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How to make the most delicious and refreshing Italian Lemon Sorbet inspired by the Amalfi Coast. This recipe is so easy to make at home with just 3 simple ingredients. The perfect treat on a hot summer’s day!
If you’ve ever visited the Amalfi Coast you’ll have noticed that lemons are everywhere. Little stalls propped up at the side of those windy roads and shops dedicated to selling only the most refreshing and delicious Sorbetto al Limone (lemon sorbet).
There’s one shop in particular right in the centre of Amalfi that sells show-stopping giant lemons stuffed full of delicious lemon sorbet. At €10 each they’re pricey but worth it for the experience (in my opinion) I mean, there’s not much in Amalfi that isn’t pricey.
Unfortunately, I can’t visit Amalfi every summer to get my lemon sorbet fix so I decided to recreate it at home and let me tell you it is SO SO good.
It’s so surprisingly easy to make at home and it’s the perfect mix of zingy, tart and sweet. It’s the perfect way to cool down on a hot summer day.
Traditionally, Italian lemon sorbet is made with egg whites but our recipe is a lot simpler using just 3 simple ingredients, lemons, sugar and water!
See the recipe below including notes on ingredients, step by step photos and tips. For the full printable recipe scroll to the bottom or click the recipe link below.
Table of Contents
Ingredients
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Pin ItIngredient notes and substitutions
- Lemons – Amalfi lemons are usually quite expensive outside of Italy (even in Italy that can be expensive) so I recommend using good quality organic and unwaxed lemons for the recipe. If you can get your hands on larger lemons with leaves attached for serving it looks really impressive but they’re not essential!
- Sugar – I use white caster sugar (superfine) for making most desserts as it dissolves quicker. You can use granulated if you have it.
Visual walk-through of the recipe
- Prep the lemons – peel the lemons with a vegetable peeler making sure you don’t remove the white pith (it’ll make it bitter). Juice the lemons through a sieve to remove any pulp and pips (photos 1 and 2).
- Make the sugar syrup – add the water and sugar to a saucepan and bring it to a boil. Once the sugar has dissolved turn it off and add the lemon peel. Let the syrup cool completely (photos 3 and 4).
- Add the juice – once the syrup is cool, remove the peel and add the juice. Pour the mixture into your ice cream machine and churn until it’s turned into a pale and soft sorbet (photos 5-10).
- Freeze – when the sorbet is ready you can transfer it to a container and place it in the freezer until needed (photos 11 and 12).
Recipe Tips
- No ice cream machine? No problem, see the recipe card below for two easy methods you can use to make sorbet without an ice cream machine.
- Lemons – use unwaxed organic lemons if possible as you’ll need the lemon peel to infuse the sugar syrup.
- Temperature – it’s very important to make sure the mixture is completely cold before adding to your ice cream machine or freezer. You can speed up the process by placing the sugar syrup over a bowl of ice to cool down.
- Adjusting the recipe – you can taste the mixture before churning and adjust the sweetness by adding more sugar syrup or lemon juice if needed. Just make sure it’s completely cool before churning.
More Italian summer treats to try
Italian Desserts
Ricotta al Caffè
Italian Desserts
Pistachio Ice Cream (Gelato al Pistacchio)
Italian Desserts
2 Ingredient Orange Sorbet
Italian Desserts
Stracciatella Gelato (No Churn)
If you’ve tried this Italian Lemon Sorbet or any other recipe on the blog then don’t forget to rate the recipe and let me know how you got on in the comments below, I love hearing from you! You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest or sign up to our Newsletter to see more of our delicious food.
Step By Step Photos Above
Most of our recipes come with step by step photos, helpful tips and tricks to make it perfectly first time and even video!
Amalfi Lemon Sorbet
Equipment
- Freezer proof container
Ingredients
- 450 ml (15.2 fl oz) water , (1 and ¾ cups plus 2 tablespoons)
- 360 g (2 cups) caster sugar, (can also use granulated)
- 12 unwaxed lemons, (about 550ml/18.6 fl oz)
Instructions
- Peel the lemons with a vegetable peeler making sure not to take off any of the white pith which will make the sorbet bitter, set aside.
- Juice all the lemons, you should have about 600ml (20 fl oz) of juice. Do this through a sieve so you can discard any pips and thick pulp then set aside.
- Put the sugar and water in a saucepan and bring to a boil, turn down to a simmer until all the sugar has fully dissolved.
- Turn the syrup off and add the lemon peel to infuse. Set it aside to cool completely. You can speed up this process by placing the syrup in a bowl over ice.
- Once completely cooled, remove the lemon peel and add the lemon juice to the syrup.
- Turn on your ice cream machine and pour the sorbet mixture in. Churn the mixture until you have a pale and soft lemon sorbet.
- Transfer the mixture to a container and freeze until needed.
An alternative methods if you don’t have an ice cream machine
- When the sorbet mixture is ready you can pour it straight into your container and place in the freezer.
- After 3-4 hours remove it and stir it thoroughly using a fork or whisk. Place it back in the freezer and continue this process every 1-2 hours until you have a sorbet consistency. You can then leave it to freeze completely until needed.
Ice cube method
- Once the mixture is cooled you can pour it into an ice cube tray and freeze. Once frozen you can blitz the cubes of sorbet in a food processor until it has a sorbet texture.
Notes
- Adjusting the recipe – you can taste the mixture before churning and adjust the sweetness by adding more sugar syrup or lemon juice if needed. Just make sure it’s completely cool before churning.
- Temperature – it’s really important to make sure that the lemon mixture is completely cooled before churning or freezing.
- Nutritional information is for a full batch.
Helpful Info for All Recipes
- I always use extra virgin olive oil in all of my recipes unless stated otherwise
- When I use canned or jarred tomatoes of any kind I always use Cirio or Mutti brands for the best results and flavour.
- All vegetables are medium sized unless stated otherwise
- All recipes are tested and developed using a fan (convection) oven
- Find out more about how nutrition is calculated.
- Check out our must have Italian Pantry Staples.
- You can also find all our Essential Kitchen Tools for Italian Cooking.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
