Thursday, May 27, 2010

Ciao Bella - Strawberry Balsamic Gelato

I recently posted about a new cookbook that I was very excited to receive; the Ciao Bella Book of Gelato and Sorbetto. I fell in love with Ciao Bella years ago in Iowa City and have been seeking it out ever since when I go to a new city. As it is not available anywhere in my area, I was thrilled to find it at the grocery store my sister frequents, so now I can get it when I visit her as well.

But fear not!

Now that I have my beloved new book of sweets and treats, I no longer have to do without. The book is written by the founders of the company themselves and contains recipes for many of the flavors I am already so fond of along with many new ones I am dying to try.

My original plan was to make one batch of gelato or sorbetto every week this summer. However, I am not so sure that my waistline will tolerate that quantity of heavy cream and egg yolks, so the reality is that it will probably be more like every FEW weeks. That remains to be seen.

For my inaugural Ciao Bella post, I have chosen their Strawberry Balsamic Gelato. One of my favorite springtime treats is a dish of fresh strawberries with balsamic vinegar, so this one jumped out at me right away. This recipe starts with their plain gelato base (versus chocolate base) and uses the addition of a strawberry and syrup mixture and a swirl of a reduction of balsamic vinegar.

Isn’t she gorgeous?Next installment? Pistachio!!! (you know, unless I change my mind the next time I browse through the pages, drooling....)

5 comments:

Heather S-G said...

Oh...that is super sexy! Although pistachio is my fave, so I'm on the edge of my seat over here!

Unknown said...

Looks amazing! I am with girlchef, looking forward to the pistachio. Please don't change your mind :-)

Joanne said...

I've never had Ciao Bella but I've certainly seen it in stores! If you ever come to NYC we can totally have a Ciao Bella buffet! I love the looks of this strawberry balsamic gelato. I am definitely bookmarking it so that I can make it with my new ice cream maker!

Julie said...

What a super summer treat! I think you really should go ahead a make one every week, but I'm a pretty bad influence :)

Krista said...

That is a gorgeous gelato! I can't wait to hear about pistachio. I have yet to see a pistachio recipe I don't like. Pistachio gelato has to be "da bomb!"