Hi everyone. A photo and recipes to follow but first……
…. I’m back. I missed you and KB but it was fantastic to enjoy sun, sand and the sea in Barbados without worrying about ‘late posts’ and comments….or lack off! And yes that’s me….on a surf board, riding on waves of azure waters!
While I’m eager to tell you all, I think I should be sensible and wait so I can give you the real deal in digestible bites. Suffice it to say it was everything and more than I dreamt about – Turquoise beaches, gorgeous sunshine and friendly people!
But because everything has its time and place, I’ll share with you something I made for Megan at Feasting on Art. She’s having a birthday bash on April the 3rd when her fantastic blog turns one! Megan lets art inspire her recipes and we recently collaborated: cooking two dishes inspired by one painting. That was a fantastic adventure.
To celebrate her birthday, Megan organised a contest, inspired by a Renoir painting featuring strawberries and lemons.
The mission: Create an original recipe with the ingredients depicted in the still life painting Strawberries. Post the recipe on your website including the painting above and a link back to this blog post about the contest.
The entries will be made into a photo gallery and the picture you submit will link back to your entry post. The image order will be determined by entry date so email your recipes ASAP to be at the top of the list!
Contest Deadline: Saturday 27th March, 2010. The winner and entry gallery will be posted on the one year anniversary of the blog, Saturday 3rd April, 2010.
So, if you haven’t met Megan yet, then let this take you on a voyage of discovery.
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Unadventurous me….I know, but I decided to expand my horizons by making a sorbet. I went for a classic pairing of strawberries with balsamic vinegar, using my little vial of 9-year old balsamic, from Eten & Drinken 2010!
Balsamic vinegars are like wine….they get better with age. In their case however, unlike majority of wines, they become less acidic and thicken to a syruppy consistency, perfect for combining with fruit.
At the Eten & Drinken fair, I tried a 15 year old Balsamic vinegar. It was a thickened dark syrup, sweet and slightly acidic with the familiar balsamic taste. In the centre of a raspberry, it was amazingly delicious! As a gift, I received a small bottle of 9 year old wood-aged vinegar.
I loved the idea of freezing the sorbets in lemon shells, both for presentation and because they act as mini coolers, keeping their contents frozen for just a little bit longer!!!!!!
Tips
You can halve the mixture if you like.
Wash strawberries before hulling so they don’t absorb too much water.
Use fresh egg whites not frozen as they’ll be refrozen once in the mixture!
You can make a variety of things with the strawberry sauce. I saved some for my chocolate gnocchi; I mixed some with yoghurt and made lollipops for the kids. And when the sorbet was ready, I froze some in shells and left some in a bowl, which I froze and then made granitas out of.
Store the sorbet for up to one month in the deep freezer.
Strawberry and Balsamic Vinegar Sorbet in Lemon Cups
#1Â Lemon cups, from Chef de Cuisine
Cut off the top 1/3 of the lemon (not the stem end) and reserve for the “cap.”
Hollow out each lemon by using a grapefruit knife {or a small sharp knife} just inside the rind and circling the flesh (being careful not to puncture the lemon). Remove juice and flesh and juice it for the sorbet put it in your juicer.
Make a slight shallow cut Slice the bottom on the bottom of each lemon shells (being careful not to cut through to the inside of the lemon). This will make them sit straight and not fall over when placed on a plate. Freeze the shells at least one hour or overnight.
Then fill with sorbet and freeze again. The frozen shell will prevent the sorbet from melting too quickly when you serve it.
#2 Strawberry and Balsamic Vinegar Sorbet, adapted from Ice Cream by Pippa Cuthbert & Lindsay Cameron Wilson
Ingredients
500g strawberries (hulled) Juice of 1 lemon150g caster sugar 300ml water 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar 2 egg whites, lightly beaten with a fork 4 Lemon cups
How to
Put the strawberries, lemon juice, sugar, water and balsamic vinegar in a large saucepan and bring to the boil.
Reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered for 5 minutes.
