Fruits
1057 recipes found
Agua Fresca
Sipping on an agua fresca is like doing a cannonball into a crisp, cold lake on the hottest of summer days. Cooling, thirst-quenching and uplifting, the drink is widely consumed in Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean. In the United States, the invigorating beverage is found on the menus of many Mexican restaurants, but it’s also sold by street vendors. Meaning fresh water in Spanish, refreshing aguas frescas are a blend of water, sugar and often lime juice with a variety of ripe fruits, dried flowers or nuts and grains. How much sugar you add depends on the sweetness of the fruit. Agave syrup may also be used as a sweetener. The mixture is typically strained to remove pulp, but you can skip straining if you prefer. The fruit suggestions below — melons, pineapple, strawberry, cucumber and mango — work great, but you can try any variety of fruit, like oranges, peaches, bananas or tamarind. Serve agua fresca on ice, or cover and chill in the refrigerator before serving.
Easy Turkey Meatloaf
There’s really no reason not to celebrate meatloaf — it’s simple, budget-friendly, cleanup is a breeze and there are almost always leftovers for next-day sandwiches. While beef is often the go-to choice for the meat, turkey is a flavorful alternative that can take on a slew of mix-ins. Here, seasoned bread crumbs, garlic powder and Worcestershire do the work, but a teaspoon of Italian seasoning or a palmful of fresh, chopped thyme or sage can be added for an extra boost. Grated apple ensures the meatloaf isn’t dry; use any variety you have on hand. A sweet, slightly vinegary sauce is spooned over the meatloaf after it’s formed, caramelizing when baked (if you have a favorite bottled or from-scratch barbecue sauce feel free to use 2/3 cup of it instead). Serve this meatloaf with mashed potatoes and a green vegetable.
Mango Salsa
Bursting with sweetness, tang and a little heat, mango salsa is the colorful sidekick that’s always invited to the party. A balance of flavor and texture is key to building this simple condiment. Choose ripe but not mushy mangoes so the flesh doesn’t fall apart. For a contrast in textures, use one riper mango and one less ripe mango. The sharp bite from the red onion and the heat from the chile pleasantly complement the sweetness of the fruit. Add as much lime juice as you like to wake up the taste, and don’t forget to season with a little salt to draw out all the natural flavors. Have fun adding other ingredients like avocado, pomegranate seeds, cucumber and jicama, plus a sprinkle of Tajín for an extra kick. Serve with tortilla chips or pita triangles for scooping, or alongside grilled meats, fish or tacos. Mango salsa is best served the day it's made, but will keep covered in the fridge for up to two days.
Berries and Cream Sheet Cake
Summer is time for simple desserts that can adapt to what is fresh and in season, and this one fits the bill. This moist sour cream cake is deeply flavored with vanilla and a bit of almond extract, and baked to the perfect texture that can stand up to a generous topping of berries and cream. The whipped cream topping is accentuated with a bit of cream cheese, which adds tang and also body, keeping the cream nice and billowy even if it sits for a little while. Top the cake with whatever berries look best at the market and get creative with the design. You can arrange the fruit in concentric circles, waves or totally randomly, and the results will be stunning.
Berries and Cream
Made with just a few ingredients presented beautifully, berries and cream is the perfect cap to a summer meal. If you keep vanilla bean paste on hand, this would be an excellent way to use it: Substitute an equal amount of vanilla bean paste for the extract. If you’re feeling up to it, you can whip the cream by hand, but you can also use an electric mixer. The berries and cream can be assembled up to four hours in advance, covered and stored in the refrigerator. But for the best appearance, wait until just before serving to add the final layer of berries on top.
Grilled Pork Chops With Pineapple Salsa
This 5-ingredient recipe maximizes flavor by using two multitasking powerhouses — garlic and pineapple — that tag team with the grill or a grill pan. Grilling is a great way to infuse flavor and have easy post-dinner cleanup. The acidity of the pineapple acts as a quick meat tenderizer and infuses complex flavors. Garlic not only adds flavor to the marinade and salsa but also can add a bit of sass to cooked white rice to serve alongside the sweet and savory pork. Gently fry up minced garlic with neutral oil, then drizzle over cooked rice to transform it into aromatic garlic rice. It’s a simple and creative way to use what you already have on hand. Together the pineapple and garlic will inspire you to create even more quick meals with strong flavors.
Blueberry Spoon Cake
This recipe for a simple summer spoon cake draws the juices out of blueberries then pours them on top of a gluten-free cornmeal batter. As the cake bakes, some blueberries sink and form a stewy bottom, others bubble into chewy jam. The result looks like an upside down cobbler, or a muffin without its middle. It isn’t too sweet, and what it lacks in slice-ability and portability, it makes up for with tenderness and juiciness. Make sure to bake it on a tray to catch any batter or berries that rise over the rim — these are the cook’s midbake treat.
Chicken Pasta Salad with Grapes & Queso Fresco
This pasta salad feeds a crowd and hits all the flavor notes from sweet grapes to briny cheese and olives. Infinitely customizable, It's also a perfect make-ahead side that just gets better with time in the fridge.
