Thursday, October 15, 2009

Mommie Mack's Fruit Salad

I recently had the opportunity to make my grandmother's fruit salad for a potluck. Mommie Mack's fruit salad, which shows up often at family holiday gatherings, can be varied depending on taste and what looks good in the market.

When I was younger, I thought it was all canned - thus I imagined 1950s cuisine. But when I helped MM make it for the first time I realized that it consisted of more fresh fruit than canned. This helps explain its deliciousness.

Canned pineapple, neatly placed in its container
(The salad also contains canned tangerines)

All the fruit together: kiwis, red grapes, bananas, apples, canned tangerines, and canned pineapple

And yes, whipped cream and marshmallows

All assembled

Making the salad put me in the mind of family gatherings past, and maybe it was because I was listening to Beethoven's late sonatas, but I got nostalgic and a bit sad. Food can do that can't it? Jonathan Safran Foer has a great article in the NYT Magazine this week exploring some of the same feelings.

2 comments:

  1. I am bringing this fabulous desert to the Baillie's Thanksgiving feast

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  2. my grandma resently passed away and she took this recipe to the grave. and my husband loved it so much and i have been trying to find the recipe that was so close to what we used to taste and i found it. thank you very much for sharing your familys recipe with use. what would this world be with out grandmas!!

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