Fruit loupe
Feb. 29th, 2008 04:33 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
It may amaze and astonish some of you who know me well, to know that I have been eating fruit lately. I have never cared for fruit. I tried to eat it, but I think it was partly a texture thing and...I don't know what other problems I had with it, but I just never, ever ate it. I mean, if someone HAD a grape and offered me one (because that happens all the time), I wouldn't refuse it. But I can't say that I ever liked fruit, and I certainly never kept any in my home. Even when I was a kid, I thought bananas were gross. I found them slimy and nasty. My mom would be all devious and try to slip strawberries into my cereal, but I was having none of that. I've always liked fruit-FLAVORED things. Candy, jello, gum, Kool-Aid...that was acceptable. I enjoy smelling like fruit. And I like fruit juice. I could drink orange juice 'til the cows come home, whenever that is. But I just couldn't bring myself to eat the real thing.
However, I recently decided that I just needed a little more fruit in my world. So, I started off with some basics: apples, bananas and grapes. I've actually still not branched out much beyond this. I dare not try anything too exotic like papaya or starfruit. Oh, I did eat a peach the other day, and I found it stringy and not sweet enough. Oranges are still a no-go. That white crap around them is just disgusting! I cannot find berries of any type that are sweet enough for my liking. (I firmly believe blueberries to be of the devil.) I would like to enjoy cherries (that are not surrounded by creamy syrup and covered in chocolate), but I just can't do it. Grapefruit scares me. Oh, and kiwi = Yuck. My mom told me I might like papaya, however I'm dubious of this notion. I can tolerate watermelon, but I honestly don't see what all the fuss is about. Canteloupe and honeydew and all those other melons can just bite me, though. Blech.
But I have deemed apples, bananas and grapes an acceptable between-meals snack, and I've gotta admit, much to my surprise, I'm actually kind of enjoying them! Maybe I'm just finally growing up.
It's funny, I will eat just about any vegetable under the sun. Seriously. Brussels sprouts? Yum. Broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, carrots, cucumbers, endive, peppers, squash, zucchini? Bring 'em on! I could live on spinach and other greens. And of course potatoes, beans of all sorts, and tomatoes are just about the best things ever (please don't try to tell me how tomatoes are a fruit...lalalalalalala...I can't hear you.) I don't care for turnips or beets. I think those are the only veggies I just don't like at all. And I'm only OK with onions if they're cooked. But otherwise, veggies have always been my friend. Not so with fruit, but I am glad to report that I have now made peace with (some of) them.
Is an avocado a fruit or a vegetable? And do people just eat them by themselves? I mean, I like guacamole a lot. If it IS a fruit, but you eat it with tortilla chips, well, then color me intrigued.
Maybe one of these days I'll live real dangerously and pick up some dragonfruit or guava or something. What does guava taste like, anyway?
However, I recently decided that I just needed a little more fruit in my world. So, I started off with some basics: apples, bananas and grapes. I've actually still not branched out much beyond this. I dare not try anything too exotic like papaya or starfruit. Oh, I did eat a peach the other day, and I found it stringy and not sweet enough. Oranges are still a no-go. That white crap around them is just disgusting! I cannot find berries of any type that are sweet enough for my liking. (I firmly believe blueberries to be of the devil.) I would like to enjoy cherries (that are not surrounded by creamy syrup and covered in chocolate), but I just can't do it. Grapefruit scares me. Oh, and kiwi = Yuck. My mom told me I might like papaya, however I'm dubious of this notion. I can tolerate watermelon, but I honestly don't see what all the fuss is about. Canteloupe and honeydew and all those other melons can just bite me, though. Blech.
But I have deemed apples, bananas and grapes an acceptable between-meals snack, and I've gotta admit, much to my surprise, I'm actually kind of enjoying them! Maybe I'm just finally growing up.
It's funny, I will eat just about any vegetable under the sun. Seriously. Brussels sprouts? Yum. Broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, carrots, cucumbers, endive, peppers, squash, zucchini? Bring 'em on! I could live on spinach and other greens. And of course potatoes, beans of all sorts, and tomatoes are just about the best things ever (please don't try to tell me how tomatoes are a fruit...lalalalalalala...I can't hear you.) I don't care for turnips or beets. I think those are the only veggies I just don't like at all. And I'm only OK with onions if they're cooked. But otherwise, veggies have always been my friend. Not so with fruit, but I am glad to report that I have now made peace with (some of) them.
