Fresh Fruit Salad

Cherries are on sale at my local  Latin market for 99 cents per pound! And, they provid the bulk of sweet and tangy produce as well - just read below all the Spanish words of the abundant frutas on sale.

So, now the time is right for my refreshing Fruit Salad. Of course, any seasonal fruit on sale can go into your own citrus salad. I like to mix up crunchy fruit with the soft and juicy.

My fruit salad is minimalist, just whatever fruit I can find on sale. And I give it a generous squeeze of lemon, or lime, to prolong it's freshness, and to cut the sweetness with a little sour.

I always find bananas priced way below a dollar per pound. If you are making a Fruit Salad ahead of time, then don't add sliced banana until you are ready to serve, they turn brown too quickly, even with a lemon or lime bath.

Apples and oranges frequently come on sale. Apples are easy to slice and dice. Oranges can be a little messy, with a slight bitter pith, that separates the skin from flesh. I like to slice off the peel and pith. You could then slice into each orange wedge to cleanly remove the flesh. I don't go that far.

Cherries take the most work, but are worth the trouble. I slice each cherry around the center seed. Twist the cherry halves and expose the seed. Now, it's easier to pluck the seed out. Have a paper towel handy in case juice gets everywhere!

To bulk up a Fruit Salad, add sliced melon or watermelon. If you are from the South, them add some fresh peaches, nectarines, blackberries and strawberries. Northerners get to add some blueberries and all kinds of apple varieties. If you live in breathtaking Hawai'i, add passion fruit, mango,pineapple, lychee nut, papaya and  slivers of fresh coconut.

Whatever the season, keep an eye out for fresh fruit on sale at your local farmers market or roadside fruit stands, then assemble a cheap$kate Fresh Fruit Salad- your way.

Ingredients (2 servings)

• 1 banana
• 12-20 cherries
• 1 apple
• 1 orange
• 1 tablespoon lemon or lime juice - can add more or less to your taste.
• More fruit to add: peach, strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, mango, papaya, pineapple, nectarine, plum, melon, watermelon and grapes.

Directions
For apples, just remove the apple core and stem, then chop.

Cherries are sliced all around the center. You then twist the opposite ends of cherry to expose the seed. Now just pry it out with a knife, small spoon or use your fingers.

I slice an orange in half. Then, slice off the skin and pith to expose the orange flesh. Now just slice of the orange into bite-sizes. Remove any seeds if necessary.

For a banana, peel and slice, but only do it just before serving your Fruit Salad. Bananas do not keep long once the peel is off.

Finally, give the fruit a squeeze of lime or lemon juice. I add about a tablespoon. You can add more or less to suit you own taste.

Watermelon, Mango & Spinach Salad

Let this be your first salad of summer. Light and sweet, these three fresh ingredients are coming in on sale now. At my local Latin market & 99c only Store I picked up small, sweet, Manila mangoes and seedless mini-watermelon for 99 cents or less.

I first had this salad only a few weeks ago at an after-party for a screening of HBO's "A Special Relationship" (About Tony Blair and Bill Clinton's stormy friendship - a memorable scene takes place, at Britian's 10 Downing Street, of Bill Clinton raiding Tony Blair's refrigerator, almost worth the price of a HBO subscription!), at the Director's Guild on Sunset Boulevard. It was quite a spread -- mixing British and American cuisines, including: Fish & Chips, Sliced Beef Sandwiches, Mac & Cheese, Fried Chicken, Mini-Shepherd's Pie, and, most memorably, Watermelon, Mango and Baby Spinach Salad (that was worth a trip for seconds).
The movie was good and the food was terrific.

Soon after, I made my own version with chopped regular spinach (baby spinach is harder to find and usually more expensive) for an outdoor party thrown by our neighbors Bob & Lori for their new baby, Lola. It was gobbled up almost immediately, so I know you will like it!

You can use any light salad dressing you have on hand to mix into the salad -- or make a simple lemon juice (or orange juice) & olive oil dressing. So try out this scrumptious summer salad made with budget and fresh Latin market ingredients.

Ingredients ( serves about 4)

• 3 cups of watermelon - cut into bite-sized pieces. I used seedless for the convenience.
• 2 cups of mango - peeled and cut into bite-sized pieces. Okay to substitute canned, drained, pineapple.
• 1 bunch of spinach - washed and chopped roughly.
• *(Originally, salad was made with whole Baby Spinach leaves, so use that for a nicer display for guests or a party.)

Salad Dressing

• 3 tablespoons of olive or vegetable oil.
• Juice of whole lemon - lemon or lime juice from jar is fine, about 1/4 cup. Okay to substitute orange juice.
• A pinch of salt.
• Okay to substitute with a favorite store bought light salad dressing.

Directions
Chop watermelon and mango into bite-sized pieces. Wash well and cut off stems of spinach. Chop roughly. Add all to a large salad bowl.

In a small bowl whisk together lemon juice, olive oil and salt. Pour into salad bowl and mix well. If you have a light salad dressing on hand, it is fine to use that instead.