Friday, August 17, 2012

Chocolate Balsamic Strawberries

Another TGIF...and I feel I've been so neglectful in cooking, or baking something for a new post this week. Too busy eating lunches and dinners at my daughter Lora's.

 For instance, her amazing sourdough pizza that she made yesterday and just posted it...you gotta check out her Sourdough Pizza Margherita...as for me, all I could come up with for today, is a fabulous quick and light strawberry dessert that I made, and photographed at her house...playing 'tag' with the sun coming in and out!
It's been over a year now, that I have received an amazing giveaway gift set of fantastic walnut olive oil, chocolate balsamic vinegar, seasonings, and spice rubs. from ARTISANO'S  via my dear friend Lizzy! I have not opened the chocolate balsamic vinegar...until now, even though I know how amazing it is on strawberries. I did make balsamic soaked strawberries before, but nothing like this particular one!
I've been reading  quite a few recipes from my Hungarian food blogger friends...especially GIZI who happens to make a lot of desserts with mascarpone and whipped cream...'hmm'...I thought to myself; why is it that I have not seen a whipped cream incorporated with mascarpone?...what's so hard about it?...it's done the same way as if you are whipping cream, adding a little sugar and vanilla, to the mascarpone, and the cream...I'll tell you, it is pure HEAVEN! My 6yr. old grandson, took a soup spoon and was totally eating the cream...like 'no tomorrow'...I had to remind him that we need to save it for the dessert!

Here's the most amazing chocolate balsamic vinegar that I have ever had the pleasure of using it for my amazing simple strawberry dessert. Here's ARTISANO'S website, to check out there amazing products, and to order online to be shipped to you! In any case, I will post the recipe, including making your own chocolate balsamic vinegar...just from my own experience from the past!

Chocolate Balsamic Strawberries
created by; Elisabeth

1/3 cup chocolate balsamic vinegar
or regular balsamic vinegar and 1 Tbsp of
dark cocoa powder
2 teaspoons, plus 4 Tbsp. sugar

8 oz container of mascarpone cheese
8 oz. container of whipping (heavy) cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 large basket of fresh strawberries...about 24 ozs.
hulled, and halved


Combine vinegar, (cocoa powder) if you don't have the chocolate balsamic vinegar, 2 teaspoons sugar, in a heavy small saucepan. Stir over medium heat until sugar dissolves.

Boil, until syrup is reduced to scant 1/4 cup, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a small bowl; cool completely.

For the cream:
Combine mascarpone cream, vanilla, and 2 Tbsp. sugar in a large bowl. With a hand held electric mixer, beat until soft peaks form. Combine berries, and remaining 2 Tbsp. sugar in large bowl. Drizzle with balsamic syrup and toss to blend. Let stand for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Divide berries and syrup among 4 dessert glasses. Top with mascarpone cream. Yumm! 

Just to let you know how the weather is in Palm Beach at the end of the afternoon...just about every day! Huge rain clouds, and a quick soft rain...or a short storm! Have a wonderful weekend! xo





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38 comments:

Patty said...

Another winner!

simple baking said...

Wow chocolate balsamic vinegar...lovely! Nice dessert Elisabeth. Light and perfect after a heavy meal.
xo
Anuja

Marina@Picnic at Marina said...

Elisabeth, beautiful dessert! I haven't had mascarpone cheese for quite some time: it's too pricy here, about $6 a small container! I love the recipe but will have to dilute balsamic vinegar - can't have it strait, too acid for me. :)

Petra said...

Csodaszép desszert! Balzsamos epret már készítettem én is, de a kakaó benne új nekem. Nagyon tetszik. :)

The KitchenMaid said...

I must have led a sheltered life, I've never heard of chocolate balsamic vinegar - and I love it that you've given a 'recipe' for it. Strawberry season is still months away for us, I can't wait! Hope you have a lovely weekend too x

Kati said...

Hát nálunk már lejárt az eper szezon, sajna:)

Jacqueline said...