Is an avocado a fruit or a vegetable? And do people just eat them by themselves? I mean, I like guacamole a lot. If it IS a fruit, but you eat it with tortilla chips, well, then color me intrigued.
Maybe one of these days I'll live real dangerously and pick up some dragonfruit or guava or something. What does guava taste like, anyway?
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Date: 2008-02-29 09:45 pm (UTC)I eat them in any form, but mostly I like the freshly sliced with a tad of salt.
I need to go buy some right now. YUM.
My mom doesn't eat oranges, either. I don't understand that. They are soooo refreshing and delicious. And tangerines!
And plums! And bananas once the skin gets brown spots, because it's not as slimy when it's overripe. Fresh cherries are to DIE for, but there is a lot of spitting the seed out and your fingers turn red. ;) Pomegranates are interesting, although I'm not sure you'd like them. I don't like melons of any sort that much; in fruit salad I honestly only eat orange bits and grapes. My dogs eat the melons, so it doesn't go to waste haha
I'm sure there are wonderful fruits I'm forgetting, but occasionally I'll grab an expensive, exotic fruit to bring home and taste. It's nice to explore and be open-minded about foods; your taste buds will end up thanking you for the experience!
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Date: 2008-02-29 09:59 pm (UTC)(no subject)
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Date: 2008-02-29 10:06 pm (UTC)I'd love to be able to eat cherries, but I've tried on numerous occasions, and all the ones I get are so tart, they make my mouth turn inside-out. Are there any that are actually SWEET? I think that's my biggest issue with a lot of fruits. They're just not sweet enough. I mean, I love sour stuff. Pickles, vinegar, dressings, etc. But those things are SUPPOSED to be sour. Plus, it's a salty-sour, if that makes sense? Fruit should be sweet! I think that's why the apples (like Red Delicious), grapes and bananas are doing it for me.
You know what I want to try? Pawpaws! I remember eating one when I was a kid, and it was pretty good. My piano teacher had a pawpaw tree in his yard. I was listening to "I Wanna Be Like You" or whatever it's called, from the Jungle Book recently, and Balloo talks about picking a pawpaw. Not long after that, there was a spot on NPR about them, and how "sweet and creamy" they are, with a "custard-like texture." I'd be all about that!
Can you think of any other really sweet fruits that I might try? I just cannot tolerate the sour stuff!
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Date: 2008-02-29 09:50 pm (UTC)Oh - I thought of you the other day. No, I didn't break my leg...
I was watching Jesus Christ Superstar. And during the resurrection/ascention scene, Judas and the chorus are singing:
"Jesus Christ
Superstar
Do you think you're what they say you are?"
Up until recently, I thought they were saying "Who in the hell do you think you are?"
lol
It's a funky song, if you want to listen.
Whoops.
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Date: 2008-02-29 10:11 pm (UTC)I can't count the people who misunderstand songs, and then tell me "I thought of you!" I think it's very sweet. :-)
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Date: 2008-02-29 09:58 pm (UTC)You and I are backwards. I loooooove fruit, but I am very fussy about my veggies. I like broccoli and artichoke and peas. Carrots are ok, but only when they're cooked. I like snap peas, and I can do green beans. I love corn, but it and my digestive tract do not get along very well. And potatoes, of course, but those are more starches than real vegetables. I can tolerate the occasional thin slice of avocado on a sandwich if it's the kind of sandwich where it might be appropriate, but otherwise they're too weird of a color for me to like Onions are of the devil; they are possibly my least favorite food on the planet, and I will not eat them. And I don't like peppers, either, which makes for difficulty because there are always onions and/or peppers in everything.
I think it's probably easier to dislike fruit than veggies because veggies come up in grown up situations more often. Someone might offer you a grape and you can decline, but if you're at someone's house and they put a plate of steaming peppers and onions in front of you... bleck.
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Date: 2008-02-29 10:14 pm (UTC)I think I'm OK with plums. I remember eating some when I was younger, and they were all right. I may have to get some. I'm not big on fresh pineapple, but if it's loaded down in heavy syrup, I'm all about it. Same goes for pears.
Oh, man...I forgot about artichokes. Loooooove artichokes. I don't like raw onions in the least (primarily because I'm not crazy about how they taste, but I "relive" them for hours afterward.)
