Halloween and its hoard of candy are gone. Thanksgiving’s feast is finished. The Christmas yule cake, candy canes, and cream pies have had their turn at table. Can’t stand the sight of fancy cookies or sugar candy? Let’s return to the classics and revisit the historical height of delicacies — fruit.
Before preservation methods, fruit was eaten fresh or dried
Only after the 1600s did sugar become widely available and subsequently used to preserve fruit and to make jam. Before then, fruit was a delicacy that had to be eaten in season or dried. The introduction of refrigeration three centuries later opened new markets for chilled and frozen fruit. Modern methods of flash freezing at the peak of ripeness preserves the flavor and moistness of fruit, especially berries, making them fresh tasting when thawed.
Less is more, especially for dessert
Less fuss means more time for fun and family festivities during the holidays, especially New Year’s celebrations, which come near the end of the always busy holiday season. Less added sugar means more healthy eating. Processed sugar provides empty calories and can trigger a self perpetuating craving for more and more of the sweetener. Fruit has a different kind of sweetness, called fructose, and provides vitamins and minerals.
Serve fruit at every meal
With fruit being so versatile that it can be served at three meals a day, there’s not much chance of leftovers. Berries can be spooned over cereal, pancakes, or waffles for breakfast; over ice cream or frozen yoghurt for dessert at lunch; and over thin-sliced pound cake, split biscuits, or store-bought shortcake with a whipped topping for dinner's finale. (There are now on the market non-dairy whipped toppings without hydrogenated oil or trans fat.)
Flash frozen fruit is succulent and reliably delicious
Even with the best of refrigeration and transportation, the selection of "fresh" fruit in winter can be limited and not of the best quality. Fruit that has traveled half way around the world often has flavor fatigue. Fruit that was properly flash frozen at the height of its ripeness can still retain its field-fresh taste. To release it, arrange an assortment of frozen fruit in a large, wide bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and allow to thaw overnight in the refrigerator. It will be ready to serve in the morning. The natural juices that drain from the fruit as it thaws is a light, flavorful sauce that can be spooned out along with the berries or chunks of mango or peach.
Among the best frozen fruit to thaw and serve any time of the day, and recommended by Good Housekeeping are the dark colored, rich in antioxidant blackberries and blueberries; vitamin C-containing red strawberries and raspberries, and potassium-packed golden mangoes and peaches.
Raspberries, the caviar of fruit
Black raspberries, sometimes called blackberries, and red raspberries have a form and texture that are similar to caviar (though, of course, not taste). Spread upon a bed of cream cheese atop a toasted bagel, raspberries create a luscious treat with tea or coffee.
Peach Melba revival
Food Encyclopedia identifies Peach Melba as having been created by Escoffier for Dame Nellie Melba, an opera singer. It was a wildly popular dessert in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. The original recipe called for peach halves to be poached, topped with vanilla ice cream, with raspberry sauce drizzled over it. Whipped cream was optional.
One of the advantages of thawed frozen peaches and mangoes is that they have a softened texture, similar to a poached peach. Don’t limit your Melba to peaches. Add mangoes and go exotic.
Peach & Mango Melba
In individual serving dishes, layer:
- chunks of thawed peaches and mangoes
- vanilla ice cream or frozen yoghurt or fresh yoghurt
- spoonfuls of thawed raspberries with or without juice
- a dollop of whipped cream or nondairy topping
Easily said and done. New Year’s Resolution: Make eating both healthy and fun.
Denise Larson - Denise Larson is an author, editor, and freelance writer, mostly of history and genealogy, and a hobbyist in gardening and healthy ...
