Those 90 degree, hazy, lazy, humid days have arrived. But, we still have to eat, right?
Here's a simple, tasty dish that you can serve all summer long. For breakfast, lunch -- and of course, dessert.
Summer Fruit Salad with Ricotta and Honey
1 cup strawberries, halved
1 cup blueberries
1 cup peaches, pitted/skinned/sliced
1 package of hand-packed ricotta
1-2 TBS honey
1-2 sprigs fresh mint (optional)
- Wash/drain and slice fruit, and place in large bowl if not serving right away. Otherwise, distribute evenly between serving bowls.
- Top each fruit bowl with a dollop of the cheese.
- Drizzle honey over the cheese and add the mint sprig to each bowl, if using.
- Enjoy!
Notes:
Peaches: I had a jar of "vanilla peaches" we brought back from our trip to Shipshewana, otherwise I would have used fresh peaches.
Ricotta: I recommend using hand-packed ricotta as opposed to the packaged kind because there isn't really a comparison when serving a dish like this. Hand-packed, fresh ricotta is totally different in texture and flavor than the kind you buy in the dairy case. Trust me. It's worth finding the real thing. If you can find a huge tub of it, buy that. Buy two. You can use it on homemade pizza, smear it on crostini and top with sliced dates and honey, add a spoonful or two over wilted beet greens, or slather it on hunks of bread with sliced, salted tomatoes and a few sprigs of thyme or tarragon. Yum!
Also, regarding the honey: If you can find "Tupelo" honey, get it. It's the only kind that I've found that doesn't turn all crusty in the jar after a few months. I highly recommend the Savannah Bee Company, too -- Chris and I visited them the last time we were in Savannah, GA, and had a blast with their honey tasting. (Being treated to warmed biscuits drizzled with our favorite honey from the tasting wasn't too shabby either!) Good stuff.
xoxoxo
