Philippines

Tropical Fruit What is this strange looking, teardrop shaped, bumpy orb? It can’t be edible, can it? I wonder if that’s what the first hunter-gatherers walking through the Southeast Asian tropical landscape said to themselves. Was it hunger or curiosity that drove them to find a way to open the firm outer skin and sink their teeth into the white orb of juicy, tropical flesh wrapped around the big, oblong seed?

This is a bowl of fresh lychees.

I remember my mom telling me she loved lychees when I was young, but I never “got it.” I only remember lychees from the local Chinese restaurant and they could not have been fresh.

Back in the 60’s fresh tropical fruit was available in the tropics, not suburban New Jersey.

Even now, when Mangosteens or Rambutan show up in the supermarkets in Reston, Virginia, they are nothing but an expensive tease. I’ve tried them. Sure. I have been known to plunk down insane amounts of money to slide into memories of tropical life.

But indulging in these exotic fruits is about the same as opening the trash can and throwing the money way. Lychees, Mangosteen or Rambutan don’t make it to the loading docks and palettes of the Northern Virginia supermarkets very well and they turn into something that is not at all simliar to the real thing. By the time they make it over the Pacific to the western hemisphere they are in horrible shape with no redeeming value at all.

I just checked the Wegman’s market website and fresh lychees are selling for $5.99/lb. right now. I just bought a pound and a half of fresh Rambutan which are basically lychee with hair and paid $1.44/lb. and the market I purchased them in is not known for low prices. If I bought the fruit on the side of the road on the way to Tela, I am sure it would have cost a fraction of the price.

But here in Central America, some of these tropical beauties are available. We also have Rambutan, the spiny looking fruit that is just like a lychee and looks like a prop from Jurassic Park and I think Mangosteen are available as well. None of these are indigenous to Central America, but over time they have made their way here and it makes me happy.

If you see these fruits in your local market, pick one up, ask the produce guy if you can try one just to get an idea of what it’s all about and then finish your shopping, get in your car, go home and book a trip to a tropical paradise somewhere so you can get a real taste of one of these odd-looking, but delicious fruits.

I will miss this stuff when I head back to the US, but there is no date for that yet, so I will continue to live the tropical life and eat beautiful fruit — oh and of course, corn tortillas!

Now, if they would just put an Apple store in the city so I could visit the Genius Bar. I’ve been living with months of very spotty internet connectivity with my MacBook and I can’t quite figure it out. The iOS devices stay happily connected, but writing a blog post on an iPad or iPhone is not my idea of fun, relaxing entertainment.

The first time I had this salad, before I began making it for myself was in a small Lebanese restaurant in the Philippines. It was one of my first weeks in the country and although familiar food was tough to find, I knew what hummus and salad were. But this salad contained an unfamiliar ingredient; sumac and it included the bright flavor of mint. Don’t let sumac scare you. This isn’t the poison sumac that used to scare you in the summer when you were out playing in the woods. The sumac berry, when dried and ground adds a tart, lemony flavor to this salad and it’s dark red color adds interest to fattoush, hummus and even grilled meats and fish.

Just like Italy brings us a bread salad called Panzanella, Fattoush is a bread salad as well, usually with toasted or fried pita pieces being the star ingredient. I’ve adapted this salad to focus on the vegetables with pita as the surprise crunch in most bites and have added a few olives for texture and that briny flavor.

I keep a jar of Za’atar* in my pantry and it’s the perfect spice blend for this salad as well as many other dishes I like to cook. Za’atar* is a spice blend that you can make and keep with your spices, but if you’d rather not, you can find it in specialty or international markets in your area or online.

Fattoush is easy to put together and on warm summer nights it’s the perfect side dish to serve with your favorite grilled food. Serve it with a side of hummus and pita chips and you’ve got a summer dinner that’s tough to beat.

Change it up by adding some good quality, brine packed feta cheese and this salad can become a satisfying lunch-time meal. Just be sure to add points for the cheese. Just 1 point for each 1/4 cup of feta.

I’ve added olives for the texture and salty flavor. Olives or no olives, it’s a salad with many textures and flavors that’s not to be missed. I made this salad last year for an end of summer dinner I invited friends over to share with me and ever since, it’s been the dish I’m most often asked to make when I’m invited for dinner. Maybe that’s because when I cook at their house I ALWAYS — and I mean EVERY SINGLE TIME — screw up the rice?

Fattoush; a Lebanese Salad

Recipe Type: Salad

Serves: 10

This salad is filled with flavor and texture. Adjust to suit your salad cravings.

Ingredients

1 large bunch flat leaf parsley, roughly chopped
4 sprigs fresh Mint, finely chopped — the amount is based on your preference for mint, but the salad should not be without this important flavor
2 English Cucumber, sliced in rounds or cut into quarter slices
1 medium Onion, very thinly sliced
2 pints Cherry Tomatoes, halved
1 Yellow or Red Pepper, thinly sliced (optional)
20 Black Olives, cut in half, lengthwise
3 Toasted Pita rounds, cut into pieces or 4 cups of Stacy’s Simply Naked Pita Chips
2 teaspoons Salt
1 teaspoon freshly cracked Pepper
2 teaspoons dried Oregano
1 teaspoons dried Basil
1 tablespoons ground dried Thyme
1 teaspoons dried Savory
1 teaspoons dried Marjoram
1-1/2 tablespoons ground Sumac
2 Tablespoons cup ground toasted Sesame Seeds (not the black ones)
2 tablespoons Za’atar* — See links above in body of post for detail
3/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/4 tablespoons Vinegar or Lemon Juice

Instructions

In a serving bowl combine the parsley, mint, cucumbers, onions, tomatoes and red pepper and toss.
Meanwhile, combine the spices in a bowl
Sprinkle the spice mix (or Za’atar* — See links above in body of the post for detail) over the salad and toss to thoroughly combine
Pour the vinegar or lemon juice into a separate bowl, slowly pour in olive oil, whisking briskly to combine
Pour over the salad, toss and let sit for 10 minutes before serving
Crunch up toasted pita or pita chips, add to the salad, toss and serve

Serving size: 1 Cup Calories: 282.6 Fat: 3.2g Carbohydrates: 17.1g Fiber: 2.6g Protein: 3.3g

Notes

Be judicious when dressing the salad. This is probably too much dressing for the quantity of salad you are preparing, but it will keep for a long time in an air tight container.

The Weight Watchers Points Plus value for this salad is 3.

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Tropical Fruit Mysteries

A Recipe for Fattoush; a Lebanese Salad