Monday, June 22, 2009

Watermelon Granita

Hey folks! Sorry for not writing for so long, but I assure you that as busy as things have been lately I'm just collecting stories for a backlog of posts. But until I get to them, I have to move first, here's watermelon granita. Enjoy!



Franny and I went to the market this weekend and bought a quarter of a watermelon. It's been really hot in the south of Hungary, and dry, though I was surprised to see watermelon in June. There weren't just a couple either, there were more than 5 stands dedicated to watermelons or a combination of watermelon and other melons. So we dove in and bought a quarter of one to take home. It was good too, but not amazing, so we made other plans for it. I cut chunks of it into thin slices and Franny, using a strainer and a spoon, pressed all of the juice out of the fruit. We then strained it one last time, added a pinch of salt and sugar and poured all of the collected juice into a 9x13x2 baking pan. Placing the baking dish in the freezer I checked up on it every so often and scraped the ice as it formed to create large flat watermelon crystals of goodness. Serving suggestion above.
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Friday, June 12, 2009

Gooseberry Fool

This will most likely be the last post for a week or so depending on access to internet. I am in the process of moving to Kecskemét. I have already tried to get an internet connection order in the works, but nothing is simple in Hungary. Until I have a good connection or until I find a wireless connection blogging will be difficult.

Anyway, gooseberry season has come and gone in Szeged and I caught some right at the beginning. They are beautiful berries that are plump, firm, and tart.


I trimmed and cleaned the berries.


Then I added some sugar to them to cook down.


Once they were cooked I strained them into a purée.


A close-up of the purée in a jar.

Using equal amounts of gooseberry purée and whipping cream make whipped cream and then fold the two together to make a gooseberry fool. This dessert, once chilled has a smooth luxurious texture and a good balance of sweet and tart. The origin is British, hence the name... just kidding. Enjoy!

The Gooseberry Fool.
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Thursday, June 4, 2009

Vote Now!

I'm a finalist in a culinate.com blog contest. Of course you should simply choose your favorite author.