know exactly what's going into every scoop. That matters a lot when you're avoiding parabens, since many store-bought frozen treats and flavored sorbets contain preservatives that can sneak in under ingredient names that don't always ring alarm bells. Making it from scratch here means none of that guesswork. The technique is straightforward: a quick simple syrup, a cold rest in the fridge, and a spin in the ice cream maker until the base turns opaque and pale yellow with a soft, scoopable texture. Pressing plastic wrap directly against the surface before the final freeze keeps the texture smooth and scoopable rather than icy. The result is clean, vivid lemon flavor that tastes like it came from a high-end gelateria — without a single ingredient you'd need to second-guess.
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Learn more →Ingredients
6 servings
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup water
- 1 tbsp lemon zest (from about 3 lemons)
- 1 cup fresh lemon juice (from about 6 lemons)
- 1 pinch salt
Instructions
- 1
Combine the sugar, water, and lemon zest in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring until the sugar is fully dissolved, about 3–4 minutes. Do not let the syrup boil vigorously — remove it from the heat as soon as the sugar is clear.
- 2
Pour the syrup through a fine-mesh strainer into a bowl or large measuring cup, pressing on the zest to extract its oils, then discard the zest. Stir in the lemon juice and salt.
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