It’s the last day of The Pinisher link-up but I made it. I’d say that was appropriate for a link-up catering to procrastinators. 😉
Okay, here is some back ground info first. Last week I got an email from the infamous but sweet Dorian Speed (I’ll admit I was a little star struck.) She was apologizing because she started a Pinterest link-up without realizing that I was already doing the Pinterest Party on the 2nd & 4th Tuesdays. I was touched that she’d even give me the time of day. LOL. I told her not to worry since she does hers every week I only do mine twice a month. Readers of the blog could always link on both to share their post with more people if they’d like. I was also excited that I’d have the opportunity to link up with Dorian on my off weeks as well. This week’s Pinisher topic if food. Perfect. 🙂
I was shopping at Trader Joes yesterday and I wanted to try a few new fruits, or rather, fruit I’ve eaten at a restaurant or a friend’s house but I never bought myself. I had in mind kiwi and mangoes. However, I wasn’t sure how to figure out which ones were ripe. I wrested my iPhone out of Matthew’s hands, who was none too pleased that I paused his Blue’s Clues, and searched Pinterest for a “ripe fruit guide.” I found a pin of this article – How to Choose the Best Fruit in the Produce Section: A Guide for 15 Common Fruits.
The three products I was concerned about at that moment were…
“Kiwi: A kiwi is ripe when it gives slightly when pressed. Those that are too hard will not be sweet, while those that are too soft or shriveled are spoiled.”
“Mangoes: Finding a ripe mango can be tricky because they can be yellow, red, green or orange in color. Those that are ready to eat will usually have a yellow hue and should be slightly soft to the touch. Ripe mangoes also have a sweet aroma near the stem end.”
“Watermelon – Choose a firm, heavy watermelon with a smooth skin — and be sure it has a well-defined yellow area on one side. This is the spot where the watermelon has been resting while ripening, and if it’s not there it means it may have been harvested too soon.”
I followed the guide and brought my chosen fruit home. I haven’t opened the mango yet but I did sample the watermelon and the kiwi.
The watermelon was easy to cut open and was tasty, although not as sweet as they will be in another month or so.
I wasn’t quite sure how to peel the kiwi so I googled around and found this link and video at HowToPeelAKiwi.com/. (I’m serious. That is the actual web address.) Anyway, I did as they instructed: cut off the ends, made a slit, then worked a spoon underneath the skin and removed the peel. Viola! It’s funny how such a small, simple thing can make me feel accomplished. One day I may even tackle a pineapple that doesn’t come from a can. Baby steps. 😉
Okay, get your creative mojo flowing because Tuesday is the next Pinterest Party Link-up here at RoL. Dorian’s Pinisher link-up is the same day and the theme is “Home.” I’ll work on something homey this weekend so I can link with her too. Wait, am I allowed to link-up a link-up? Maybe not. Either way, see you back here on Tuesday! 🙂
Oh and you can follow me in Pinterest here – http://pinterest.com/rol_bobbi/. Leave your link or handle in the comment box so I can make sure I’m following you too. 🙂
I’m loving this post, and I appreciate the tips on cutting kiwi! One of my girls just loves kiwi fruit and I always butcher it.
When I was newly married, I had ZERO cooking or housekeeping skills. I mean zero. As in, I had only swept a floor like….two years before….for the first time. As in, my new husband had to teach me how and when to flip pancakes (from a box mix of course) because the only thing I knew how to make was toast and mac & cheese from a box. No joke.
Anyway, since we had babies so quickly and I was lonely a lot in the early years, I used to watch a lot of food network where I learned tons of skills. My favorite are knife skills in general, but most specifically fruit-cutting skills because now that I have 5 kids, I am constantly cutting fruit.
All this to say, don’t be intimidated by the pineapple!
It’s very easy.
First, cut off the top and bottom. Next, slice the skin off of the edges. After you just have that, cut it longways (top to bottom) into quarters and then just slice at a diagonal to remove the core from each quarter. Then cut it into chunks. Super easy!
😉
You can do a pineapple! I find mangoes very hard to cut up.
I’m totally stymied by cutting mangoes. I remember running across a YouTube video on the subject years ago and thinking “how ridiculous…someone made a whole video about this.” But now that I’ve started eating them more often, I totally need to find that again.
Thanks for linking, you crazy PINISHER, you!