It probably is easier to get around not liking fruit. I mean, most of the time when you eat, well, anywhere...you're gonna have some veggies on the menu. Some people do offer fruit for dessert, but it's often IN something, such as a pie. I'd never thought of it that way. So I guess if there's a major food group I need to (mostly) dislike, fruit is an easier one. :-)
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Date: 2008-02-29 10:15 pm (UTC)Oh yes, fresh pineapple is so good! I am kinda so-so on canned pineapple, but fresh ripe just cut? It's amazing. Kills my stomach (hello acids!) but so very good.
I'm the same way with peaches ;) Take-or-leave the canned, but the perfect fresh ripe one is heavenly.
Onions are of the devil
AGREED. EW. Peppers are right there too. EW.
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Date: 2008-02-29 10:14 pm (UTC)I like some fruit, but not a lot. A helpful tip on apples though - Fruit Fresh. I can't actually eat an apple, just like wash it and eat it. It has to be cut up or my jaw just goes "boing" right out, with much pain. With Fruit Fresh (found in your canning isle), you can cut it the night before, sprinkle, ziplock, and you're good to go. No brown smushy nasty mess at lunch the next day. Awesomeness.
Also, I'm very picky with kinds of apples. Dave loves Granny Smith, but I don't. I hate red and golden delicious. I like gala, fuji, and similar types. So picky, I am.
And sweet blueberries *rock*... they're just, well, rare.
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Date: 2008-02-29 10:20 pm (UTC)I have to have very sweet apples...Red Delicious is my favorite, although I have found that Gala are almost as sweet. I've not branched out much beyond that. Granny Smith are the really tart ones commonly used in pies, right? I've never known anyone who just ATE them!
I think one reason I'm trying to get into fruit more, is because I DO like sweets so much. I am one of those people who simply must have dessert after a meal, but instead of reaching for something like chocolate or whatever, I'm trying to do healthier stuff like fruit and yogurt, y'know? I figure if I'm gonna get sugars, they might as well be natural ones.
People feed their reptiles fruit all the time? I'd think one consistent diet of ANY food would be bad, wouldn't it? I mean, they need to get other stuff, right?
I don't think I've ever had a sweet blueberry (and I've looked), so they MUST be rare. :-P
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Date: 2008-02-29 10:16 pm (UTC)MANGO
Sweet, tasty, good texture, not slimy.
Foodgasm!
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Date: 2008-02-29 10:21 pm (UTC)Uhhh...how do you..*do* them? Do they have to be peeled, sliced, cored..? Help!
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Date: 2008-02-29 10:34 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-02-29 10:53 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-02-29 10:42 pm (UTC)I think it's really fun to start liking something as an adult. I had that sort of food epiphany while on vacation in San Fran w/asparagus. Didn't realize how good it was until then. Course, haven't convinced Ken yet. :-)
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Date: 2008-02-29 10:47 pm (UTC)(no subject)
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Date: 2008-02-29 10:55 pm (UTC)My parents thought I was insane as a kid because there were no fruits I would eat, but hey, put a lima bean in front of me and I'd be all up ons it like a duck on a june bug. I always did like grapes, though. I didn't like juice though, because it "burned" my throat.
Anyway, I'm finally learning, too. I can't eat bananas alone (a texture thing) but I like them in cereal or in plain yogurt. I like apples and pears, but I'm REALLY picky about the type and I don't like red ones at all.
Oranges... I can eat them, but the white stuff makes me gag, so I have to make sure I pick off the big parts which makes it too time consuming as a snack. Clementines are better.
I love strawberries, but I'll only eat them when they're in season. I can't stand off-season strawberries or tomatoes. I don't usually like melons, except watermelon.. I think it's a texture thing again. I can take or leave raspberries but I don't like blueberries unless they're in a pancake. :P
And as for avocados... I eat them plain a LOT! Well, whenever they're on sale coz they are so expensive. But I LOVE them. Plain, or with salt and pepper and olive oil.. or with garlic and mozzarella cheese and cherry tomatoes, or whatever. I love me some avocados. :D
But yeah, from one former fruit hater to another, recovery is possible! Hang in there and you will learn to love some. =)
(PS. Pomegranates are good.)
