SUMMER SWEETS

Dominion, Volume 28, Issue 122, 16 February 1935, Page 17

SUMMER SWEETS

The Perfect Fruit Salad The woman—or the man—who first created fruit salad performed a signal service for humanity. There is no more refreshing food with which to complete a light and appetising meal on a hot day. But care and judgment are necessary to the production to a really good fruit salad. It is not enough to cut up any fruits that may happen to be in season, and steep them in sugar and lemon-juice. Certain fruits blend harmoniously; others, 'like apples, Should have no place at all in a fruit salad. With a little chopped walnut and celery and a creamy mayonnaise dressing apple makes a delicious salad to eat with cold meat. But it does not belong to a true fruit salad. For that pineapple and bananas make the indispensable foundation and other soft fruits may be added To a small pineapple, or hall’ a big one, allow four bananas, which must be quite ripe and not firm; four goodsized pears, two large peaches, two or three apricots, four to six passion-fruit, a large lemon, and a good teaenpful of sugar. Pare the pineapple and shred it finely, or cut it in halves, and scoop out the softer part of the fruit, leaving the core. Put tne shredded fruit into a basin, and then squeeze all the juice from the rind over it. A considerable amount of juice will run from the rind. Slice the bananas into a deep bowl, sprinkle them with sugar, and pour some of the pineapple-juice over them. Add the pears, peeled and cut into small dice, and the peaches and apricots, peeled and cut up. Sprinkle with a little more of the sugar. Then pile all the pineapple over the top, and the contents of the passion-fruit, and sprinkle the rest of the sugar over the top. Then add the juice of the lemon. Let the salad stand for about two hours, then stir up from the bottom. The time for standing may be longer, but should not be less, as the flavours i of the fruits require time to blend. More syrup may form than is needed for the salad, and it can be taken off , and used as a foundation for fruit cup. If the syrup is not sweet enough, a little more sugar may be added when the salad is stirred up. Serve in deep individual dishes.