One of my favorite cookbooks, one I've often mentioned here, is Make-A-Mix Cookery, an invaluable guide to making your own money- and time-saving mixes. Basic Bisquick-type mix, cookie, cake, bread mixes. Meat seasoning mixes, and so, so much more. One recipe in that book has always interested me, but I'd never tried it until last weekend.
It's called Marie's Fruit Cocktail Mix, a combination of green grapes, peaches, melons and blueberries in a lemon- and orange-flavored simple syrup. I hadn't tried it because I couldn't imagine how this mix would freeze and not be all mushy when thawed.
Of course I didn't quite follow the recipe as given... I cut the sugar in the syrup and used less melon than called for. I have a container of the finished product thawing on the counter right now, but this I can tell you: It looked terrific and tasted w-a-y wicked good as a fresh fruit salad. We had company for supper the night I made it, and they raved over the samples I served with molasses crinkle cookies.
Frozen Fruit Cocktail Mix
1/2 watermelon, cut in bite-size pieces
1 crenshaw melon, cut in bite-size pieces
1 cantaloup, cut in bite-size pieces
lots of green grapes
lots of blueberries
peaches to taste, cut in bite-size pieces
You'll need a B-I-G bowl for mixing all this fruit.
Mix together and bring to a boil, stirring well:
3 cups sugar
2 qts. water
Add
1 6 oz can EACH, frozen orange juice and frozen lemonade.
Pour, hot, over fruit, gently mix, pack into freezer containers, leaving 1/2" head room. The orginal recipe said to pack the fruit then cover with the hot syrup, but I wanted to be sure the fruit was well-coated with the syrup to prevent any browning.
Okay, I've just gotten into the almost-thawed fruit...everything's kept its color perfectly, the watermelon, cantaloup and crenshaw have all kept both their texture and individual flavors, and
the blueberries, peaches and grapes are yummy too.
Most definitely, this recipe is a money-saving winner for winter!
Mary
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