White Balsamic Vinegar

I've been trying out recipes using white balsamic vinegar over the past couple weeks.

This is a brand that is sold in refillable bottles for minimal waste

If you think "sour" or "bitter" when I mention white balsamic vinegar, then you are probably confusing it with *me* after the presidential election this week. White balsamic vinegar is actually quite sweet and mild.

It's so sweet, in fact, that you can put it into a drink. I made a "Peach Old-Fashioned" (Saffi Saana website) with it. It wasn't great, but I think that's because peaches aren't great at this time of year. I'd try it again in the summer.

The results were delicious when I used white balsamic in "Crispy Gnocchi with Tomato and Red Onion" (NYT Cooking).

This is before I put in the gnocchi. I love the vibrant colors.

I made "Spicy Sweet and Sour Pad Thai" (Saffi Saana website) with white balsamic, substituting tofu for chicken, adding broccoli for some fiber, and leaving out the chili pepper in deference to my spice-averse backup dancers. This recipe isn't one I'd recommend for pad thai because there was nothing special about the flavor, but I appreciated the simplicity.

Pad thai with tofu and broccoli

The only thing I've made with white balsamic where it didn't feel like the right choice was roasted brussels sprouts, a side dish that I cook frequently. For whatever reason, those sprouts just need regular balsamic. 

All those recipes are or can easily be made without animal products. Plant-based foods are a lesser cause of greenhouse gas emissions than animal-based foods, so choosing plant-based foods is a way to fight the warming of the Earth caused when the gases surrounding our planet trap the sun's heat. 

I know that my minimization of animal products is crushingly inconsequential in the big picture of climate change. But I don't have the power to tax emissions, or incentivize building and vehicle electrification, or improve public transportation systems, or anything else that would make a large-scale difference against climate change. It guts me that leaders who have those powers aren't able or willing to enact policies that would halt climate change, and that there is every reason to believe the Trump administration will pursue policies that make environmental problems worse. If more individuals ate meat only as an occasional treat, and took advantage of alternatives to dairy products (for example, by cooking with oil rather than butter), we could reduce the market demand for animal-based foods, and that would be significant.

Playing my small role in fighting the climate crisis helps me feel more like sweet white balsamic vinegar than sour, bitter regular vinegar. Same with watching 70,000 people (including my friend Ellen!) running the New York City Marathon. Same with having friends over for an evening of drinks and conversation and insanely rich brownies. Same with planting daffodils to come up in spring, or making my own Halloween costume.

You know I love costumes

If you've had a tough week, build yourself back up with acts of joy, community, and hope. Be the white balsamic.