Fruit Chaat....recipe

Cut fruits and veg of your choice or that are in season.....

I used apples, bananas, kiwi, strawberry,grapes,carrots,cherry tomatoes, cucumber, shallow fried boiled potatoes...

Sprinkle some lemon juice and chat masala(available in Indian stores) and mix.

Fruit Chaat is ready....!

Fruit Kebabs

Ingredients

• Small pieces of pear, banana, strawberry and orange
• 300ml pouring cream
• 1 tsp grated orange rind
• 1 tbs orange juice
• 250g block milk chocolate broken into squares

• Method

  1. Thread small pieces of pear, banana, strawberry and orange on to mini bamboo skewers.
  2. In a small saucepan, combine 300ml pouring cream, 1 tsp grated orange rind and 1 tbs orange juice. Bring just to the boil, then add a 250g block milk chocolate broken into squares. Remove pan from heat, stand for a few minutes until chocolate is melted, then stir until smooth. Pour the warm sauce into a bowl. Serve immediately.

  Notes

  • You will need mini bamboo skewers.
  • Tip: For an adult version, replace milk chocolate with dark chocolate (70 per cent cocoa) and substitute an orange liqueur, such as Cointreau, for the juice.

Fruit Salad.....Melon way

Watermelon Basket

Tools: Large, sharp chef's knife Melon baller Small paring knife Water proof black marker
Using a water proof black marker, draw an outline of a basket onto the watermelon, drawing the handle approximately 1½ to 2-inches wide.
Using a large, sharp knife cut along one side of the handle until you reach the horizontal basket line of the watermelon.
Cut a straight line from the center of the basket handle line to the horizontal basket line of the watermelon.
Cut a straight line above the horizontal scalloped basket line; follow to the beginning of the handle on the opposite side.
Remove quartered section and set aside. Repeat until all sections above the basket of the watermelon have been removed.

Remove the flesh from under the handle with a small utility knife.Remove as many seeds as possible from the watermelon flesh. Using a melon baller, create balls with the watermelon flesh in the quartered sections of the watermelon. Create melon balls from watermelon flesh that remains in the basket. If a melon baller is not available, use a small tablespoon. With a small, sharp paring knife, carefully follow along the scalloped edging. Cover watermelon boat with plastic wrap. Place in the refrigerator until ready to use. Fill with fruit salad immediately prior to serving.

How To Use A Melon Baller

Insert a melon baller into the flesh of a melon and twist to form a ball.

Fruit Salad Recipe

1 large watermelon 1 honeydew melon 1 cantaloupe melon 1 pint blueberries 2-3 pints strawberries 1 pound seedless green grapes 1 pound seedless red grapes ½ cup orange juice juice from 3 real limes juice from 2 real lemons ½ cup sugar

Remove the flesh of the watermelon, honeydew melon and cantaloupe melon with a melon baller and place in a large bowl.Wash blueberries under cool running water. Add to the large bowl. Wash strawberries under cool running water. Remove the stem and slice strawberries in half. Add to the large bowl. Remove grapes from the vine, wash under cool running water and place in the large bowl. Slicing the grapes in half is optional. In a separate bowl, combine orange juice, lime juice, lemon juice and sugar. Stir until sugar is completely dissolved. Add to the large bowl of mixed fruit and stir. Allow fruit to chill a minimum of 30 minutes. Transfer fruit to watermelon basket immediately prior to serving.

Fruit Sticks galore....

Fruit Salad...Yummy Yummy...

• Use the largest strawberries you can find.
• Your filling, your preference. My fruit cups have chopped cherries, nectarines and a very interesting (and very good) fruit hybrid called a Mango Nectarine.  
• Hull your strawberries, then use a grapefruit knife and carve a hole in the center, then fill it with your preferred fruit.
• Cut the bottoms flat to stand your Strawberry Fruit Cups upright.

Fruit Salad ...the new way ....

This is not a recipe, but merely a presentation idea

• Place a cupcake liner inside the cone to prevent it from getting soggy.
• To offset the Ice Cream Cone Fruit Cups from being top heavy, I filled the bottom portion of the cone with candy. Aside from its weight utility, kids love the candy-filled surprise ending. My taste preference is for Skittles and they don’t melt, so even better. If you prefer to bypass the candy route you can fill the bottoms with rice, but . . . boring!
• For easy stacking use at least two different size melon ballers. 

Water melon and Cantaloupe Pops

Grab your favorite fruit, cookie cutter and some popsicle sticks and get ready.....

• Use metal cutters over plastic cutters. You need a thinner sharper edge that metal ones have over the plastic variations.
• You can pre-cut the fruit into their chosen shapes, but insert the popsicle sticks prior to serving or they will become soggy.
• Avoid overly ripe fruit, as they will get mangled when you try to cut them with a cookie cutter.
• Fibrous fruits such as mangoes and pineapples do not work well as they require the sharp edge of a knife for cutting.

Orange Pith

Orange juice is a breakfast obsession in North America.  It’s known for its source vitamin C.

Did you know that freshly squeezed orange juice only has 25% of the vitamin C of the whole orange?

Many people throw out the most valuable part of the orange…

It’s called the “pith”.

The pith is the white stuff that lies under the skin of the orange.  You might say it has a bland-to-bitter flavour.

Not only is the pith fully loaded with vitamin C, but it also contains high levels of fibre, anti-cancer agents and bioflavonoids (a type of antioxidant).

Interesting facts:

Orange is known as one of the world’s favourite flavours.  It ranks 3^rd – trailing only chocolate and vanilla.

The pith of an orange is also used by some as a natural teeth whitener.

Dried fruits as healthy as fresh ones

The idea that dried fruits may not be as healthy as their fresh counterparts has long prevailed. 

But now, a new study has suggested that traditional dried fruits such as dried apricots, dried apples, dates, dried figs, raisins and sultanas, and prunes should be included in dietary recommendations for fruit and vegetable intake around the world. "Dried fruits are great sources of total and soluble fiber in the diet," said Dr. Daniel D. Gallaher of the University of Minnesota. "Just as fresh fruit, they have low glycemic index values and can play an important role in preventing different aspects of metabolic diseases."

In addition to providing fiber, dried fruits rank among the top potassium sources in diets around the world, according to Dr. Arianna Carughi,Health and Nutrition Research Coordinator for the California Dried Fruit Coalition. Dried fruits also contain a range of increasingly important bioactive phenolic compounds, as well as specific vitamins and minerals, unique to each fruit, she said.

"There is little doubt that plant polyphenols protect from heart disease. The health effects are complex and they appear to work in many different ways, not just simply as antioxidants," said Dr. Gary Williamson of the University of Leeds. "Some fruits including dried fruits contain high levels of a variety of polyphenols and we are just starting to understand their health protective effect," he added.