The Delight of Fruit Salads

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Mountain folks have long cherished fruit salads whether made from fresh fruits or those preserved by drying, canning or freezing. Apples have always held pride of place when it comes to such culinary offerings thanks to the simple fact that they are the fruit of the high country.

A hundred years ago hard-working farmers in Cataloochee Valley earned welcome cash money from delicious apples shipped to market in the fall, and today all of North Carolina’s leading apple producing counties are in the high country or foothills, with Henderson County leading the way.

Accordingly, apples stand out in the recipes offered below, but they are by no means the only locally grown and gathered fruit meriting attention. Add to that consideration the availability of all sorts of exotic fruits on grocery store shelves throughout the year, along with the fact that most fruits areas conducive to good health as they are tasty, and there’s reason aplenty for two or three offerings of one type or another to feature in every day’s diet. Among the tastiest of these are fruit salads or fruits in a green salad. Here are some wide-ranging samples that should provide something to tempt pretty much every taste.

Apple Slices, Sugared Pecans, and Spinach Salad

As has already been noted, mountain apples are synonymous with fruit in the high country, and indeed in my family that was so much the case that when Momma said “we’re having fruit for supper,” it meant that she had opened up one of the quart jars of apples she canned every fall. So important were those wondrous fruits from our tiny but meticulously attended orchard that she was never happy until she had canned at least 100 quarts. Although canned apples were a mainstay of our daily family menu, we ate plenty of them raw when available, and in that state they lend themselves to all sorts of taste temptations. One prime example is a salad consisting of diced raw apples, sugared pecans, and raw spinach, topped with a raspberry vinaigrette or oil-and-vinegar dressing. The combination provides pure mountain pleasure. The recipe below is for a single serving but can be expanded as much as desired.

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  • 2/3 cup loose spinach leaves per serving
  • ½ cup of diced raw apples (if you like a bit of tang, Granny Smiths are a good choice, while traditional mountain favorites such as Red or Golden Delicious with a bit more sweetness are equally enjoyable).
  • A dozen or so sugared pecan halves coarsely chopped
  • Mix loosely and top with a dressing of your choice.

MAKING SUGARED PECANS

Although you can sometimes find sugared pecans in specialty food stores, making your own is relatively simple. In truth, the biggest problem associated with their preparation is that they are so scrumptious you’ll find yourself with a malicious case of the munchies. Begin with whatever quantity of pecan halves you want to prepare (I would suggest doing a largish batch since they keep reasonably well and are virtually guaranteed to disappear well before any concerns about being stale). Separate a sufficient quantity of egg whites to coat the pecans—this in effect acts as a holding agent making the sugar crystals stick to the nut halves. Mix a tablespoon or two of vanilla extract with the egg whites along with a similar amount of water. In a separate bowl mix enough sugar to coat pecans, a generous sprinkling or two (up to a tablespoon if doing a substantial quantity of nuts) of cinnamon and mix thoroughly. Completely coat the pecans in the egg white mix and then pour the dry sugar mix atop them and stir with a whisk until well coated. Toast on parchment-lined baking sheets in a 250-degree oven until nicely browned and crunchy.

SOMETHING EXTRA

If you want a bit more sweetness, some different texture, and added color in the salad, chop a couple of dried apricot halves into diced bits and add to the other ingredients.

Pear and Hazelnut Salad

  • 4-6 cups lettuce (old timers often used a fall planting of black-seeded Simpson lettuce)
  • 2 large soft pears (eating pears, not cooking pears)
  • 1 cup toasted, coarsely chopped hazelnuts
  • 3-4 tablespoons mild blue cheese

Arrange greens on salad plates. Sprinkle chopped pears or pear halves, nuts, and blue cheese atop them.  Drizzle with a mild olive oil-based dressing or homemade raspberry vinaigrette.  Serves four.

Variations on Waldorf Salad

Traditional Waldorf salads feature apples, celery, pecans or English walnuts, mayonnaise (or a similar salad dressing), and a bit of lemon juice. Here’s an alternative, or in truth three or four possible alternatives, that clings closely to traditional mountain foodstuffs.

