Vol au Vent Filled with Cherry Ice Cream

I love the combination of dark Morello cherries and balsamic vinegar. Since I have balsamic cherry vinegar from Bellindora on hand, I thought I would use the pairing in a dish. I made cherry vol au vent drizzled with Bellindora balsamic cherry chocolate sauce. If you've had balsamic syrup with fruits in the past, you will certainly love this uncommon flavoring as the balsamic cherry vinegar brings out the flavor of the sweet cherries. 

The vol au vent consists of a puff pastry cup that is formed using two different sizes of cookie cutters. I filled it with homemade dark Morel ice cream. As you can see from the photo, I should have been more patient and waited for the ice cream to harden a bit in the freezer and not transfer the churned cherry ice cream directly from the ice cream machine to the cooled puff pastry. Live and learn...

Frozen Dessert Ideas

According to Wikipedia, Ronald Reagan designated July as National Ice Cream Month in 1984. He also appointed the third Sunday in July as National Ice Cream Day. Reagan recognized the popularity of ice cream in the United States (90% of the nation's population consumes ice cream).

Mother Nature is finally smiling on us in Northern California, let's hope she'll continue to supply us with a good excuse to consume our favorite frozen treat.