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My family and I enjoy winter fruits when they’re in season. I never buy peaches and plums from South America during the cold months because they lack the flavor of our homegrown fruits. Blueberries and peaches flown from Chile just don’t cut it like their New Jersey cousins.
My favorite winter fruits are oranges, clementines, ruby red grapefruits, pears, California strawberries and apples. The recent freeze in Florida affected the orange and grapefruit crops for a spell, but now the prices are just right.
Although clementines originated in Spain, California produces these citrus cuties and ships them throughout the country. I’ve seen crates as low as $4.99.
Navel oranges are grown in California, and Sunkist is the brand of choice in our house. Florida also produces a fine variety for eating and cooking.
Although Washington is famous for its apples, Pennsylvania grows them, as well. Oregon ships pears to us and they are delicious, but our state’s farmers also grow them. My favorite is the Anjou variety.
Winter fruits are delicious in salads and desserts. They are a quick and nutritious snack and find their way into children’s lunchboxes. Farmers grow little apples for little hands and clementines are the perfect size for kids.
Orange and Red Onion Salad
Ingredients:
6 large navel oranges, peeled and sliced
1 large red onion, peeled and sliced
1/2 cup of olive oil
Juice of 1 lemon
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Sprinkling of ground cumin
Directions:
Place the oranges and onion overlapping in a circle on a large serving platter.
Whisk the oil and lemon juice together. Add the salt, pepper and cumin. Pour over the oranges and onion and serve.
Serves six.
Grapefruit and Avocado Salad
Ingredients:
6 large leaves of Boston lettuce
4 large ruby-red grapefruits, peeled and sectioned
4 large avocados, peeled and sliced
1/2 cup of olive oil
Juice of 1 lemon
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Directions:
Place one leaf each on six salad plates.
Divide and place the grapefruits and avocados on each plate in a pattern on top of the lettuce.
Whisk the oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper together. Pour over the salads.
Serves six.
Note from Phyllis: I first tasted this in Israel, where it is served as an appetizer.
Marinated Strawberries over Poundcake (From "Everyday Italian" by Giada De Laurentiis)
Ingredients:
1 quart of fresh strawberries, hulled and halved
1/3 cup of aged balsamic vinegar
1 to 2 tablespoons of sugar, or to taste
1/3 cup of cold whipping cream
4 slices of fresh poundcake (each sliced 1/2-inch thick)
1/3 cup of amaretto liqueur
6 amaretti cookies, crumbled
Directions:
In a shallow casserole dish, toss the strawberries and vinegar and leave at room temperature for 20 minutes. Sweeten with the sugar.
In a medium bowl, beat the cream with an electric mixer until soft peaks form. Cover and chill until ready to use, up to four hours.
Place 1 slice of pound cake on each of four plates. Brush with the amaretto. Spoon on the strawberry mixture. Top each with a large dollop of whipped cream. Sprinkle with the amaretti crumbs and serve.
Serves four.
Note from Phyllis: I first tasted balsamic vinegar on fruit about 10 years ago at The Rittenhouse Hotel. It brings out the sweetness of the strawberries.
Winter Fruit Salad
Ingredients:
6 large navel oranges, peeled and segmented
4 ruby red grapefruits, peeled and segmented
8 clementines, peeled and segmented
1 quart of California strawberries, hulled and halved
1 pineapple, peeled and cut into chunks
Cointreau or Grand Marnier, to taste
Directions:
Place the fruit in a large, deep glass bowl. Add the Cointreau or Grand Marnier. Blend well.
Cover with plastic wrap and chill, stirring from time to time, for at least eight hours.
Serves six.
Note from Phyllis: Cointreau, one of my favorite after-dinner drinks, is an orange-flavored liqueur from France. Grand Marnier is, as well. I prefer the former for romantic reasons: Paul Henreid orders glasses of the delicious drink in "Casablanca" for himself and Ingrid Bergman. The first time I saw the movie, I knew I had to try Cointreau.
My Waldorf Salad
Ingredients:
4 large Gala apples, seeded and cut into chunks
4 large Anjou pears, seeded and cut into chunks
2 ribs of celery, cut into chunks
Handful of walnut pieces
Mayonnaise, to taste
Lemon juice, to taste
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Directions:
Place the apples, pears, celery and walnuts in a mixing bowl. Add the mayonnaise, beginning with about 1 cup. Add the lemon juice and blend well. Add the salt and pepper and blend well.
Cover with plastic wrap and chill for at least eight hours.
Serves six.
Note from Phyllis: The classic version contains only apples, but I like using pears, too. It was created in 1896 by Oscar Tschirky, maitre d’hotel at New York’s famous Waldorf Astoria.
Substitute sliced almonds for the walnuts, if desired. Serving the salad on lettuce leaves also is an option.
