Strawberry Balsamic Frozen Yogurt with Balsamic Syrup (#58-Y)

The Victoria Day Long Weekend calls for an impromptu dinner party, and an impromptu dinner party calls for quick, simple dishes:

Olives, bruschetta, tapenade, and crusty French bread.  (Pick up from the deli and ask the bakery to slice the bread for you.)

Fennel and orange salad with lemon olive oil dressing.  (Pre-washed spring mix is such a time saver!)

Bucatini with Clams (An easy and impressive main with just 12 minutes of cooking time!)

And to finish, Strawberry Balsamic Frozen Yogurt.  But I’ll save that photo for the end of this post, along with the Official Taster’s comments 🙂

If you haven’t had strawberries with balsamic vinegar before, you must.  They are a classic and wonderfully complementary pairing, with the depth and tang of balsamic vinegar bringing out the sweetness of the strawberries.  Absolutely divine!

The recipe itself is deceptively simple: whirl together four ingredients, chill, and churn.  It’s fantastic served on its own, but dress it up with a drizzle of homemade balsamic syrup for that additional WOW factor.

Store any leftover syrup in a jar in the fridge — it will keep indefinitely.  The syrup will be very thick when it’s cold, so warm it up for a few seconds in the microwave before using it.  Try it drizzled over asparagus or a tomato bocconcini salad.

Strawberry Balsamic Frozen Yogurt with Balsamic Syrup  (Makes about 1.25 L)

For the frozen yogurt:

1 lb strawberries
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup white sugar
3 cups of 2% plain Greek yogurt

For the balsamic syrup:

1 cup balsamic vinegar

For the frozen yogurt:

1. Place the berries, balsamic vinegar, and sugar in a food processor or blender and process/blend until smooth.
2. Add the yogurt and blend/process on low speed until well combined.
3. Chill at least four hours in the fridge for the flavours to mellow.
4. Taste the mixture.  If it is not sweet enough for your taste, add up to a 1/4 cup of extra sugar, stirring well to ensure it is dissolved in the yogurt mixture.
5. Pour the yogurt mixture into an ice cream maker and prepare according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

For the balsamic syrup:

1. Pour the vinegar into a shallow saucepan.
2. Bring to a boil over medium heat and let simmer for 12 to 15 minutes until thick and syrupy.  The volume will reduce to 1/3 cup.
3. Let cool to room temperature.

To finish:

1. Scoop the ice cream into chilled serving dishes.
2. Drizzle with balsamic syrup to taste.

The Official Taster says: “Yum!  Sweet and tart!”