Well, it seems weekends are the time I get to cook something different for the family. I decided to try to duplicate a balsamic vinegar sauce I was served a few weeks back. It was a very tasty sauce, slightly on the sweet side, with herbs and garlic flavors. Of course, it was served cold, drizzled over fresh basil and fresh mozzarella - one of my favorite appetizers.

Honestly, I do not want to turn this into a recipe blog, but it seems that I’m doing more cooking than other things lately.

Ingredients

• 2 cups balsamic vinegar
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced or pureed (see below)
• 1/2 shallot, minced
• 1/4 tsp. basil (or more, to taste)
• Very little olive oil
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 1/2 cup sugar

Preparation

1. Mince the garlic. I pureed the garlic using one of those microplane graters. you should end up with a little more than 1 tablespoon of garlic.
2. Heat a sauce pan. Once hot, add a very little olive oil to coat the bottom.
3. Add the shallots and fry for about 30 seconds. Then add the garlic and fry for 30 seconds more.
4. Add the basil, salt and pepper. Fry until you can really smell the basil (no more than 1 minute).
5. Add the balsamic vinegar and bring to a boil.
6. Turn the heat to medium low and simmer uncovered for about 45 minutes to an hour.
7. Add the sugar. Simmer for about another 45 minutes or until the sauce thickens
8. Optional Strain the reduction sauce through a very fine mesh strainer or cheesecloth
9. Cool until ready to use

Presentation

I served this over some fresh mozzarella slices, sliced plum tomatoes and a few slivers of prosciutto. And again, I forgot to take a picture!

Things I would do differently

As always, I like to tinker and adjust recipes. If I wanted the same taste time and time again, that’s what store-bought pre-made meals are for.

I ended up using too much olive oil when preparing the garlic and shallots. I ended up having a layer of oil over top of the completed reduction. While it still tasted good, the oil ruined the effect of a thick reduction over top of fresh, cold mozzarella, and the oil solidified over the cold cheese.

I also strained the reduction depriving the final product of the garlicky goodness.

I also would rather use fresh basil. I plan on planting basil again this summer. Even though I had basil plants that were 2 feet high last year and didn’t end up using anywhere near half, the ability to pick fresh leaves as needed can’t be beat.