I love Grapefruits they have to be one of my most favorite fruits, There's nothing nicer then a delicious Pink Grapefruit in the morning the sweet tartness gives a zesty start to the day, I was delighted to hear that Florida Grapefruit has teamed up with chef Gizzi Erskine to offer some recipe inspiration on how to use Florida Grapefruit in a host of sweet and savoury dishes, But not only for breakfast but for lunch, dinner and as a tasty snack.
As I love to be inspired with new recipes so I was really looking forward to trying Gizzi Erskine five simple yet delicious Florida Grapefruit recipes, Naturally I had to make the Florida Grapefruit Sunny Bircher Muesli, It was absolutely delicious, A great start to the day, my son loves it just as much as I did, So I'm now making bigger batches for the entire family. I also love the fact it can be made in advance as it saves so much time in the mornings. Check out the delicious Bircher Musesli below, along with the rest of Gizzi Erskine delicious recipes to give you some Florida Grapefruit inspiration.
Florida Grapefruit is widely recognised as the world’s most premium tasting grapefruit due to Florida’s unique climate, Florida's sandy soil is perfectly suited for citrus trees this makes Florida Grapefruit sweeter and juicier than its Mediterranean counterparts.
Gizzi Erskine says: “I’m a huge fan of Florida Grapefruit , I have been for a long time. I love the sweet, yet tangy taste,and find it works well with such a variety of dishes. I immensely enjoyed creating the recipes for this versatile fruit.
Florida grapefruit sunny Bircher muesli
Makes 5-8 portions
Preparation time 20 minutes
Soaking time 12 hours minimum
100g oats
2 tbsp. mixed dried tropical fruit, you can buy this from the supermarket, it has dried pineapple, mango and banana)
2 tablespoons chia seeds
1 tbsp flax seeds
Handful of almonds roughly chopped
350ml milk, of your choice (almond or drinking coconut works best with the grapefruit)
250ml freshly squeezed ruby red Florida grapefruit juice
1 grated apple
1 tablespoon maple syrup
a dash of all-natural vanilla extract
to serve, per two portions
4-6 tablespoons of Grapefruit Sunny Bircher muesli
2-3 tablespoons thick Greek or coconut yoghurt
a couple more slurps of almond or drinking coconut milk
1 Florida grapefruit, peeled and cut into segments
4 tbsp of mixed berries eg: strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, redcurrants
1 kiwi fruit, peeled and cut into slices
Mix all of the ingredients for the Bircher muesli together in a bowl and mix well. It will be too wet at this stage but the soaking process drinks up all that liquid and flavor. Now make sure it’s covered with cling or popped in a sealable container and place overnight in the fridge. This stores for 4-5 days.
When you’re ready to eat, split the muesli between two breakfast bowls, top with yoghurt, a slurp of milk and then the fruit and serve straight away.
Bajan Prawn tacos with pink Florida grapefruit, avocado and black beans.
The best way to eat these tacos is with big fat plump raw prawns, quick marinated in all the great things for prawns; garlic, chilli, cumin, coriander and paprika, then charred and served with a whole bunch of fantastic and fresh usual suspects for the perfect taco, but with pink Florida grapefruit being the hero.
Makes 4 tacos (serves 2)
Preparation time 25 minutes
Cooking time 10 minutes
For the prawns:
12 big fat raw tiger prawns, peeled and slit deeply down the back almost to butterfly them,
Intestine removed.
1 tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic, grated finely
1 red chilli, chopped
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
For the tacos:
4 corn tortillas
1/2 little gem lettuce, thinly shredded
6 radishes, thinly sliced.
1 Florida pink grapefruit, segmented and cut into small pieces.
1 avocado, peeled seeded and finely chopped
100g tinned black beans, drained and rinsed.
The juice 1 lime
Sea salt
40g feta cheese
A good handful of fresh coriander, leaves picked
Hot sauce and soured cream to serve
First start by making the marinade for the prawns. Place the prawns in a bowl and mix together with the oil, garlic, chilli, (i like to keep the seeds in), salt and spices. Cover, and leave to marinate in the fridge whilst you prepare the other ingredients.
Next make the salad. Mix the shredded lettuce, radishes, Florida grapefruit, beans, lime juice and salt in a bowl.
Fry the prawns in a little more oil on a medium to high heat, until cooked through, (this should take about 5 minutes, you’ll know they’re cooked when they change from grey and translucent to white and opaque). Whilst you are doing this you can heat the tortillas in the dry pan, for about 20 seconds each side until warmed through.
Now you’re ready to construct your tacos! First layer a spoonful of salad onto the tacos, followed by the prawns. Follow with a dollop of sour cream, a nice scattering of coriander and finally crumble on a little of the feta. Try with some hot sauce followed by a little extra squeeze of lime at the end. Now try and eat without making a massive mess, but that’s part of the fun! Have napkins to hand!
Florida Grapefruit Curd Pavlova
For the meringue:
5 free range egg whites
300g caster sugar
For the whipped cream topping:
300 ml double cream
1 tsp seedy vanilla extract
1 tsp icing sugar
For the curd:
150ml strained Florida grapefruit juice.