Cool slightly, then transfer to a blender or food processor and blend till smooth.
Cover and allow to cool completely.
{At this stage, I made some strawberry icelollies by mixing some strawberry puree with yoghurt, and topping that with strawberry sauce for sweet centres. My kids loved them}
Churn the mixture in an ice-cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions, for 10 minutes before adding the egg whites.
Continue to churn until slushy (and frozen). You can serve immediately or freeze till hard, ensuring the tops are directly covered with greaseproof paper or foil. {I froze some in shells and the remaining mixture went in a bowl to be frozen for granitas!}
Remove from the freezer 10-15 minutes before serving to allow it soften slightly.
Serve with extra drops of balsamic on top and some lemon zest.
If the idea of a sorbet bores you to bits…..then once frozen, use a fork to pull/shave bits off to make granitas.
I served mine in small tumblers, topped with chopped fresh strawberries and garnish with a mint leaf and lemon zest!
Don’t forget the drops of balsamic and some lemon zest.
I would have loved to use some candied peel but it was all gone….
The sorbet/granita was delicious and good-looking to say the least. It was a ‘warm’ pinky-red with even hues. And the taste – fruity and smooth with a twist of citrus flavour and balsamic. The one thing I kicked myself for not trying was grating some freshly ground black pepper over the top. Next time! Thanks Megan for the inspiration and hope this one year blogging has been great!
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My cookbook giveaway continues till Sunday, March 28th, 2010. Head on over to the post and leave a comment to win!
I’m also sending this on to Weekend Herb Blogging #226, started by Kalyn , and now run by Haalo of Cook (almost) Anything at Least Once, and hosted this week by Erbe of Erbe in Cucina.
Have a great weekend.
So there it is, all done. The sorbe[wpurp-searchable-recipe]Feasting on Art Recipe Contest: Strawberry and Balsamic Sorbet in Lemon Shells – – – [/wpurp-searchable-recipe]
[…] And you could also go down the route traditional and use in your cakes and bakes. And coffees and teas and chocolates. And ices and sorbets. […]
Wow! Great pics and recipe!! Thanks for visiting LoveFeast Table! I see now that you have Lemon Zest, as well! 🙂
Cheers! Chris Ann
[…] Strawberry Balsamic […]
What an inspired presentation – love the combination of flavours too. And I *love* the surfing pic!!
SO pretty! I once worked in a kitchen where we served a dessert in eggshells – I’m a great fan of “natural crockery” for want of a better phrase.
Glad you got in to Barbados without a visa ;P It looks like good times! I’m DESPERATE for some sun here in Austria and I don’t mean the thin watery kind either.
Looks like you were having fun, I just love the surf too!
It looks like you had an awesome vacation!
Strawberries and balsamic are like a match made in heaven. I love the lemon cups. How gourmet!
[…] as I absolutely adore lemon curd! For a refreshing palate cleanser look to Ozoz’s blog Kitchen Butterfly for a refreshing strawberry sorbet cleverly served in a […]
Um, yum! That sorbet looks delicious!
What a delicious blend of tart and sweet – and as always, a gorgeous presentation!
Barbados? Sigh! One of those places that seems so out of reach…particularly on a cold, wet Sydney day! You certainly look like you had a great holiday. Lucky you!
I want to go to the Barbados soooo bad! What a great looking dessert!
I just made sorbet too ;). Strawberry & balsamic vinegar..sounds really interesting! And I love it that you used lemon casing for the sorbet! Lovely presentation. Btw, looks like you had one helluva time at Barbados! So fun!
Wonderful post Oz, looks like you had a fab time on holiday! Can’t wait to see more photos! This sorbet looks divine! I love the presentation. Can I have one sorbet lemon now please? 🙂
So jealous about your trip – those pictures – Oh my! And your creation is just gorgeous – very creative way of using the lemon shells, such a great find! x
Thanks everyone for your comments.