I haven't heard of it either but balsamic does go well with strawberries, so adding chocolate can only be a good thing :)

Lizzy Do said...

Oooh, I LOVE your masterpiece, Lizzie!!! Now I think I need to pick up a bottle of chocolate balsamic for myself :)

PS...the combination of Lora's pizza and your berries is my idea of a heavenly dinner! YUMMY.

Kathy said...

Elizabeth, This looks marvelous! I will have to get some of that chocolate balsamic…your dessert looks wonderful! Love your cream mixture…I’ve never tried to mix mascarpone with whipping cream…wow! Sounds incredible! My kind of dessert! Have a great weekend!!

Ola said...

for me the dessert looks perfect!

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Illéskrisz Konyhája said...

Tényleg komor felhők úsztak az égen. De az eső mindig jól jön a növényzetnek. Messze van a tenger? Nagyon szép helyen élsz! A kehely pedig mesés! Sajnos epre már csak jövőre lesz.

Paula said...

Until seeing this post, I did not even know there was chocolate balsamic vinegar! How amazing does this dessert look!! Combining mascarpone with whipping cream was a stroke of genius too.

Elisabeth said...

Marina, I paid $4. for the 8 oz. container, and the cost of the 16 oz. is $6. I think that's what you're referring to. It doesn't come smaller than 8 oz. I do agree its pricey, but well worth it!

The balsamic vinegar had sugar added to it and it was cooked down to a sweet syrupy consistency, and it lost most of the acidity!

Elisabeth said...

Thanks to you, Lizzy! Can you believe that I haven't even opened this lovely bottle until now?...its been longer than 1 year now, so it really fermented even more!
My little grandson went crazy over the mascarpone whipped cream and loved the strawberries even more!

Lora's pizza was 'out of this world' delicious...never had sourdough pizza...ever!
xo

Elisabeth said...

Kriszti, nálunk ilyen felhők jönnek majdnem minden nap mostanában. A hurikán szezonban vagyunk egész Novemberig...szerencsére csak esők jönnek az idén. Én egy szigeten élek. Mind két oldalon viz van...a tenger látszik az erkélyemböl. Kellemes tengeri levegő van legtöbbször. Négy éve lakok ezen a részen!

Nálunk az eper, málna szeder egész évben van, csak most a leg olcsóbb!

Elisabeth said...

Lucy, you haven't led a sheltered life...all you have to do is to google it, and I'm sure you can order it online from your area, as well!
The recipe is really mine, but the suggestion was given to me by my friend Lizzie, as to what to use it for. The mascarpone whipped cream, is superb, and that; I saw on other bloggers from Europe using it...I added the vanilla extract to make it taste better!

Balvinder Ubi said...

Your desert pictures look gorgeous. I love mascarpone and whipped ream together, one time I over beat the mascarpone and it loosened after a while. And, balsamic tastes good in sweet and sour fruits and vegetables.

Cathleen said...

This sounds delicious! I have never tried the combination of balsamic vinegar and strawberries, but I see it popping up everywhere. I think it's time for me to try it out!

Kim Bee said...

Yummy, this is amazing. I need this in my life right now.

Gizi said...

ÓÓÓÓÓÓ, Elisabeth ez a desszert csodaszép, és mennyei finom lehet!!! Csokoládés balzsamecet fantasztikusan finom lehet, keresni fogom az üzletben, hátha itt is megvásárolható. Amennyiben nem, hát a te leírásod szerint fogom elkészíteni. Nagyon örülök, hogy neked is ízlik a habos-mascarponekrém!!!! Én imádom a mascarponét, de ezt látod is a receptjeimnél.:))
Csodaszép hétvégét kívánok az egész családnak!! Puszillak

trollanyu said...

Csokis balzsamecet, ez nekem teljesen új, sajnos még nem találkoztam vele. De nagyon jó lehet, be kell szereznem feltétlenül:) A mascarpone nekem is nagyon nagy kedvencem, ez a kombináció pedig abszolút nyerő:) Szép vasárnapot kívánok:)

ping said...