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Classic Banana Pudding
Made with a luscious vanilla pastry cream, ripe bananas, and vanilla wafers, this simple banana pudding is the very best version you can make at home.
Rum-Raisin Carrot Cake
This boozy variation on classic carrot cake is imbued with both freshly grated and ground ginger, giving it a spiced aroma that pairs wonderfully with the rum-soaked raisins and crushed pineapple (which makes the cake particularly tender). Rum plays a central role in this cake: It’s first used to soak raisins until plump, then the leftover liquid is added to the cake batter as well as the frosting, ensuring very little waste and a cake that lives up to its name. Slowly beating the cream cheese into the butter-sugar mixture will ensure a sturdy frosting that can stand up to the heft of the cake layers. For the creamiest frosting, be sure to take your time, as cream cheese frosting can become runny or lumpy if mixed too fast. This cake is perfect for any time of year — enjoy it as the tulips bloom, bring it to your summer barbecue or curl up with a slice next to the fire alongside a dark ’n’ stormy.
Vegan Banana Bread
If you’ve never tried to bake anything before, this is a great place to start. (You don’t even need a cake pan!) And if you’re an expert in the kitchen, you’ll be delighted with this quick bread that’s as tender as cake. Overripe bananas not only deliver their deep sweetness, but also bind together the batter made from pantry ingredients. With neither dairy nor eggs, this treat tastes like the purest form of banana bread and also ends up being vegan. You can skip the crunchy topping or swap in your favorite nuts, or black or white sesame seeds. You also can stir a cup of mini chocolate chips or finely chopped chocolate into the batter before baking to take this from breakfast treat to dessert.
Fruit Crumble
The buttery blend of oats and nuts in this easy, warm dessert stays nubby and crunchy while baking over the juicy fruit. (It also happens to be gluten-free.) A chai spice blend is especially nice in the mix, but other sweet-leaning spices like cinnamon and cardamom taste just as good. Any blend of fruit works, and keeping the peel on apples, pears and stone fruit not only streamlines the preparation but also adds a pleasant chewiness. If you want to go all berry, stick with fresh options; frozen fruit ends up too wet. (Thawed frozen berries work just fine with a mix of sturdy fresh apples and pears, though.) You don’t have to serve a warm bowl of this crumble with ice cream, but you probably want that creaminess swirling into the jammy fruit.
Mango Chutney
Ripe mangoes work best as a base for this sticky, deliciously sour and heavily spiced condiment. The intense sweetness of the cooked mangoes is fittingly balanced by apple cider vinegar, crushed red pepper, ginger and garlic; nigella seeds add some texture and bitterness. One dollop of this chutney lends a kaleidoscope of flavors to any meal or snack, from a simple sandwich to a kebab or roast chicken. Mango chutney typically tends to be somewhat thick, but if you prefer a looser texture you can add more water during the cooking process. You can adjust the bite as you like, keeping as many or as few mango chunks intact as you’d like. This chutney is customizable, but its punchy flavors remain.
Waldorf Salad
Crunchy, creamy, sweet and sour, this classic salad has only slightly evolved from the original recipe that was first published in 1896. Oscar Tschirky, the chef at New York’s Waldorf-Astoria Hotel, developed the recipe using just three ingredients — apples, celery and mayonnaise — and this one closely mirrors that version. Besides the three staples, walnuts and grapes provide additional texture, and a splash of lemon juice brightens up the creamy dressing. Feel free to improvise, adding other crunchy ingredients like chopped raw broccoli, sunflower seeds, raisins or sliced pitted dates. This salad can be made a few hours in advance and stored in the refrigerator before serving. Serve as a side salad, or add cooked chicken to the mix for a satisfying lunch.
Lemon Blueberry Muffins
Fluffy with big tops, these treats have the airiness of a lemon cupcake, but they’re not too sweet, making them ideal for breakfast. Lemon zest and juice bring the floral fragrance and tartness of citrus to the batter, which is creamy and light from yogurt. Melted butter will make the muffins even richer, while oil will keep them from drying out quickly. To make these muffins extra moist and to boost their lemony taste, mix 1/4 cup lemon juice with 1/4 cup sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat until the sugar dissolves. Brush this syrup over the muffins as soon as they come out of the oven.
Green Smoothie
For a green smoothie that’s neither too sweet nor reminiscent of gazpacho, make the “Stew” from Veggies Natural Juice Bar & Cafe in Brooklyn. Fresh, spicy and sweet everyday staples like agave or honey, greens, ginger and banana harmonize thanks to one ingredient that brings them all together: vanilla extract, which enhances and balances flavors in baked goods and beyond. The Stew was invented on Veggies’s opening day, when a customer named Stew asked for a drink using a few requested ingredients. Co-owners Ian Callender and Jahman McKenzie named the smoothie after him, also paying tribute to Caribbean stews. Mr. Callender advises not to add more liquid to this smoothie — the greens bring their own — or more vanilla or ginger, which can overpower. The proportions for this recipe have been fine-tuned and perfected over time.
