Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/271933
By L.V. Anderson Slate NEW YORK » The world of fruit is a world of contro- versy, and Serge Gains- bourg's "Lemon Incest" is just the tip of the iceberg. There's the controversy over the right way to peel a banana. There's the con - troversy over the identity of the forbidden fruit in Gen- esis — the list of possibil- ities includes "the apple, pomegranate, the fig, the carob, the etrog or citron, the pear, the quince and … the datura." (Then there's the sub-controversy of what the heck the etrog and the datura are.) There's the con - troversy over tomatoes, and whether they are properly categorized as a fruit even though they moonlight as a vegetable. And, of course, there's the controversy over grape - fruit and its edibility, which my colleague Katy Wald- man kindled a little over a year ago with her extremely even-handed article "Grape- fruit Is Disgusting." Wald- man's argument against grapefruit boiled down to three points: "It's impos- sible to eat," "It tastes dis- gusting" and "It's plotting to murder you." The sec- ond and third points seem like subjective statements rather than cold, hard facts — but I would like to wade belatedly into the contro - versy to address Waldman's first point, which is a com- mon but demonstrably false misunderstanding. Grapefruit is not impos- sible to eat; everyone is just eating it incorrectly. The traditional way of eat- ing grapefruit — by cutting it across the equator and digging out tiny morsels of flesh with the half-serrated utensil known as a grape- fruit spoon — is one of the most frustrating experi- ences known to man. Wald- man is correct when she says that "separating those wedges from the membrane requires you to saw at them like a maniac with the edge of your spoon" and com - pares the whole ordeal to "shoveling fish." The solution to this prob- lem is not to shun the grape- fruit as a foodstuff. It's to prepare grapefruit more intelligently. Your grape- fruit-eating experience will be 10 times more pleasur- able if you dispense with all the peel, pith and mem- branes before you start eat- ing instead of while you are eating. This method is pref- erable to the grapefruit- spoon method in several ways. For one, it means you don't have to buy a grape - fruit spoon. For another, it lets you keep all that deli- cious grapefruit juice for consumption instead of let- ting it pool sadly in the bot- tom of your grapefruit car- cass. It sets the stage for a smooth, uninterrupted dining experience instead of the stop-and-go tedium of grapefruit-half-excava - tion. Finally, it gives you the freedom to make the most of grapefruit's sweet-tart f lavor by serving it as a salad. The most interest - ing thing people tend to do with halved grapefruit is sprinkle sugar on top, which is not only boring but also counterproductive. Grape - fruit tastes great by itself (unless you're afflicted with the same taste-bud disorder as Waldman), but when you sprinkle sugar on it, the fla - vor contrast makes the fruit taste unpleasantly tart. Grapefruit tastes much better if you pair it with salty ingredients, like ol - ives, which offset and high- light the grapefruit's subtle sweetness. This recipe, inspired by an orange recipe that The New York Times' Mark Bittman collected from a vegetarian restaurant in the south of France, pairs grapefruit segments with olive purée that looks a lit - tle like guacamole and is about as rich. Usually olive tapenade contains lemon juice, but this ultra-sim - ple purée doesn't need any, since the grapefruit pro- vides plenty of acidity al- ready. A better way to eat grapefruit BREAKfAst Grapefruit Salad With Green Olive paSte Yield: 4 servings Time: About 10 minutes 4 medium grapefruit 1 cup pitted green olives 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil 1 1/2 teaspoons fresh rose- mary leaves or 1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary Black pepper 1. Remove the grapefruit peel and pith with a ser- rated knife, then separate each grapefruit into seg- ments with a paring knife, discarding the membranes between each segment. 