Oh Yum! I've heard of chocolate balsamic vinegar only recently and was trying to imagine the flavors .... smokey, pungent, slightly acidic .... and I do know already how balsamic vinegar works with strawberries since I use it in my jam so, definitely, this would be just heavenly! And now that you've made it easy for us to have the chocolate balsamic vinegar without having to scour the entire website for them ... Yay!

Spencer said...

I love the combination of strawberry and balsamic vinegar. It is so morish!

Pieces of Sunshine said...

Balsamic vinegar and chocolate are two terms I had never thought of using together! However I'm sure this must taste sensational, sweet and tangy together.

Pacheco Patty said...

I've never seen chocolate balsamic but it does sound intriguing;-)
One of my kids favorite things to eat for dessert was strawberries and whipped cream, I think the whipped cream was their favorite part;-) Next time I make this combination I will add the mascarpone-that's a wonderful yummy idea!
Have a great week;-)

Pegasuslegend said...

outstanding flavors here.. very gourmet and South Florida. love it... sorry been MIA for awhile. Blogging issues and then cruise for a week.. actually took more time off. Have a great rest of your summer. I got to try this!

Sissi said...

Elisabeth, this refreshing dessert would be so perfect for today's heat! Apparently we are having the hottest day this year, so we enjoy melons, watermelons, I have made a big batch of agar and coconut desserts... but if I had the necessary ingredients, I would certainly test your strawberry delight.
It looks so tempting, but the third photo is simply hypnotising. The woven pattern of the background makes my head dizzy. Incredible!

Rosemary said...

I just made my first balsamic syrup recently. So simple, why didn't I do this before? A perfect complement to strawberries. But with chocolate? Shazam! Thanks, Elisabeth!

Brad said...

This desert has such delicious ingredients and so tempting.I can almost taste it with the photos!

marisz57 said...

Érdekes ízkombináció lehet a balzsamecet meg a csokoládé együtt!
Most irigylem tőled a mindennapos esőt, mert nálunk olyan szárazság van, mint a sivatagban. minden növény kiég, amit nem locsolnak, és nagy drágaság lesz.

Angie's Recipes said...

I have never had a chocolate balsamic! These strawberries must have tasted heavenly! A simple yet impressive summer dessert.

Nami | Just One Cookbook said...

What a fun balsamic vinegar! This can totally be a wonderful (surprising) gift. I love what you made with chocolate balsamic vinegar. We still have strawberries and see if I can find such vinegar, or else I have cocoa powder too. Thanks for sharing unique and delicious recipe!

Ridwan's kitchen/Asian spice mix said...

I have to find this chocolate balsamic vinegar too ,very interesting and you create elegant dessert with this ingredient simple and awesome !!

Cake Duchess said...

These thunder and lightning storms have been intense every afternoon. This was a wonderful dessert. I was happy just eating the mascarpone whipped cream;) Thanks for linking to my pizza!!

Lyndsey Chapin said...

Mmm...what a treat for the taste buds, such an explosion of flavors! :D Hehe! It sounds pretty amazing actually. I have not tried balsamic on my desserts yet!

Yes, our summer afternoons get gloomy then sunny and maybe cloudy across the street, then sunny...it mostly comes from your coast! I finally got back on the computer, but only when I can use my husband's...mine is usless! :( Might have to start using my phone!

Cucina49 said...

Simple desserts are always the best...and this one seriously looks like a winner. Great use of that chocolate balsamic and a terrific idea to combine the whipped cream and marscapone. Yum.

lena said...

chocolate balsamic vinegar sounds great with strawberries and such nice thing to know that we can actually make them at home. i love these kind of desserts, for me it is really comforting!

Amelia said...

Hi Elisabeth, another awesome dessert. Strawberry my favorite... this recipe look really good. The second picture, reserve that for me ;)

Sorry was busy with work lately due to stock checked, haven't send you an email. Still owe you the clam recipe. Will get back to you soon.

Have a nice weekend, with lots of love and hugs to you.