  • Fresh apples (dice in fairly small chunks and add both color and flavor variety by using a mix of varieties such as Granny Smiths, Golden Delicious, Winesaps, Fujis, or Galas)
  • A handful of dried apples for extra crunch and sweetness
  • Chopped black walnuts (these have a more piquant and powerful taste than pecans)
  • Dark or yellow raisins
  • The sweet-sour interior of two or three rip maypops (also known as wild apricots) can add a decidedly different taste touch.
  • Chopped celery

Toss ingredients, with amount used depending on how many individuals you plan to serve and, after mixing, sprinkle with a bit of lemon juice and toss a couple more times. Serve immediately, although if you expect to have extra or want leftovers, a bit for Fruit-Fresh and careful covering in the fridge will avoid discoloration for a day.

Apple-Raisin Peanut Butter Salad

For an energy-filled taste treat that can fill the bill as a hearty snack or trail food, mix a coarsely chopped cup or two of your favorite sweet apple such as a Red or Golden Delicious (traditional mountain favorites) or that wonderful import from a generation or so ago, the Fuji, with a half cup of raisins and two or three tablespoons of crunchy peanut butter. Stir vigorously with a spatula (you’ll need some elbow grease because of the stiffness of the peanut butter) until well blended and chow down. The mixed tastes and textures make this especially appealing.

Salads with Dried Fruit and Fruit Leathers

Almost any salad—whether it features lettuce or other leafy veggies, fresh fruit, or mixes of the two—can be elevated to a new level with the judicious use of dried fruit. Some dried fruits such as raisins, apple chips, apricots and pineapple chunks are readily available for purchase. But you might want to consider drying fruits on your own (blueberries and figs dry readily in a dehydrator, for example) or, better still, making fruit leather. I’m blessed to have a couple of mature Oriental permissions that bear heavily with gratifying regularity year after year. The sticky sweet fruits can be dried into persimmon leather that adds a special touch to all kind of taste treats, and once you’ve sampled and savored this wonder you’ll realize why wild persimmons are sometimes described as “nature’s candy.” Incidentally, you can also make leather from wild persimmons; it just takes a lot more fruit (tame persimmons dwarf their wild cousins and also are pretty much devoid of seeds) and work. Peaches are also a fine candidate for leather. Turning to what mountain old-timers called “cooking pears,” as contrasted to “soft pears” that were juicy and ideal for eating raw, they can readily be dried in slender strips or pieces. They have plenty of taste and sweetness and relative lack of moisture in hard pears makes drying rather simple.

The home gardener or fruit grower, along with those who find real pleasure and taste delights without end in harvesting nature’s bounty, can work all sorts of wonders when it comes to using dried fruit or fruit leather to add some pizzazz to salads. By doing so you enjoy the best to two worlds—traditional taste treats of the types our ancestors enjoyed through drying (or sometimes, sulfur bleaching) and the wondrous array of modern greens with which fruits partner so well.

Fresh Papaw Salad

Here’s one treat available only seasonally (early autumn) and to my knowledge not found in grocery stores, that requires some gumption and knowledge to enjoy. Pawpaws actually grow quite widely and bear fruit with considerable predictability. Moreover, they were once a cherished food item, with a pawpaw pudding being George Washington’s favorite dessert. In today’s world though, they seem almost unknown. I periodically ask fellow “foodies,” as well as friends who spend considerable time in the wilds hunting or hiking, whether they’ve ever eaten a pawpaw. Most don’t even know what the fruit or plant is other than being familiar with the old folk song line “Way down yonder in the pawpaw patch…”

Yet pawpaws, sort of like morel mushrooms, can be found by those who know when and where to look along with being able to identify the plant, in surprising abundance. Slices of ripe pawpaw, enjoyed as a simple fruit salad without adornment or perhaps dressed quite lightly with a berry-based vinaigrette, are delightfully different. There are hints of pineapple, banana, and mango, with a creamy texture, and if you are fortunate enough to sample and savor this forgotten fruit I think you will feel blessed.

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