Old Fashion Fruit Salad

Hello…

You must have wondered. Yes, I am still around. Still cooking, Still crazily snapping food photos. Still talking about food and eating (which my waistline didn’t approve). There was some travelling in between. Work got into an mentally-draining state leaving me on a constant battery-low mode. I’ve got a formidable stack of new cookbooks piling up from Amazon (got to make good use of the free shipping) but no more can I read another word. I prefer looking at food pictures on the bed and soon became drawn into a picturesque world of Instagram. Until, most nights, my eyes gave way into the darken iPhone screen. At least I’m glad that I’ve made many new friends along the way.  
Weekends were left for recuperating the week’s toil (the downside of being thirty-five), allowing my brain to go blank just like the blog page or anything else that requires some processing. You’ll ask me what I did? Little trivial things - letting my mind wonder off with hours dozing off on the sofa until it’s time to make dinner. Some afternoon are spent fixating on television. I am sure all of you had been there, it some kind of a self-impose cocoon - the utter euphoric sense of contentment these simple indulgences bring upon to you. It’s okay to treat yourself with doing nothing. 

Yup, I did fell into the Korean drama trap along the way. 

Today, finally, I’ve made up my mind to come out of my hermit cave and do some serious writing.  Tomorrow, I’ll attack the two thousand photos on the SD card which I kept procrastinating to sort out. One thing at a time. I promise another “Hello” soon.
Old School Shrimp Fruit Salad

This salad recipe had been with my family for decades. It's embarrassingly effect less and always a star dish to bring along to any barbecue or potluck. Kids love it too! In summer, with fruits in abundance, it’s up to you to use any combination. You can also swap shrimps with lobster if you are feeling more luxurious.


Ingredients
Serves a party of 8-10 as sides
1 kg shrimp
2 large mangos
2 large pears
2 large apples
1/2 of whole cantaloupe
1 pomegranate (optional)
Store bought mayonnaise or Miracle Whip
2 tablespoon sugar
A pinch of salt
A squeeze of lemon

Method
Blanch the shrimps in a pot of salted boiling water for 2 mins or until cooked through. Get ready a large mixing bowl with ice and water. Transfer the drained shrimps to the ice bath until cool. Peel and devein the shrimps.

Skin, cut and cube all the fruits except the pomegranate into a large mixing bowl together with the peeled shrimps. Add mayonnaise, sugar and salt. Toss to coat with dressing with a squeeze of lemon, adding more mayonnaise if required.

Transfer the salad to a nice large serving bowl. Fish out the shrimps so they look nice on top. Sprinkle the pomegranate. It’s gonna be pretty with the ruby gems on top. Refrigerate until your party starts (about an hour). The juice will mingle a little and it will taste even more amazing.

Cooking Notes: You can cut the fruits in advance. Especially for the pears and apples, soak them in  salted water for 15-20 minutes to prevent them from turning brown. 

Tips on how to blanch shrimps. here and here.
If you are holding a glam party, Prawn cocktail recipe, here

-till next post, ss. 

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