Category: Fruit

Melon Carpaccio

The term carpaccio is usually used to refer to thinly sliced cuts of meat or fish that are served as an appetizer. In recent years, however, chef’s have reinvented the idea of carpaccio, preparing  dishes of thinly sliced veggies or fruit, like zucchini and melon, carpaccio-style. The trick to making a carpaccio is to keep the ingredients thin and uniform by shaving them down with a mandolin or vegetable peeler. Ever since slicing my palm on a mandolin last year, I have a hard time using it without cringing, so peelers are a welcome substitute in this case!

When working with melon, you don’t want your fruit to be too ripe, otherwise the thin shavings won’t hold up after plating. They’ll let out too much juice and turn to mush. Use just-ripened fruit that’s cold (warm melon will be harder to peel) and shave it over a bowl to catch the juices. If using a mandolin or peeler doesn’t work for you, you can also slice it thinly with a knife.

What I love most about this melon appetizer, is the combination of sweet melon with spicy jalapeno and tart lime.  It celebrates the best of summer produce –  melon, tomatoes & basil – at their prime. This unconventional melon salad is not only a party on your palate, it looks beautiful on your plate too.

Melon Carpaccio

1/2 green melon (canary or honeydew)
1/2 orange melon (cantaloupe or orange flesh honeydew)
1 handful yellow grape tomatoes
1 handful red grape tomatoes
1/2 jalapeno, seeded and finely minced
1/3 cup tomato juice
juice of 1 lime
1 tsp lime zest
5 basil leaves, chiffonade
pinch of salt
additional basil, for garnish

Method:

Over a bowl (to catch the drippings), thinly slice melon using a mandoline, peeler or knife (see above for tips). Add the remaining ingredients and mix gently to combine. Serve in glasses and garnish with fresh basil.

 

1 year ago: cherries in red wine syrup
2 years ago: fried fish sandwich

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Watermelon Corn Salsa

When summer comes around, I love to take inspiration from the amazing fresh seasonal produce to create light and healthy dishes. The juicy melons and brightly flavored veggies work wonderfully to create sweet and crunchy salsas, tangy chutneys and colorful salads.

Using bright and sweet farm fresh produce requires little preparation. I usually dress my salads minimally with olive oil and citrus, allowing the fresh flavors to speak for themselves. This watermelon corn salsa is a great example. I’ve made it with both raw and cooked corn – each is equally delicious.

For the recipe, head on over to The Nosher Blog!

If you’re looking to experience the joy of picking your own farm fresh produce at a U-Pick farm, check out my review of Kelder’s Farm.

Other great farm-fresh salad recipes:

Roasted beet salsa
Snap pea, corn & red currant salad

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Fourth of July Tartufo

If you’re looking at the screen quizzically wondering what tartufo is, don’t worry. I didn’t know what it was until recently either! A few weeks ago, a few kosher bloggers and I went out to celebrate the anniversary of the Kosher Connection group. It’s a team of kosher food bloggers that joined together to help each other navigate the blogging world. If you follow my blog, you may have noticed our monthly link-up challenges.

We met at Siena’s restaurant in Brooklyn, to celebrate the partnerships and friends we have made over the past year. Siena served us a variety of dishes, sampling their Italian and Mediterranean cuisine. Some of the highlight dishes included their fried zucchini chips with homemade marinara, a medley of fresh salads, ravioli cooked to perfection and a standout tuna steak over white beans and spinach.

For dessert, we were served a tasting of their finest sweets including cheesecake, tiramisu and tartufo. I had to ask the waiter to repeat himself, as I’d never heard of it before. It was a layered ice cream dessert with marachino cherries and vanilla ice cream at the base and pistachio ice cream on top. It was served as a rectangular slice and drizzled with chocolate. The ice cream was delicious, but I couldn’t get over the pretty presentation. After a few hours milling over the tartufo concept (and browsing the internet for every tartufo recipe I could find) – I had a stroke of genius. Why not find blue maraschino cherries, and layer red and white frozen desserts in celebration of Independence day?

I was so excited about my idea that I went straight for the grocery in search of blue maraschino cherries. Little did I know that kosher ones are not that easy to find. So, I did what any idea-obsessed blogger would do…research. I found a kosher company that makes maraschino cherries in a variety of colors and I called them up. I asked where I might find the blue ones in Brooklyn, and they gave me two different locations. I was on it. The next day, I drove out to a shady little store on Coney Island and picked up my loot. I drove straight home, my ice cream already thawing on the counter.

When I uncovered my tartufo the next day, I never imagined it would turn out so pretty. Sure, it wasn’t perfect. The ice cream layers had sunken into each other, and the maraschino cherries peeked out a tad too little. But still. My experiment had worked. Wonderfully. Happy 4th of July!

Fourth of July Tartufo

1 12.5″ x 6.5″ loaf pan (3″ deep)
1 1/2 quarts vanilla ice cream
2 pints red sorbet (strawberry, cherry or watermelon)
1 10oz. jar blue maraschino cherries
1 bar dark chocolate
red, white and blue sprinkles

Method:

Remove the ice cream and sorbet from the freezer and thaw until softened. Drain the maraschino cherries and place on paper towels. Pat dry. Line the loaf pan with parchment paper. Add a thin layer of ice cream to the bottom of the loaf pan. Top with maraschino cherries. Continue to add more ice cream until cherries are covered. Place the loaf pan in the freezer until the ice cream hardens, at least 20 minutes (the longer the better). Top the ice cream with a layer of sorbet (about 1 1/2 cups). Return the loaf pan to the freezer so the layer can harden and set. Continue layering the ice cream and sorbet into the loaf pan, freezing in between each layer (this keeps the layers from sinking into each other). Once you have reached the top of the loaf pan, cover with plastic wrap and/or foil and freeze overnight.

