Friday, July 15, 2011

Mint Summer Fruit Salad

This was my third dish for the baby shower, my new favorite fruit salad and a little something to maybe entice you to try making over the weekend. I'd never really worked with mint before, but it was exciting to have a good reason to buy a bunch of it at the Farmer's Market that weekend. Plus mint is a fantastic summer flavor! Even though I was a bit nervous about it beforehand, it got rave reviews from everyone at the shower and I highly recommend it!

This salad takes about 20 minutes to put together, but is a great option for a summer side-dish because it looks and tastes like more work went into it than did. If you don't have a food processor, you can cut the mint leaves into smaller portions and try using a coffee grinder. I only recently acquired a food processor, as my mom was getting rid of the smaller of her two, and I was SO thankful to have it when it comes to making things like this (or anything that requires chopped nuts). You can usually find small food processor options at 2nd hand stores or garage sales, as well as reasonably priced in many stores - and I highly recommend it if you're going to be doing a lot of cooking. The amount of time and frustration I could've saved myself by buying one earlier isn't something I want to think about too much - but seriously, 100% worth it!

Fun side-note: while I finally have a backlog of recipes and pictures to share, so that I'll hopefully be able to keep my weekly-post goal. But even still, the more the merrier. My friend Jo is going to try her hand at being a guest author- help keep recipes, perspectives and the narrative fresh. I think she'll hopefully be posting something soon, so get excited and keep your eyes peeled!


                       
Mint Summer Fruit Salad from Epicurious 
Serves 6, 20 minutes prep time
Ingredients:
1/4 cup fresh mint
3 Tbs sugar
1 1/4 lb blackberries
3 firm, ripe nectarines, pitted and cut into 1/3" thick wedges
1/2 lb seedless green grapes

1. Pulse mint and sugar in a food processor until finely ground.
2. Prepare and combine fruit in a large bowl, careful not to breakdown the berries by over-stirring
3. Sprinkle mint+sugar over the fruit and toss gently to combine.
4. Let stand at least 5 minutes, then serve!

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