Balsamic Vinegar: It's Not Just For Salads Any More.

Jason Severs can make some Italian food.

He and his wife, Rebecca, are the owners of Bari Ristorante e Enoteca, an amazing place in Midtown Memphis which serves up traditional southern Italian fair prepared by a bona fied I-Tal-EE-Un. There is a wine list that goes on for miles and a cheese menu that brings tears to this Midwesterner's eyes. The food is uncomplicated, fresh, and delicious, and the mood feels like you have been asked into their home.

I'm not a big dessert fan, but Jason's are absolutely perfect: not too sweet, always tasty, and some incorporating fresh seasonal fruit. My personal favorites are his Blueberry Balsamic Tart (ask your server what they call it in the kitchen) and his Balsamic Gelato.

If you can't wait to get to Bari for some of these summertime treats, you can try the improvised versions below. But you should get yo' booty there for the real deal.

Balsamic Berry Frozen Yogurt

The first bite of this bad boy is a total surprise: tart and tangy! I had to do the fro yo because every time I try to make gelato I end up with really runny scrambled eggs.

1 cup blueberries
1 cup blackberries
1 cup raspberries
1/4 cup to 1 cup of sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
1 1/2 cups full fat plain yogurt (full fat yogurt is preferred, if you use low-fat or non-fat yogurt, substitute 1/4 cup of it with heavy whipping cream)
1/2 cup whole milk

Place the berries, sugar, and vinegar in a medium saucepan. Heat on medium heat, stirring, until all of the sugar has dissolved. While the mixture is heating, use a potato masher to mash up the berries. When all of the sugar has dissolved, remove from heat and let cool for 10 minutes.

Stir in the yogurt and milk until completely incorporated. Chill the mixture in the refrigerator for several hours (or overnight) until completely cold.

Process the yogurt mixture in your ice cream maker according to manufacturer's instructions (usually about 25 minutes). Serve immediately (it will be soft) or let it firm up a bit by freezing it for several hours.

Balsamic Strawberries over Vanilla Whipped Cream

Light and tangy, perfect for a summer dessert. It ain't no tart, but it'll do in a pinch.

1 pint of strawberries, sliced
1 tbl sugar
3 tbl balsamic vinegar

1 cup heavy cream, cold
2 tbl sugar
1 tsp vanilla

Combine strawberries, sugar and vinegar in a bowl. Allow to sit for at least 15 minutes so berries can do their thang!

Place cream in bowl. Whip it. Add sugar and vanilla. Whip it some more. Duh.

Serve strawberries over cream.

Fro Yo Inspiration!

I think I'm OCD.

-ish.

Throughout my life, I tend to glom onto one idea or thing, and it becomes all consuming. As a kid it was stuffed animals and HBO. In high school, it was Cosby sweaters and INXS. College: Doc Martins, Merchant Ivory films, and giraffes. Late twenties, it was Shakespeare and Ricky Martin. Now I have officially moved into my cooking/foodie phase.

And, for some reason, people pick up on this trait when it comes to any sort of gift giving occasion. A few years ago, I had to place an official moratorium on giraffes. This past Christmas/birthday season (my birthday is 12/28...so start shopping now), I received no less than 9 cookbooks (some that are amazingly old school with chapters dedicated to flaming food and "the man's job: steak"), cooking lessons at Viking, and gift cards to Williams Sonoma. Complete heaven. So it was off to Williams Sonoma!

But, I have a problem. I tend to panic when I enter that store. I have a very small kitchen, picture a typical Manhattan apartment kitchen without the benefits of living in the Big Apple. It is already chock full of gadgets and equipment, and it takes the strategical mind akin to the one who planned the storming of Normandy to find storage space in this teeny tiny room. My usual pattern is to walk around the store (or Valhalla, as I call it), ooh and ahh, and then leave empty handed, a routine J has patiently suffered through on several occasions.

However, this time was different. After careful consultation and a brief moment involving several slow, deep breaths into a paper bag, we walked away with that most frivolous of kitchen appliances: the ice cream maker. Thanks to the oppressively swampy Memphis summer and SMW's fro yo recipe, I have officially been bitten by the ice cream makin' bug.

So, in true Improvised Chef fashion, I played around with one recipe and came up with another one.

What ice cream flavor should I try next?



Vanilla and Thyme infused Pineapple Frozen Yogurt


1 pineapple, peeled and cored
1 Tbl fresh thyme leaves, chopped
1 Tbl good vanilla (or if'n you're feelin' fancy...1 vanilla bean, seeds scraped)
1 Tbl butter
3/4 cup sugar
2 Tbl. brown sugar
Zest of 1 lemon
1 1/2 cup plain yogurt
1/2 cup milk









Place the pineapple, vanilla, thyme, butter, and sugar in a medium saucepan. Heat on medium heat, stirring, until all of the sugar has dissolved. While the mixture is heating, use a potato masher to mash up the pineapple. Add lemon zest. When all of the sugar has dissolved, remove from heat and let cool for 10 minutes.If you want a smooth result, you can process the cooled mixture in a food processor, or skip. I recommend skipping.

Stir in the yogurt and milk until completely incorporated. Chill the mixture in the refrigerator for several hours (or overnight) until completely cold.

Process the pineapple yogurt mixture in your ice cream maker according to manufacturer's instructions (usually about 25 minutes). Serve immediately (it will be soft) or let it firm up a bit by freezing it for several hours.

Makes about 1 quart.

Laura and her Giraffe Menagerie.

Shout Out From Chicago

I hate Stacey Malow-Williams.

In fact, I hate her entire family.

Stacey is an incredibly talented chef. Sis is an amazing singer, Bro is an accomplished actor/director. Each one is gorgeous, creative, intelligent, practical, and ambitious.

And they have the nerve to be NICE on top of all that. Even the parents treat everyone they encounter as one of their own.

And she sent me this recipe.

It's just not fair.



Blueberry Ginger Frozen Yogurt



This stuff is amazing! The ginger and cinnamon make the creamy cool concoction have a slightly warm finish. Tastes like you've mashed up a ginger snap inside! Yummy. By the by, I didn't take this picture. But it looks pretty darn close to what I made (except I put candied lemon zest on mine).



3 cups fresh or frozen blueberries (about 1.1lb)
3 Tbsp lemon juice
3/4 cup to 1 cup of sugar (depending on how sweet your blueberries are, and how sweet you want the result to be)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
1 T. fresh minced ginger
1 1/2 cups full fat plain yogurt (full fat yogurt is preferred, if you use low-fat or non-fat yogurt, substitute 1/4 cup of it with heavy whipping cream)
1/2 cup whole milk

Place the blueberries, lemon juice, sugar, salt, ginger and cinnamon in a medium saucepan. Heat on medium heat, stirring, until all of the sugar has dissolved. While the mixture is heating, use a potato masher to mash up the blueberries. When all of the sugar has dissolved, remove from heat and let cool for 10 minutes.If you want a smooth result, you can process the cooled mixture in a food processor, or skip, in which case you'll have pieces of blueberries which can add flavorful texture to the frozen yogurt.

Stir in the yogurt and milk until completely incorporated. Chill the mixture in the refrigerator for several hours (or overnight) until completely cold.

Process the blueberry yogurt mixture in your ice cream maker according to manufacturer's instructions (usually about 25 minutes). Serve immediately (it will be soft) or let it firm up a bit by freezing it for several hours.Makes about 1 quart.


Check out her personal chef site: The Itsy Bitsy Gourmet