Tropical Fruit Recipes

TROPICAL FRUIT SALAD RECIPE

Steps:

• In a medium saucepan combine sugar and water. Bring to a boil, keep stirring until sugar has dissolved- about 5-7 minutes. Let it cool.
• Combine all fruits in a large bowl. When ready to serve, mix the fruit pulps and lime and lemon juice. Add simple syrup as needed. Pour over the fruit salad. Adjust with more water and/or simple syrup. Refrigerate until ready to use.
• Serve cold.

TROPICAL FRUIT SALAD

Steps:

• Trim the outside skin off the pineapple and cut out the hard core that runs down its centre. Lay it on a chopping board and cut it into chunks with a sharp knife. Place in a bowl.
• Cut the flesh of the mango off the stone and scoop out the flesh from the skin with a spoon. Place into the bowl with the pineapple. Cut the papaya in half and scoop out the black seeds inside. Scoop the fruit out of the skin in the same way as with the mango. Place into the bowl.
• Top and tail the kiwi fruit, then, sitting it on one of its flat ends, trim the furry skin off with a sharp knife. Slice the kiwi and place into the bowl. Squeeze the lime juice over your fruit.
• Take four plates and divide the fruit between them. Pick the mint leaves and pound most of them with the sugar in a pestle and mortar or a flavour shaker. Spoon a little yoghurt over the top of each plate and sprinkle over the mint sugar and the rest of the mint leaves and serve.

TROPICAL FRUIT PLATTER

Steps:

• Lop green top off pineapple and place on a cutting board. Slice covering off in strips from the top down. Remove hard pineapple core with a fruit corer or simply by slicing ripe part away from the core. Cut pineapple into wedges. Remove seeds from cantaloupe, watermelon and honeydew and cut ripe part of melon into half moon shapes, or into spheres with a "melon baller," or into any shape you like. Arrange fruit on a platter and garnish with whole strawberries. Can be served with fruit dipping sauce such as yogurt or honey based dressing.

TROPICAL FRUIT SMOOTHIE

Steps:

• Place the mango, papaya, strawberries, orange juice, and ice cubes in an electric blender. Process until the ingredients are smooth.

TROPICAL FRUIT CAKES

Steps:

• Grease and lightly flour eight 1-cup fluted tube pans or six 4-1/2x2-1/2x1-1/2-inch individual loaf pans and set pans aside.
• In a medium bowl combine flour, baking powder, and baking soda; set aside.
• In a large bowl beat butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds, add brown sugar; beat until combined.
• Add eggs, one at a time, beating on medium speed until combined (The batter may appear curdled).
• Combine 1/4 cup rum or pineapple juice, 1/4 cup pineapple juice, the corn syrup, ginger, and vanilla.
• Add flour mixture and rum mixture alternately to butter mixture, beating on low speed after each addition just until combined.
• Fold in fruit bits and nuts.
• Spread batter in prepared pan.
• Bake in a 325 degree oven for 20 to 25 minutes for fluted tube pans or 30 to 35 minutes for loaf pans or until a toothpick inserted into centers comes out clean.
• Cool cakes in pans on wire racks for 10 minutes. Remove from pans; cool at least 1 hour on racks.
• Poke holes in cakes using a wooden toothpick or bamboo skewer.
• Soak eight or six 8-inch-square pieces of double thickness 100-percent cotton cheesecloth with the 1/3 cup rum or pineapple juice and wrap each cake in rum- or juice-soaked cheesecloth.
• Wrap each cake tightly in foil or seal in a plastic bag.
• Chill in refrigerator for 24 hours.
• Remove foil or remove cakes from bags; drizzle with 1/4 cup rum or pineapple juice. Rewrap with foil or return to plastic bags and refrigerate at least 24 hours.
• Remove cheesecloth before serving.
• If desired, sprinkle with sifted powdered sugar. Makes 6 or 8 cakes (24 servings).
• Make-Ahead Tip: Prepare Tropical Fruit Cake as directed through until the 24 hr chill, except refrigerate up to 5 days. (Or prepare Tropical Fruit Cakes as directed through up to 24 hr chill, except do not sprinkle with powdered sugar. Place in self-sealing freezer bags. Seal, label, and freeze up to 3 months.)
• To serve, thaw frozen cakes in freezer bags in the refrigerator overnight. Serve as directed.