RAINBOW FRUIT DESSERT

RAINBOW FRUIT DESSERT

Tender sweet kiwi fruit, sliced banana and fresh sliced strawberries arranged on dessert plates, then covered with a sauce of maple syrup, rum and lime! Vivid color presentation!

Serves 4

3 T. Grade A maple syrup, 100% pure

1 T. dark rum

1 T. juice of fresh lime

2 sm. kiwi fruits, peeled and sliced into 1/8 inch thick rounds

1 c. sliced strawberries, sliced from tip to tip into 1/4 inch thick slices

1 c. sliced banana, 1/4 inch thick rounds

Place maple syrup in small cup. Add rum, a little at a time, blending with fork.

Add lime juice, stirring till thoroughly blended and smooth.

On each of 4 dessert plates arrange 3 rows of fruit–1 row of kiwi, 1 row of strawberries, and 1 row of banana. Put strawberries in the middle for good color contrast. In each row (which should extend across the plate) overlap the fruit slightly, but keep the rows separate.

Over each dessert drizzle approx. 1 T. of sauce. Serve at once.

Notes: The sauce when tasted by itself has a strong rum flavor, but when served over the fruit, it melds with it to produce an impressive miracle of flavors.

Be sure to use sweet strawberries, but not mushy, and firm, but ripe bananas. When you slice the banana you want a clear-cut well-defined edge–with no soft or brown spots.

In case you’re wondering why all the fuss about separating the fruit. Firstly, tossing traumatizes the delicate fruits and secondly, separating them creates a vivid color contrast, and thirdly, since the fruits are similar in flavor and texture, I wanted you to taste each one alone with the sauce in order to experience the subtle taste differences between the fruits with the sauce.

Please use only fresh lime, not fresh frozen, nor bottled lime juice.