Balsamic Strawberries

This has totally been done before so hopefully you aren't freaked out by the vinegar/strawberry combo, but if you are, when reduced the vinegar's natural sweetness comes out so you have this play of tart and sweet. It's pretty damn enjoyable. This is just something I kinda threw together to take to a friend's dinner making party. It's a great way to use strawberries and I had a rough idea of what to do since we made this at one of the restaurants I worked at in Lexington, Ky.

Oh, and the whipped cream is totally supposed to be combined with mascarpone cheese, but this was in a pinch so I just used cream cheese.

Balsamic Strawberries

1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp honey
1 tsp lime juice

Strawberries (about 2 quarts)
1 tbsp sugar

1 cup heavy cream
1/2 tsp vanilla
2 tbsp cream cheese
2 tbsp sugar

For the balsamic reduction, combine the vinegar, honey, and lime juice in a sauce pan over medium heat. Stir or whisk until the honey is dissolved and bring to a boil. Let it boil for only about 2-3 minutes, it should thicken in a syrupy sort of way.

In a bowl toss the strawberries (hulled and halved) with the sugar and let it set while the reduction is cooling. Once cool, toss the reduction with the strawberries.

In a separate bowl mix the cream cheese and vanilla with just a little cream to thin the mixture. Add the sugar and the rest of the cream and whisk until medium peaks form. Thanks to the cream cheese they'll hold just fine. Serve with the strawberries. YUM!

And darn it! in my haste, once again, no pics :-(