Feeling Fruity Easy Recipes for Your Summer Get Together

I just love summer. It is the time of year when grills come out of hibernation and become the center of family gatherings and holiday barbeques. If there is one thing everyone can agree on, it is the love of good food.

Summer is one of the best times for fruit lovers. Berries, melons, peaches, pineapple, and other delicious fruits reach peak season during the summer months. Why not introduce a new fruit recipe at your next barbeque?

As an appetizer, try this yummy sour cream fruit dip.
Ingredients:
1 8-ounce container of sour cream
1/3 cup apricot or peach preserves
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice or apple pie spice
Fruit slices
Mix sour cream, preserves, and spice together in a small bowl. Cover and chill for several hours or overnight. Serve with the fruit slices.

If that does not sound good, try this colorful fruit salsa.
Ingredients:
1 cup finely chopped strawberries
1 medium orange, peeled and finely chopped
2 large or 3 small kiwifruit, peeled and finely chopped
? cup finely chopped pineapple
? cup finely chopped yellow or green sweet peppers
1 tablespoon lime or lemon juice
1 jalapeno pepper, if desired, seeded and chopped
In a bowl, combine all ingredients except the strawberries. Add them right before serving. Cover and chill for 6 to 12 hours. Serve with cinnamon tortilla chips.

Cinnamon tortilla chips
Ingredients:
1 package 8-inch flour tortillas
Cinnamon
Sugar
Melted butter, if using baking directions
Oil, if using frying directions
Baking directions: Mix butter, cinnamon, and sugar in a small bowl. Brush on tortillas. Cut tortillas into wedges and spread in a large baking dish. Bake at 350 degrees until dry and crisp, about 5 to 10 minutes.
Frying directions: Cut tortillas into wedges. Fry in hot oil until they are golden in color and crisp. Spread onto a plate lined with paper towels. Immediately sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar.

While your guests wait for dinner, serve them a refreshing glass of iced raspberry tea. Just drop 2 cups of fresh raspberries into your tea while it brews. Once the tea has reached full strength, strain and serve over ice. Throw a few fresh berries in each glass for a delicious garnish.

Fruit can even be incorporated into your side dishes. A wonderful and healthy dish is this fruit salad. The salad is completed with a tasty strawberry dressing.
Ingredients:
2 cups strawberries
1/3 cup water
? cup sugar
? cup orange juice
Bibb lettuce leaves
2 large oranges, peeled and sectioned
? large pineapple, peeled, cored, sliced, and cut into wedges
2 large ripe pears, cored and sliced into wedges
2 kiwifruit, peeled and sliced lengthwise into wedges
In a medium saucepan, combine strawberries and 1/3 cup water. Bring to boiling and reduce heat. Simmer, covered, for 3 to 5 minutes. Remove saucepan from heat. Stir in orange juice and sugar. When cool, strain the mixture, pressing strawberries through a sieve. Cover and chill. Mix remaining fruit in a bowl. Arrange lettuce leaves in bowls or on small plates. Place fruit mixture on the leaves and drizzle strawberry dressing over the top.

Adding fruit to your diet can be easy and delicious. Look for more delicious recipes in Part Two!


By Elizabeth Jensen