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Date: 2008-02-29 11:01 pm (UTC)I'm glad to know I'm not the only one with texture issues! It took me forEVAR to be able to stomach bananas, and I still can't eat them if they're overly ripe. So mushy and smooshy! I'm also very picky about apples, and must have sweet, ripe, juicy, crisp ones. I do not think that is too much to ask. :-P I'm gonna see if mom will get some clementines when I go home this weekend (she's the fruit-eater in our family and she likes it all.) I'm intrigued now, and you are the second person to recommend them.
Grape juice does kinda burn, I guess due to the dryness? Kinda like wine, which would...make sense. Duh.
I'm fortunate that my parents never pushed me to eat fruits, I guess because I was so good about eating my veggies. But now, I think it's just time I got over this issue. I am hoping for recovery for myself, too!! I am very much enjoying the ones I'm eating now, so it's looking good. ;-)
(Oh, off-season/hothouse tomatoes are soooo bad. If a tomato looks pink and has no juice to it, bleh. We grow the best tomatoes I've ever had in our garden. I absolutely live for late summer when I can just go pick a tomato, bring it in the house and eat it, warm from the sun. Ahhhh, heaven.)
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Date: 2008-02-29 11:03 pm (UTC)I keep my grapes in the fridge, too. There is something awfully refreshing about juicy grapes that are ice cold!
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Date: 2008-02-29 11:14 pm (UTC)I like mangoes, they are lovely, like someone mentioned, but you need to make sure they are ripe or they will be hard and sour. Love kiwis, especially if you can find the "golden" ones, which are yellow inside instead of green. These taste much nicer than the green ones, which are actually quite lovely anyway. I don't think you can get tropical fruits, but if you come across rambutans, you might want to try those. They are red and "hairy" looking on the outside, and has a translucent white flesh inside. You might not want to bite too close to the seed as it has a flaky-like skin on it which doesn't sit well with me.
I like guava. Here we'll have sour plum powder sprinkled over cut guava before we eat it. Yummilicious. The best guava is crunchy but soft to chew. I also like bananas, but they can't be too soft.
I'm not a big fan of papayas. They are just too squishy. I can take them now and then but if you ask me to pick a fruit, it won't be papaya. I also do not like berries that much, they are just too plain sweet! I'm a weird person, I know!
P/S: You can have all my brussels sprouts!
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Date: 2008-03-01 03:06 pm (UTC)I never knew there was a "golden" kiwi. All I've ever seen are the green ones. I find them very tart, so that's my problem with them. Also never heard of a rambutan. Although I don't know that "hairy" sounds very appealing. ;-)
What does the guava taste like? Is it very sweet? See, I have the opposite issue with most berries, in that I find them too tart. If I'm going to eat fruit, I want it to be sugary! :-P
I think that Brussels sprouts taste like (well, and look like) little cabbages. Bake or boil them, then put just a little butter and some garlic powder on them. Yum!
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Date: 2008-03-01 01:27 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-03-01 03:09 pm (UTC)But I did recently try craisins, and they were actually pretty good! I'm funny about fruit in salads. I don't like the classic "fruit salad", or at least not the type my mammaw and aunts made, with marshmallows and jello. And a regular salad with fruit in it just seems odd (although I have had mandarin oranges and nuts in "Asian" salads, and they were pretty good.
I tried the craisin trail mix not long ago, and it was very good! I actually keep a bag in my car, so that if I get hungry when I'm driving (which is a lot), I don't stop and get fast food, but just munch a bit of it instead.
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Date: 2008-03-01 03:36 pm (UTC)I don't consider ramps to be a veggie. :-P They are an entity unto themselves. We're actually getting ready to have our ramp festival next month. I can't wait. :-/ My uncles and dad will be reeking to high heaven for the week after and the house will smell horrible. I actually took some ramps to a coworker of mine here in Knoxville, last year. He'd had them years ago in Cosby (remember Cosby?) where they also have a ramp festival, but it's not mountainous and woodsy enough around here to grow them.
I've heard that the discrepancy about tomatoes being fruits or veggies came from an old tariff back in colonial times? Fruits were not taxed, but vegetables were, and tomatoes were so popular (and being imported and exported), that they declared them a fruit to keep from having to pay taxes on them? I dunno...either way, I've yet to know anyone who slices open a nice juicy tomato for dessert. ALTHOUGH, I do have a yummy tomato pie recipe that I make for our big dinners! I make two, and they're usually always gone by the time we're done.
They're my favorite. I love them, too. Tomatoes in a biscuit, or just cut up in chunks with some salt. Mmmmmmm. And the garden-fresh ones are the BEST.
