Slashfood

• Wild Edibles: Kousa Dogwood Fruit
  

  Filed under: Fruit, Fall, Wild Edibles

  
  
  The Kousa Dogwood is a favorite ornamental tree because of it's creamy white "flowers" actually the bracts for the inconsequential green flowers, that cover the tree all spring and early to mid simmer. In the fall it may have small clusters of rose colored fruit, although if you have a high squirrel population you may never see or notice the fruit.
  
  if you have this tree in your yard or know someone who does, try to beat the critters to the fruit. They are creamy, delicate, and sweet; although they do have some seeds as well.
  
  In college I found out...
  



• Concord grape granita
  

  Filed under: Dessert, Fruit, Europe, Summer

  Quickly: when I say the word "wine," what do you think of? California, Virginia, or New York? Spain, Chile, or Australia? Chateaux or vineyards? Silver trays of champagne circling through a wedding reception? Winos swilling rotgut? Seventies swingers dipping bread cubes into fondue while pronouncing the Mateus "amusing?" Drunken college kids doing box-wine funnels? Or do you think of dessert?
  
  All summer, my yearly seizure of frozen dessert making has been in full swing. You know the drill: as a season dawns, you feel besieged by the love of seasonal ingredients and compelled to express...
  



• Taking in a bit of Maine with Blueberry pie à la mode
  

  Filed under: Dessert, Fruit, America, Summer

  
  While in Maine, I had enough blueberry pies to blow me up and turn me violet like the character Violet Beauregarde in the film Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory. I've been told that Maine has over 60,000 acres of wild blueberries this time of the year. So, what better way to take in the agriculture of Maine than to savor a bite or two of blueberry pie.
  
  I had one blueberry pie, in particular, that stood apart from all the rest. It was at Jordan's, a diner-like...
  



• Slashfood Ate (8): Fruits and veggies to anticipate this fall
  

  Filed under: Vegetables, Fruit, Slashfood Ate, Fall

  The end of the summer can be distressing and sad. There are those of us who go back to school, and others who must say farewell to Summer-Fridays. There'll be fewer berries, nectarines, peaches, and plums. However, while we feel a nostalgia for summer produce, we can look forward to the colorful and delicious autumn harvest.
  
  Below are 8 fruits and vegetables to anticipate this fall:
  
  1. Figs - All year, we can enjoy dried figs. But, from now until early fall, markets sell the fresh tender succulent inverted flowers. The juiciness of these fresh figs tastes remarkable. And,...
     
  
  
  
  2. Cozy up to your apples
     

     Filed under: Fruit, Food Oddities

     
     Each day, I pack up some food to bring along with me to work. Some days it's a complete meal, whereas other days, I just bring a snack (knowing that either we're having lunch at work or I'm going to run out and grab something). One consistent thing about my to-go food is that it nearly always includes a whole piece of fruit. However, I rarely feel comfortable just tossing an apple, pear or nectarine straight into my bag, for fear that it will get punctured or smashed. Instead I walk to work, clutching a piece of fruit. It's an effective protective measure,...
     
  
  
  
  3. Foodie Flicks: Sesame Bananas
     

     Filed under: Dessert, Fruit, Foodie Flicks

     
     
     Sometimes some of the best and most worthwhile meals or treats are the ones that take no time at all. While there's nothing quite like a carefully prepared dish, it's also great to wow the tastebuds with simplicity. The above video, Green's Cuisine, has rejigged the Chinese treat toffee apples with deep-fried bananas into a super-quick and sugary treat. Sesame bananas are basically chopped bananas sprinkled with sesame seeds and then doused with a good drizzle of freshly made toffee syrup -- just a melted mixture of water and sugar.
     
     This looks like the perfect dish for...
     
  
  
  
  4. Box Lunch: Fruity fishies
     

     Filed under: Lunch, Fish, Fruit, Food Oddities

     
     For your lunchtime pleasure, I'm presenting a series of my favorite bento boxes. Bento are Japanese home-prepared meals served in special boxes, usually eaten for lunch at work or school. The boxes can range from austere lacquered trays to multi-tiered Hello Kitty confections of neon pink plastic. The meals themselves are anything from rice and leftovers to elaborate themed affairs of Pikachu-shaped dumplings with sesame seed eyes and carved radish trees. These days, bento enthusiasts from all over the world share their creations on Flickr.
     
     Today's adorable creation, courtesy of Aylanah, is a seascape where...
     
  
  
  
  5. Review: Abita Strawberry Harvest Lager
     

     Filed under: Beer, Fruit, Raves & Reviews

     When last we left fruit beer reviews, I doled out major praise to Bar Harbor for balancing blueberry fruit flavor while maintaining a solid level of traditional craft beer appeal. Based on a recommendation, this weekend I thought I would take a stab at Louisiana brewery Abita's Strawberry Harvest Lager. After my first sip, I realized it would be perfect... for a counterpoint example of why fruit beers often get a bad rap!
     
     The nose is an overwhelming burst of strawberry. It's too much by any standards (except maybe for Kool-Aid Man: Oh yeah!), but what's most unfortunate is...
     
  
  
  
  6. Ingredient Spotlight: Umeboshi
     

     Filed under: Asia, Fruit, Ingredient Spotlight

     
     Umeboshi are pickled ume, sour Japanese fruits somewhere between plums and apricots. Umeboshi are often eaten for breakfast, or as a pickle-like side-dish with boxed lunches. They're a common filling for onigiri (rice balls), a lunch staple. Umeboshi can be grated and mixed with soy sauce for dressing chicken or salad. They are considered highly medicinal, used for hangovers, digestive ailments and to "purify" the blood. Many older Japanese people eat one every morning, for energy, the same way samuris did hundreds of years ago.
     
     You can pick up umeboshi, or umeboshi paste, at most Asian markets.

     Fish, Fruit

     
     There used to be this ridiculously cheap outdoor produce market nestled against a bubble tea shop that I would frequent. I would always come out of the place with bags of produce and fruit, and I would never have to spend more than $15. Sadly, the place is gone now, but I never forget it because I once picked up the most delicious box of blackberries there. They were juicy, sweet, and pretty much perfect. I have been thinking about that place a lot this summer, as I've been craving those tasty buggers for weeks.
     
     And now I have the perfect excuse to buy...