One of the easiest ways to make a fruit sorbet is to prepare the fruit and then to freeze it. Once frozen hard, put it in a food processor with some syrup, then process until thoroughly mixed. The syrup will slightly thaw the fruit to the perfect consistency for serving.

If you want to make the sorbet in advance, simply spoon the fruit and syrup mix into a plastic container and put it in the freezer until ready for use. Obviously, if you are going to leave it there for hours, you will need to make sure it is not too solid to serve. Either remove the sorbet from the freezer 10 to 15 minutes before needed, or put it in the fridge for an hour before serving, which should soften it again to the right consistency.

This method is perfect for mangoes, pears, peaches and ripe strawberries. When preparing pears, mango and peaches, peel and slice the fruit before freezing, as well as discarding stone and core. Strawberries need simply rinsing and hulling before freezing on an open tray.

The accompanying syrup for the strawberries can be plain or scented; with rose water, with Earl Grey tea, with lemon zest, what you will. To make the syrup, use two parts sugar for one part water, and use approximately 100 ml syrup for 500 grams of ripe fruit. Less ripe fruit will need more sweetener, as I’m afraid that it is the higher sugar content which makes for a smooth sorbet.

To serve the strawberry sorbet, I like to slice a few strawberries for each serving and put them in a shallow dish, with a sprinkling of the syrup you have used for the sorbet; then set a scoop of sorbet on top of the fruit and accompany the dish with a crisp almond biscuit. I am not a great fan of the ‘basket’ for serving sorbets.

Strawberry and rose petal preserve

(Makes about one kilo)

Reminiscent of English cream teas, this is the jam to serve with warm scones and clotted cream.

750 g strawberries
Juice of one lemon
750 g jam sugar
2 tbsps rose water

Rinse and hull the fruit, put it in a bowl, cover with the sugar and add the lemon juice and rose water. Leave overnight. The next day, strain the syrup into a saucepan with 75 ml water and boil for five to 10 minutes. Add the strawberries and boil until the fruit and syrup jell, at about 104°C on a sugar thermometer. Remove the pan from the heat. Spoon the jam into hot, sterilised jars, seal and label.

Cook’s notes:

1. If you have unsprayed scented red roses, add a couple of handfuls of petals to the fruit when you cover it with sugar. Or use a couple of tablespoons of dried rose petals (the kind you use for tisanes, not pot pourri, i.e. for culinary use only) and steep them in the 75 ml water that will be used for the syrup; then add the strained petals to the fruit before you cook it.

2. The best sugar for making jams and jellies is that with the largest crystals, as this dissolves slowly, minimising scum and producing a nice clarity in the finished product. If it is available, use preserving sugar, which has extra large crystals. Granulated sugar, which is an excellent all-round sugar, can be substituted whatever preserves you are making. Jam sugar, which contains pectin and citric acid, is a boon when making jam and jelly from ingredients which lack or are low in pectin, such as strawberries and figs, as the preserve always sets when you follow the directions on the sugar bag. Where jam sugar is not available, and the recipe does not call for an extract of cooked apples, use liquid or powdered pectin, following the instructions on the label.