Fine 'N' Dandy...On a
recent visit to Bequia, largest of the islands in St. Vincent and
the Grenadines, we were rather taken with the typically colourful
premises in the photograph, wherein all manner of delicious cooling
and fruity concoctions are to be obtained.
Just the thing when
wandering along the promenade which hugs the beach around Port
Elizabeth...the staff at Cool 'N' Fruity told us that mango and passion fruit are popular and banana is also
always in demand. The food there is also apparently quite good,
judging by the popularity of the place at lunchtime, although we
discovered it too late to try the cooking for ourselves.
On many of the Caribbean islands a pinch of a spicy mix - ginger and
nutmeg for example, and a twist of lemon, is added to fruit
concoctions to give them a little bit of a 'zing' which can be very
pleasant. Cool 'N' Fruity served us delicious drinks, accompanied by
friendly smiles.
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On the subject of fresh fruits and combining
them, what is your favourite mixture of fruits?
How about cherry/banana? Soursop is
another popular fruit in the Caribbean. A large and rounded, but
usually asymmetrical and rather misshapen-looking object, the
soursop has a green uneven skin and a milky white flesh with dark
brown pips scattered amongst it. The flavour is rather like that of
the old-fashioned pear drops sold in candy stores in the UK,
slightly tart and yet very sweet at the same time. You can eat the
flesh of the fruit or pass it through a blender, making a delicious
drink.
On the other side of the Atlantic, in Andalucia, in the south of
Spain, fresh fruits
are available all year round and in plenty. Below the Sierra Nevada
there is a sub-tropical zone where mango, bananas, raspberries,
grapes, cherries and all manner of fruits are grown. Some of the
more delicate species are grown under the protective cover of 'invernaderos'
('winterers' is the nearest translation we can come up with) which
are huge expanses of semi-transparent plastic stretched over tubular
steel frames, like temporary greenhouses, making much of the area
less than beautiful to look at but extremely productive.
Your editors greatly missed being there whilst in the Caribbean and
will enjoy spending a while back at what has been our European
base for the last few years enjoying, amongst other things, the
fabulous open air markets where every fruit and vegetable can be
found in wonderful condition and at the lowest prices - most
reasonable-sized towns on the coast are visited by the market weekly
- our favourite is a Saturday market right outside the port gates so that we can enjoy things at
their best and be at our leisure simultaneously!
A favourite
Sunday treat to share with friends and neighbours is a wicked
fresh fruit salad, made in a scooped-out water melon...and
hey, don't just read our recipes, send us
one of yours too!
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