Melon Calls
This week's recipe pays tribute to the Rodney Dangerfield of the fruit kingdom—the humble cantaloupe. These round, ruddy melons, the size of a small soccer ball, aren't très chic like berries. No one buys them just for their looks—to pile in a pretty bowl on their countertop. But on the other hand, they don't require the pampering and delicate handling of berries, nor the pairings with high-falutin' items like crème friache or mascarpone cheese. Unlike berries, they're not neatly lined up in precious pints on a shelf. At our farmer's market, mountains of them are corralled in a cardborad "play-pen" of sorts on the pavement. You can easily get 2 for $1, in contrast to berries' ticket price of $4 per pint.
And for all the trumpeting berries get as the new age super food, cantaloupe trumps them on most counts. A cup of cubed cantaloupe contains 55 calories, virtually no fat, and 60mg vitamin C (3/4 the amount you need for a day). Most importantly, it contains 1/3 the recommended daily vitamin A, and a dose of beta carotene, which is responsible for its brilliant orange hue. Despite their rough façade, cantaloupes are softies, playing nice with most other foods. So here we've paired them up with blueberries and sorbet for a refreshing summer dessert.
But we're not averse to berries, for blueberry pie, buckle and more summer stuff, see our Special Summer Supplement: Take It Outside by going to www.relishmag.com
Blueberry Sundaes with Cantaloupe
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Sure, sundaes are terrific with ice cream, but be adventurous and try some of the new sorbet and sherbet flavors. We liked these with Mamey or other fruit-flavored sherbet. To keep the sundaes cold longer, places glasses of cantaloupe in freezer an hour before assembling and serving the sundaes.
Ingredients
| 1/3 | cup sugar |
| 2 | teaspoons cornstarch |
| 2/3 | cup cold water |
| 2 | cups blueberries |
| 4 | cups bite-size cantaloupe chunks |
| 2 | cups mamey sherbet or mango sorbet |
| | Fresh blueberries (optional) |
Instructions
| 1. | In a medium saucepan, combine sugar and cornstarch; stir in water. Cook and stir over medium-high heat until mixture comes to a boil. Add blueberries and cook, stirring occasionally, 5 minutes or until thick. Cool. |
| 2. | Spoon cantaloupe into stemmed glasses, top with sherbet, blueberry sauce and blueberries. Serves 4. |
Nutritional Information
Per serving: 250 calories, 2g fat, 3g prot., 59g carbs., 6g fiber, 60mg sodium.
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