Sorbet

Active time: 15 min Start to finish: 1 1/2 hr

Sorbete de Zarzamora Berries are cultivated near the small colonial town of Valle de Bravo, outside Mexico City. Sorbets and ice creams are enormously popular throughout Mexico.

This refreshing seasonal sorbet is a wonderful mid-meal palate cleanser.

This refreshing dessert is based on the classic cranberry sauce made from one bag of cranberries, one cup of sugar, and one cup of water (the recipe is usually on the back of the bag). Most cooked cranberry sauces should also work, so feel free to experiment.

Active time: 1 hr Start to finish: 3 1/4 hr (includes chilling)

This sorbet has summer in every bite. Be sure to use very ripe apricots, and don't neglect the lemon juice. The sorbet is best eaten right after it is made.

Orange juice and pomegranate juice enhance the light sorbet. The compote would also be good over store-bought strawberry sorbet or ice cream.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less but requires additional unattended time.

Here's a lemon-based treat that is so good it will knock you over. It's accented with blue curaçao for a striking color. For something fun, serve the sorbet in scallop shells, which are sold at cookware stores.

Refreshing and absolutely delicious. Mix up this treat in the morning, and it will be frozen in time to help beat the heat by the early afternoon.

Kir royale, the French aperitif of Champagne with a splash of cassis, becomes a sophisticated sorbet or granita. If you have them, Champagne coupes or martini glasses make elegant servers.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less but requires additional unattended time.

Here's a great combination of colors and flavors that add up to a pretty and refreshing seasonal finale.

A modern take on old-fashioned ice cream sandwiches and ice cream cone "drumsticks." For a rich, satisfying but lower-fat dessert, serve the delicious chocolate sorbet on its own without mixing in the peanut butter cup candies.