another yummy fruit discovery ... clementines!

[jobob]

I've never been much a fan of oranges -- maybe its their acidity, they're pain to peel (OK so I'm lazy!), piths are bitter and a hassle to scrape off, and so on.

Well, DH spied a box of Clementine oranges, aka seedless tangerines, in a pretty and tempting display* near the checkout line at the grocery store the other day. He said "ooh I love clementines, let's get some!" and I shrugged an OK, figuring he could have the lot.

Well. These puppies are everything ordinary navel oranges are not.

They're very easy to peel (even for lazy me), have very little pith, and easily separate into segments.

And Oh. My. Goodness. Sweet and juicy with not much acidity. Downright yummy. Me like.

(*our local grocery store puts up tempting displays of reasonably OK/less awful snack foods near the checkout ... it's their attempt at making checkout lines more family friendly. Hey, kudos to them.)

[PamNY]

I like them too! Now, thanks to you, I have to go get some.

[Catrin]

Clementines are indeed everything that Navel Oranges are not I wish that I actually LIKED citrus fruit - I have tried something called "Ugly Fruit" that had many of the same attractions as Clementines and I liked the taste better. In the end though, they are of course still citrus fruit

I do love berries of all kinds, apples and bananas. Indeed I have to watch the latter - I especially like the combination of PB and apples or bananas. This can get the calorie/fat grams right up there... though probably better than dipping them in yummy chocolate

[Cataboo]

Love them - and those clementine boxes make handy bottoms for home made panniers.

The other fruit I can't get enough of in the fall/winter is persimmons (not the american ones, the big ones)

[Catrin]

f in the fall/winter is persimmons (not the american ones, the big ones)

I just tasted some persimmon pulp at a local farmers market, and to me it tasted like pumpkin. Do the large ones have the same taste? Just curious how they differ. I think they had added things to the pulp I tasted, which is why I am wondering.

[Cataboo]

I just tasted some persimmon pulp at a local farmers market, and to me it tasted like pumpkin. Do the large ones have the same taste? Just curious how they differ. I think they had added things to the pulp I tasted, which is why I am wondering.

Hrm. I only ever have pumpkin in pumpkin pies or pumpkin soup. Persimmons are sort of a subtle flavor - they do taste ever so slightly cinnamon like.

[Catrin]

Hrm. I only ever have pumpkin in pumpkin pies or pumpkin soup. Persimmons are sort of a subtle flavor - they do taste ever so slightly cinnamon like.

Apparently they had other things mixed into the pulp then, for it certainly tasted like pumpkin to me. I have been wanting to try persimmons but have rarely run across them. I will keep looking, thanks!

[snapdragen]

Clementine's are the best. Be forewarned, there is always the "stray" with seeds and ick. But the rest of the delicious goodness makes it worth it.

//gawd, this was hard to type, after Christmas Eve dinner with the familty...and lots of wine, champagne, and Firelite liqueur.

[roadie gal]

Love Clementines. They're great for bringing to work. They take no time to peel and they go down quickly.

Persimmons are good too. It's just hard to wait until they get ripe. Sometimes I end up eating them too early. Yuck . With persimmons you have to wait until 3 days after you think they should have been thrown out. Then they're perfect.

[shootingstar]

Do you mean like prickly pear cactus pears or like dragon fruit (the hot pink one with the black speckled inside)? I like eating the latter just'cause it's really cool looking.

I originally meant prickly cactus pears. I had them for the first time, you can believe this, on a topless beach on Greek island. It was a shock to me to be at the beach..then a local guy hiked down a 18% grade cliff near by with his basket of cactus pears. They were delicious.

Since then, I haven't found the ones in stores here satisfactory.

I love dragonfruit. Easy to eat, once one cuts through the soft pink skin.

[Crankin]

I eat a naval orange every day; I don't feel too guilty about buying them when they are coming from another country. Sometimes it's hit or miss with the flavor, but I find if I drink even a half a glass of oj, it puts on the pounds. So, I try to eat the fresh fruit instead. I like clementines, but I find that a lot of them don't have much of a taste, like they are not sweet enough. When you buy one of those big boxes, it's a lot of crappy tasting fruit to eat! One of my kids was obsessed with eating clementines for awhile, so we always had them in the house.

[AnnieBikes]

We love clementines and buy them as soon as we see the boxes in our grocery store in early December. I think they have been particularly sweet this year. When all our family came to celebrate Christmas last weekend, we bought 6, yes 6, cases and they are all gone. Have to buy some more!

As far as pomegranates, one of my sisters-in-law brought one last weekend and made a salad with grapefruit, pears, and pom. seeds. It was just delicious and what a nice combination. The salad was very pretty and colorful! You can do it ahead because the grapefruit acidity keeps the pears from getting brown. What little bit was left, I ate for breakfast in the morning!

Merry Christmas everyone!