I never imagined after 3 kids and numerous worldly trials, I would be referred to as beautiful! Superb anyway, I’ll enjoy it while it lasts.
The holiday was beautiful and I promise you the ‘exclusive’ guide to Barbados as soon as I’m settled in to work and life again! LOL
This looks so tasty! Beautiful presentation and a very creative way of serving =)! Perfect for summer!
Lovely sorbet – mind you ice cream and sorbet served in oranges/lemons/coconut shells etc always reminds me of desserts in Indian restaurants! But that’s no bad thing.
Good to hear you had a great holiday and can’t wait to see pictures soon
Thank you for joining to Weekend Herb Blogging
Oz,
From the photo it looks like your vacation was fun! I’m looking forward to hearing more about it.
Strawberries and balsamic vinegar is such a classic combination, I’m sure that I’ll love it as a sorbet.
Mimi
very good combination balsamic and strawberry !! bravo to you Pierre de paris
Thanks for stopping by my blog… I love your photo and recipe for Feasting on Art… she has inspired so many people!
very refreshing!
Just found your blog and I’m pretty sure I found it at the right time because I LOVE sorbet! Can’t wait to browse around 🙂
-Mini B.
that is exquisite! freezing strawberry in lemon is a neat idea. And totally envious of your holiday!
p.s. You are in Holland now and expat from? Sorry = )
Girl J, I’m Nigerian and yes we are currently living in the Netherlands!
Welcome Back Dahling… I would totally JUST Love to go to the beach with you, you look and seem like so much fun to be around.. I love body boarding, surfing… maybe not..
Welcome back Ozoz!
yay! you were missed! glad you had a good rest in the sun, pictures look fantastic. this is an interesting challenge for a newby, thanks!
Nice presentation. I’m glad you had fun on your holiday.
simply gorgeous and creative!!!
How beautiful…I love the combo of strawberries and balsamic and then the lemon..fab…
sweetlife
You always come up with the most creative posts! Thanks for sharing Oz – looks like you had a great time in barbados and you are as gorgeous as I expected you to be!
Wow, you are so amazingly creative! Who else would think of putting gorgeous sorbet in lemon cups?? Your “plating” and “presentation” would earn you an A+++ in my Food Service class 🙂
I’m glad you had a great time in Barbados!! Turquoise waters and warm beaches – ok, now I want to go, too! 😉
What do you mean unadventurous – that picture sure seems to say otherwise. I love the strawberry balsamic vinegar paring especially interpreted as a sorbet – sounds so refreshing. One of my favorite quick desserts is strawberries macerated with a mix of balsamic vinegar and honey – oh how tasty. Hope you had a grand vacation.
Sounds like you had a great time away on holidays and what better idea than to continue the feeling of sun and surf with a summery sorbet as this – gorgeous!
Fantastic to have you back! Look at you out in the water! I love it! This recipe is a great original, and what stunning photos as always!
Love the strawberry and balsamic combo!
What a shame I missed this contest. But who can challenge you. You are inspiring.
Ohhhh, I love, love, love your vacation shots!!! Ozoz, you’re so beautiful! You look like you’re having such a grand time. 🙂 I’ve never made sorbet but ooooh, I do like eating it. 🙂
Barbados?? Oh, I’m so jealous!! You look so happy battling the waves… I bet it was great. You made me think of summer and the sea and of course my mind immediately went to Greece…(sigh)
Your sorbet looks delicious. I wish I had an ice cream maker.
Magda
Love that pic! Nothing says “relax, have fun!” like this sorbet in a lemon too! Perfect.
Welcome home!!! I can only begin to imagine what your holiday photos must be like given your obvious talent with photography – I don’t think your friends would be groaning and rolling their eyes at having to sit through an hour or two of holiday slides 😉
Beautiful recipe, I really think this is a winning flavour combo.
That is so awesome, wow!! I love lemons and I think you have done a wonderful job here!!!
Thanks for stopping by my blog and leaving your nice comment. As you can tell, there’s not much I like better than a good laugh either. Love your blog.