Maple Blueberry Oatmeal Cookies
These soft, lightly spiced oatmeal cookies have a sweet surprise in the middle: a pocket of syrupy blueberry-maple jam.The jam helps keep the cookies soft and tender for days when stored in an airtight container at room temperature, so you can bake a batch over the weekend and snack on them all week long. If you can find frozen wild blueberries to make the compote, these will have an even more intense berry flavor, but any blueberries will work in these homey treats.
Poke Bowl
A vibrant mix of sushi-grade fish, sticky rice, crunchy vegetables and creamy avocado drizzled with spicy sriracha mayo, a poke bowl is just as much fun to look at as it is to eat. Poke, which roughly translates “to cut crosswise into pieces” in Hawaiian, was born out of a no-waste scenario. While the exact timeframe is uncertain, Polynesians inhabiting what is now the Hawaiian Islands chopped leftover cuts of their daily catch into bite-sized pieces and seasoned them with salt and other ingredients. In the late 1800s, Japanese immigrants added soy sauce and rice to the dish. Eventually, poke made its way to the mainland and evolved into a customizable dish: The toppings listed here are just suggestions, so feel free to get as creative as you like, just make sure there is a balance of flavors and textures. Fresh fish is the star and should be sushi-grade and marinated for at least 1 hour. For a vegetarian version, try marinating cubed, firm avocado, and bulk up on the other ingredients. In the time that it takes to marinate, you can prepare the rice, or make use of leftover rice (you’ll need about 4 cups cooked). Don’t skip the spicy mayo to bring it all together.
Açaí Bowl
The star of this refreshing and vibrant bowl is the açaí berry, a small, round fruit native to the Amazon rainforest. When picked from the palm on which it grows, the fruit is bitter with hints of chocolate, and slightly tangy; by the time the berries reach supermarkets (açaí is widely available nowadays), they have been pitted and turned into a frozen purée. Simply thaw the packets for a couple minutes and combine with milk and a handful of other frozen fruits in a high-powered blender for a quick breakfast or dessert. Be mindful not to thin it out too much — the consistency should be thicker than a smoothie so you can eat it with a spoon. Top açaí bowls as you like, with a variety of fruits, nuts, granola and honey.
Halo-Halo
The joy of preparing halo-halo, the sweet, icy, creamy and colorful Filipino dessert, might only be surpassed by the pleasure of eating it. The name means mix-mix in Tagalog, which refers to the best way to eat it: Combine everything by digging from the bottom up with a tall spoon. Shaved ice and a mix of evaporated milk and sweetened condensed or coconut milk are the foundation of this dessert; everything else is up to personal preference. In general, halo-halo includes a mix of syrup-soaked beans, corn, coconut gel, tapioca pearls, jackfruit, mango and banana. Jarred halo-halo mixes are available as a starting point (see Tip). Just make sure to have all the ingredients ready so the ice doesn't melt once it’s placed in the glass. If preparing for a crowd, set up a toppings bar and let people build their own.
Arroz con Leche With Roasted Pineapple
With a touch of coconut, broiled pineapple and bright-red pomegranate seeds, this is a festive dessert. Many rice pudding recipes call for a custard, but this one just calls for simmering short-grain rice in sweetened milk — it may make you think of Thai coconut sticky rice. Serve it warm to cap a meal, and keep some for the next day. Leftovers make a fine breakfast.
Caramelized Apple Pie
Like tarte Tatin, this pie combines the classic flavors of apples, butter, pastry and caramel, with no cinnamon or other warm spices needed. The filling is pre-roasted to draw out and concentrate the apple juices, ensuring soft, cooked fruit and a fully baked bottom crust in the finished pie. (Watch Claire make Thanksgiving dinner from start to finish on YouTube.)
Figgy Pudding
Also known as plum pudding or Christmas pudding, figgy pudding is a traditional British dessert served on Christmas. (“Pudding” in the United Kingdom is what “dessert” is called elsewhere.) Many families boast their own recipes, but in general, this rich cake-like dessert is made with a mix of dried fruits soaked in liquor, warm spices, fresh breadcrumbs, nuts and sometimes candied citrus. Beef suet, which is available online, is the traditional fat used, but it can be substituted with butter. Figgy pudding preparations often begin the Sunday before Advent, on Stir-up Sunday, when family members take turns stirring the pudding. Figgy pudding requires planning, so start shopping for ingredients at least one month before Christmas. After the initial steam, the pudding rests at least 3 weeks for the flavors to meld. The pudding can also be made months in advance, stored in the freezer and reheated before serving. The final presentation of drizzling it with liquor and setting it on fire is worthy of a grand holiday celebration.
Ambrosia Salad
In ancient Greek mythology, ambrosia is referred to as the food or drink of the gods, and in parts of America, some might agree, as the name is associated with a fluffy, marshmallow fruit salad that delights both kids and adults. Mandarin oranges and pineapple are typical to the dish, but other fruits, such as bananas, strawberries and grapes, can also be used. In this version, the fruit is mixed with shredded coconut and sweetened homemade whipped cream, but you can use an 8-ounce container of thawed frozen whipped topping for ease. Feel free to adjust the sweetness of the salad to your liking, but marshmallows and maraschino cherries are a must. Ambrosia salad is best served well chilled, allowing the flavors to meld.