50ml lemon juice
75g golden caster sugar
1 free-range egg and 4 egg yolks, I would use Cottswold legbars for their orange yolks
75g unsalted butter
Caramelised Grapefruit:
2 whole Florida grapefruits, peeled and thinly sliced on a mandolin
1 tbsp caster sugar
To make the meringue. preheat the oven to 200C. Line a large flat baking tray with greaseproof paper. Line a deep roasting tray with greaseproof paper, pour in the sugar and put it in the oven for about 5 minutes until the edges are about to melt. Heating the sugar helps to create a more stable, glossy mixture. Separate the egg whites into a large bowl and begin to whisk slowly, allowing small bubbles to form, then increase the speed gradually until the egg whites form stiff peaks.
Turn your oven down to 100C. While you whisk at speed, add the hot sugar to the egg whites one spoon at a time. Once you have added all of the sugar, continue to whisk for a further 5-7 minutes, until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture is smooth, stiff and glossy.
To make the caramelized grapefruit thins, places the sliced Florida grapefruit onto baking paper on a baking sheet sprinkle with the caster sugar. Place in the bottom of the oven while the pavlova is cooking. They will be caramelized and dehydrated after about 1-2 hours. Keep an eye on them so the sugar doesn’t scorch. Remove from the baking sheet straight away and place onto a wire rack where they will continue to dehydrate and crisp up.
Spread onto the baking tray in a fat circle approximately 23cm in diameter. Make a well in the centre. Cook in the oven for 2 hours. Turn the oven off and leave the door a little ajar and leave to cool in the oven for 1 hour.
To make the curd, put the Florida grapefruit juice, sugar and egg in a bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Stir for 8-10 minutes. Remove from the heat and whisk in the butter. Cover with cling film, then leave to cool. Once cool pop in the fridge to firm up and set.
Whip the cream with the vanilla and icing sugar until thick enough to hold its shape, but still soft, there is nothing worse than foamy over whipped cream.
Remove the meringue from the oven and leave to cool to room temperature. You don’t want to leave it anywhere too cold, so you can do this by leaving the oven door open if you think your kitchen is too chilly.
Remove from the greaseproof paper onto a nice serving plate. Smooth over cream with a palette knife, followed by the curd. Finally arrange the dried Florida grapefruit prettily on top and serve.
Florida grapefruit, mint and feta salad
Florida grapefruit works brilliantly in this salad where you might normally see tomato or watermelon. It’s light and refreshing; the mint works so well with both the taste of the Florida grapefruit and the saltiness of the feta and olives. It’s a cracking salad on its own but terrific with a side of grilled oily fish like mackerel or salmon.
Serves 4
Preparation time 20 minutes
To make the dressing:
2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
2 tbsp lemon juice
¼ teaspoon pink peppercorns, crushed
4 tablespoons really good extra virgin olive oil
3 Florida grapefruits
1 small Lebanese cucumber, halved lengthwise, seeded and thinly sliced
3 small shallots, very thinly sliced
100g cup kalamata olives (halved if they're large)
Small bunch of mint, leaves picked
180g organic feta, thinly sliced into shards.
Using a very sharp knife, cut the ends from the Florida grapefruits, slicing just deep enough to expose the flesh. Cut off the remaining peel and pith. Then, working over a large bowl, remove the segments, cutting between the membrane. Halve the segments. To the Florida grapefruit add the cucumber, onion, olives and mint. Pour in the vinegar and lemon juice, season with salt and toss to mix. Divide among 4 to 6 plates or one large platter, and top with the feta.
Soused Mackerel with Florida grapefruit
Soused mackerel is simply boiling up a load of aromatic in vinegar and sugar and pouring it over mackerel in order to ‘par ‘cook it and preserve it. The grapefruit marries so well, the taste going with the aromatic pink peppercorns a treat! So healthy and great as a starter or light lunch.
Serves 4
Prep time 20 minutes
Cooking time 10 minutes
Macerating time overnight
350ml white wine
1 bay leaf
the peeled rind of 1 Florida grapefruit
the juice of 2 Florida grapefruits
1 tbsp pink peppercorns
1/2 tsp chilli flakes
1/2 tsp allspice berries
6 juniper berries, lightly crushed.
50g sugar
1 tbsp sea salt
1 red onion, thinly sliced into rings
1 small orange carrot, thinly sliced
1 small white carrot, thinly sliced
4 mackerel fillets, with the central bones cut out
1 grapefruit, segmented
To make the marinade, place 70ml water and the vinegar, bay leaf, Florida grapefruit rind and juice, peppercorns, chillies, allspice and juniper berries, sugar and salt in a small pan and heat slowly until the sugar is dissolved. Bring to the boil and then turn off the heat. Add the onion and carrot and then leave to cool.
Lay the mackerel fillets in a dish and pour over the marinade, making sure they are completely immersed. Cover with cling film and leave to cool to room temperature. Then leave in the fridge to marinade over night.
Serve plated with some of the pickled vegetables and the Florida grapefruit segments.