I kept meaning to tell you, Sarah looks like she's freezing to death in that picture! Was it chilly that day?
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Date: 2008-03-01 03:23 am (UTC)I don't know what guava fruit tastes like but I like guava juice. Mmmmm!
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Date: 2008-03-01 03:38 pm (UTC)Where do you get guava juice? I'm intrigued by this. I do love the juices.
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Date: 2008-03-01 04:12 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-03-01 03:41 pm (UTC)I think melons and berries are the worst offenders when it comes to fruit, so we could not BE more opposite there! Hah! Apparently avocado is good with salt and lime juice. I may have to try that. Of course, guacamole is basically mashed up avocado with salt, lime juice, some tomatoes and some sort of flavoring added.
What are the veggies that you really like a lot? I know that you like potatoes, and I'm pretty sure you like tomatoes. But you are opposed to beans, right?
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Date: 2008-03-01 05:53 am (UTC)Why don't you like kiwis? They are some of my favorites.
Have you ever thought of a pomagranite (sp)? They are fun to eat if you open them correctly. They are also really good for you. Jesse and Gavin adore them.
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Date: 2008-03-01 03:42 pm (UTC)Someone else suggested pomegranite! I may have to look into this.
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Date: 2008-03-01 06:27 am (UTC)Try blackberries.
But if you find you don't like fruit, fine. Double up on veggies and your fine.
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Date: 2008-03-01 03:46 pm (UTC)I must have the sweetest ones imagineable, if I'm gonna do apples.
Blackberries are an issue to me due to the seeds. I can't stand anything in my teeth. My grandmother grew blackberries and raspberries, so we'd pick them. I tried eating them, and just couldn't do it.
The reason I'm specifically trying to eat fruit, is to substitute it as a healthy alternative for dessert. I already eat an abundance of veggies and love them. But when I get through eating, I want something sweet. So instead of reaching for chocolate or cake or pie, I've decided to try things like bananas and apples (or a healthier alternative like yogurt.) I used to run road races, and I'm getting back into it now, so I'm trying to eat healthier, and having a big slice of chocolate cake is not conducive to good health, y'know?
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Date: 2008-03-01 03:58 pm (UTC)The fruit in supermarkets here is almost always underripe, especially if it's out of season and has to be shipped from abroad. Fruit that's picked underripe never tastes as good as fruit that's ripened on the plant. For example, supermarket peaches tend to be little hard things that go kind of rubbery instead of ripening. A properly ripe peach should drip exquisitely sweet juice all down your top when you bite into it. So buy stuff that's in season, and find a good supplier.
There are some fruit farms here that let people pick their own fruit. Do you have those where you live? I remember spending afternoons as a kid picking strawberries in the sun, then going home and eating them with cream. It was the tastiest thing ever.
You could try things at different stages of ripeness. Overripe bananas are a bit slimy, but underripe ones are almost crisp.
Mangoes are very sweet, and I love them, but I'm not sure you'd like the texture. They're kind of squishy and stringy inside. Maybe you could try making a mango smoothie or something to avoid any texture problems.
Try pineapple? They are very sugary when ripe, but also a bit tart. They are a lot of work to peel, though.
You may also find this reference chart helpful: http://www.xkcd.com/388/
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Date: 2008-03-01 04:07 pm (UTC)Actually my parents go to South Carolina every summer to get peaches (it's a self-pick farm.) I've never tried any of the ones they bring back, but they absolutely rave about them, so think this summer, I may break down and try one. I did have some issues with the stringiness of the peach I tried, though. I'm very picky about things like that.
I like medium-ripe bananas. If they're too underripe, they're too sour. But if they're overrippe, they're mushy. So I like them kind of in the middle.
I've tried pineapple (fresh) that's already been cut up, and I actually have found it a bit too tart. Again, it could be overripe, because they're often shipped from places like Hawaii, and they probably get them green. If I ever find myself in Hawaii, I will partake in the local fruit. :-P
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Date: 2008-03-01 10:28 pm (UTC)I love beets. :D
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Date: 2008-03-04 12:38 am (UTC)The only beets I've ever had have been the ones in cans, and I just don't care for the texture (plus, they're a little sweet for a veggie, I think.) I did try borscht one time, which is basically pureed beets and onions in a purple soup. It was OK, but beets are certainly not a favorite, by any means.