SPARKLING PEAR & BOURBON SORBET.

It’s finally cozy weather here in LA! In point of fact, I am wearing both a sweater AND a jacket at this very moment, and am choosing to completely ignore that it will once again be 80ºF by Thursday. I might even throw a blanket around myself for good measure. Before I cozy up to tell you all about this Zevia– and bourbon-infused sparkling pear sorbet, I want to talk a bit about collective imagination. Our imagination as a country. Our imagination post-childhood playtime. Our imaginative ability to problem solve.

Last Friday, I had the chance to attend Bitten: A Food Conversation, where speakers and audience convened to discuss issues of food, technology, and culture. There were so many exceptional presenters (some of you might remember clips from my Insta Stories), but one talk cut me a bit more deeply than the others.

Maude Standish, a trend forecaster at Fullscreen, spoke to us about futuristic trends in food. She couched the issues in terms of science fiction, but clarified just exactly what that term meant to her. Sci-fi, for Standish, was simply following through on the question of “What if?” What would happen if Mars were habitable? What would happen if we no longer needed to drive cars? What would happen if a trend came to its full fruition?

Of us, Standish asked the question, “What would happen if the trend of meal delivery services replaced other meal and grocery buying options?” The answer was shocking, interconnected as it is to issues of class and economics. The recommended meal expenditure per person for someone below the poverty line is $2. For someone with average income, it’s $4. The average cost of meal delivery services is usually over $10 per meal. This means that if meal delivery replaces other avenues of procuring food, the people who are only spending $2-4 dollars per meal will have no recourse to eat.

This bracing reality led us into the next presentation, about how imperfect fruits and veggies (which are rejected by mainstream grocery stores and consumers) can address issues of hunger, poverty, and food waste. Ben Simon, of Imperfect Produce, shared some epic statistics with us, including the fact that if Americans reduced food losses by just 15%, it would save enough food to feed 25 million people a year (according to research by the NRDC). Imperfect Produce addresses this issue by taking produce rejected by mainstream markets and selling a portion of it to consumers at a 30% discount, and donating another portion to food banks. Brilliant.

Hearing these thought leaders and change makers speak, I felt keenly aware of how trapped we can become in the status quo—how easy it is to live a life without true imagination. But if we simply accept things as they are, then they’ll never really change.

The dogged commitment to questioning our current systems, to finding new solutions to enduring problems, to feeding millions of hungry people, all of this inspired me to do consider how I could make a difference myself.

I’ve always been a fan of purchasing bruised and imperfect fruit at farmers markets, and now even more so. Especially during baking season, having imperfect fruit on hand makes cooking cheaper and easier. But imperfect fruit is also wonderful for other treats—smoothies, jams, compotes, preserves, ice creams, and, yes, sorbets.

This sorbet features some of my favorite fall flavors—vanilla bean, ginger, bourbon, and pear, sweetened solely with the brightness of Zevia’s Sparkling Pear Celebration cider.

First, a word about Zevia: I’ve been a Zevia ginger root beer addict for a loooooong time. I smuggle Zevia into movie theaters, I drink it on hot afternoons, I make root beer floats with it, I eat it with peanut butter pretzels. There was a time when I actually felt a bit embarrassed: Truly, my one and only addiction was Zevia. It’s just that good, and completely free of any sugar, artificial sweeteners, coloring, or GMOs.

And now, these Sparkling Celebrations! They’re lovely for celebrating in the same way you’d use sparkling cider, but they’re also brilliant for making a powdery soft, light as air sorbet. Ideal for savoring while you brainstorm imaginative ways to leverage powerful change.