2. Put the olives, olive oil and rosemary in a food processor; season with black pepper. Process until the olives are almost fully puréed. Top the grapefruit segments with the olive pu- rée and serve immediately. Grapefruit tastes much better if you pair it with salty ingredients, like olives. Your grapefruit-eating experience will be 10 times more pleasurable if you dispense with all the peel, pith and membranes before you start eating instead of while you are eating. MAKE AHEAD: The salmon needs to marinate in the refrigerator for 30 to 60 minutes. The pea puree can be refriger- ated a day in advance and reheated, but this dish is best when made to order. GLAZED sALMON WItH ENGLIsH PEAs tWO WAYs 1/4 cup mirin 1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce 1-inch piece peeled ginger root, grated Four 6-ounce skinned, center-cut salmon fillets 2 tablespoons canola oil 1/2 medium yellow onion, finely chopped 2 large cloves garlic, crushed 1 cup homemade or no-salt-added chicken broth 1/4 cup heavy cream 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pep- per 2 cups shelled English peas 1/2 cup coarsely chopped cilantro leaves and tender stems 1-inch piece jalapeno pepper (seeds and ribs discarded), chopped Combine the mirin, soy sauce and ginger in a quart-size zip-top bag; seal and shake to com- bine. Add the salmon fillets to the bag and seal it, pressing out as much air as possible. Lay the bag on a plate so the fillets are flat. Refrigerate for 30 to 60 minutes, turning the bag over halfway through. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees. Blot the fillets on paper towels to dry them. Pour the marinade into a small saucepan and reduce it by half over medium-high heat, about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat. Heat 1tablespoon of the oil in a large, ovenproof saute pan over medium-high heat. Once the oil shimmers, place the fillets in the pan skinned sides up; cook for 1to 2minutes, until the fillets are lightly browned and release easily from the pan. Turn the fillets over; transfer the pan to the oven to bake for 15minutes. Meanwhile, heat the remaining tablespoon of oil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Once the oil shimmers, add the onion and cook, stirring oen, until soened, about 5minutes. Add the garlic, broth, cream, salt and pepper. Increase the heat to medium-high; once the liquid comes to a boil, reduce the heat to medium and add the peas. Cook about 10minutes. Use a slotted spoon to reserve 1/2 cup of the pea-onion mixture (but not the garlic). Transfer the rest of the pan's contents to a blender. Add the cilantro and jalapeno; remove the center knob of the lid to allow steam to escape, and hold a paper towel over the opening. Puree until smooth. To serve the dish, divide the puree among shal- low pasta or soup bowls. Place a salmon fillet on top, along with some of the reserved pea-onion mixture and the reduced-marinade glaze. Serve warm. English peas pureed to a potage-like consistency provide a stunning green backdrop for this salmon, glazed to caramel perfection with soy sauce and sweet Japanese rice wine (mirin). Searing, then baking at a low temperature ensures that the salmon will be crisp on the outside and moist on the inside. Glazed salmon with English Peas 2 Ways Nutrition Per serving: 460 calories, 40 g protein, 22 g carbohydrates, 24 g fat, 6 g saturated fat, 115 mg cholesterol, 880 mg sodium, 4 g dietary fiber, 9 g sugar The Guardian Behold the mighty mush- room. Neither plant nor ani- mal, the mysterious fungus is a class, or kingdom, of its own, and has fascinated cul- tures around the world for centuries. But while they do make a tasty omelette fill- ing, does the real magic of mushrooms lie not in their flavor, but in their potential to combat one of our biggest killers – cancer? The ancient Egyptians believed eating mushrooms brought long life. While their scientific method was perhaps not entirely sound, modern scientists investi - gating the medicinal prop- erties of the organism are beginning to produce some fascinating results. P e r h a p s t h e b e s t known of all the medici - nal mushrooms is the shii- take. Not only is it a de- licious ingredient, but it is also famed for its com- pound lentinan. Several pap er s h ave fou nd the polysaccharide could help increase the survival rate of cancer patients, includ- ing research carried out by a team of scientists in 2008, which found that lentinan was "benef icial i n t er m s of i ncrea si n g mean sur v ival duration, tumour necrosis and re - duci n g t he r e c u r rence rate". The shiitake extract Ac- tive Hexose Correlated Compound (AHCC) is the second most popular form of alternative medicine used by cancer patients in Japan. Could mushrooms hold the cure for cancer? 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