In a double boiler, melt the chocolate. Turn the loaf pan upside down onto a serving platter and remove parchment paper. Drizzle chocolate over the ice cream loaf and top with sprinkles.

If desired, you may drizzle each individual slice with additional chocolate and sprinkles.

Serve immediately.

Yields: 10-12 servings.

NOTE: You may halve this recipe and use a smaller loaf pan for a smaller ice cream loaf.

1 year ago: snap pea, corn & red currant salad
2 years ago: grilled chickpea burgers

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Moscato, Honey & Vanilla Poached Apricots


When the Kosher Connection team (a group of Kosher Food Bloggers that I belong to) decided on the theme of “cold soups” for this month’s Link-Up challenge, I was thrilled. I had made these poached apricots a few times already, and I knew I just had to share them. Granted, poached apricots in moscato, honey & vanilla bean syrup is a bit of a stretch for a soup, but I think we’re covered. Cold fruit soups are all the rage in the summer, and this elegant take on a fruit soup is the perfect way to celebrate apricots – summer’s sweet and tart bounty.


Fresh apricots are available from mid-June to mid-July and are best tree-ripened (it doesn’t ripen after it’s picked). Try to find them at your nearest farmers’ market for optimum flavor. Apricots should be purchased ripe or slightly under-ripe, yielding slightly to gentle touch.


Poaching is one of the best ways to prepare apricots, but they can also be grilled. The addition of honey helps to balance out the apricot’s tartness. Vanilla bean and Moscato wine add an amazing depth of flavor that complements the apricots perfectly. The syrup is so unique and flavorful, you’ll want to drink a cupful all by itself!

What is your favorite way to prepare apricots? Share your ideas with me in the comments below.

For more great cold soup recipes, check out the Kosher Connection Cold Soup Link-Up Challenge below! You can also view my recipe for cold strawberry rhubarb soup here.

Moscato, Honey & Vanilla Bean Poached Apricot

10 fresh apricots
2 cups Moscato wine
1 cup water
1/2 heaping cup honey
1/2 vanilla bean
juice of 1/2 lemon

Method:

Cut apricots in half and remove pits. Scrape the seeds off the vanilla bean and place the seeds and the bean in a pot. Add moscato, water, honey, and lemon juice. Bring the mixture to a boil, stirring to make sure the honey and vanilla bean seeds are incorporated throughout. Add the apricots and reduce to a simmer. Cook for approximately 5 minutes (depending on ripeness) until apricots are fork-tender. Using a slotted spoon, carefully remove the apricots from the pot. Bring the sauce to a boil and cook over high heat until it is thick and syrupy (reduced by half). Set the apricots and syrup aside to cool. Add to a jar and refrigerate until chilled. Serve with frozen yogurt and chopped nuts.

NOTE: If desired, you may gently remove the skins of the apricots after poaching. I prefer to leave them on as they are quite thin and don’t bother me.

VARIATION: To make apricot sauce, do not remove the apricots from the sauce. Instead, let the apricots continue to cook until they fall apart and the sauce begins to thicken. If you prefer to peel the apricots for the sauce, poach for a few minutes, remove and carefully take off the skins. Return to the pot and continue to cook until apricots fall apart and sauce thickens.  Serve over ice cream or yogurt.

1 year ago: shlishkes
2 years ago: tuna salad with a twist

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Blueberry Frozen Yogurt Bites

When it comes to summer, especially here in Brooklyn, I think most people are about eating light and healthy foods that keep them from feeling heavy. Fruits are especially welcome on a hot summer’s day, as long as they’re cold, or my favorite way – frozen.

If you’ve ever bit into a frozen grape, you know just how a little time in the freezer can turn a simple grape into a sweet and creamy frozen snack. Chocolate-dipped frozen banana’s are another popular guilt-free delicacy. And then there’s the fruit-filled ice cubes, and the all-fruit Popsicle blends. But have you ever tried a Greek-yogurt-covered-frozen-blueberry?

Frozen blueberries are good enough on their own, but dipped in vanilla Greek yogurt, they’re simply outstanding. The yogurt freezes to form a creamy coating over the blueberries, making it the perfect snack on a hot summer day. Once you give these delicious frozen treats a try, you’ll be dipping everything from apricots to raspberries in your favorite Greek yogurt flavor. So have fun, get creative and enjoy the best that summer has to offer!


Blueberry Frozen Yogurt Bites

1 container vanilla Greek yogurt
1 pint blueberries (or your favorite fruit for freezing)
toothpicks or spiral dipping tool

Method:

Wash blueberries and drain. Working one at a time, dip the blueberries into the yogurt (with a toothpick or dipping tool) and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet. If you are using toothpicks, you can use a second toothpick to help slide it off. Freeze the blueberries for 1-2 hours, remove them from the baking sheet and place them in a Ziploc bag. Return to the freezer and keep frozen until ready to eat.

1 year ago: loaded baked potato omelette
2 years ago: strawberry rhubarb soup

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