Stone Fruit

What do peaches, plums cherries, raspberries and coconuts have in common?   They are all considered a stone fruit.   Yes even raspberries and coconuts are stone fruits.   I was surprised myself to read they were.

The stone inside a peach, plum or cherries are also called pits and not to be mistaken for seeds.  The seed is inside the stone.  The seed inside the stone is also called a kernel.  A stone fruit is also called a drupe.   For raspberries the stone is all the little tiny pits inside the round parts that make up the raspberry.   These tiny pits are called drupelets. 

The term coconut can refer to the entire coconut palm, the seed, or the fruit, is a drupe, not a nut.  The type of fruit of a coconut is classified as a simple dry fruit, fibrous drupe.  Everything I read mentioned coconuts can float long distances in the ocean.  I am not sure why that is important to know but since every site talked about it I thought I better add it to. Maybe if you are stranded on a deserted island.  

Here are some other stone fruits…

Coffee

Jujube

Mango

Olive

Dates

Pistachio

White Sapote

Prunes

Almonds

Apricots’

Nectarines

Plums

Blackberries

Peaches are also categorized as Freestone or Clingstone.   Freestone means the flesh of the fruit can be removed from the stone easily.  Clingstone means the flesh is difficult to remove from the stone.   We have all experienced those.  BUT you can ask the local grocer what type they have or if you frequent a farmers market for produce stand they should know the type they carry.   Both are good tasting, just one can be a bit more stubborn when eating or cutting it.  Nectarines and plums also come in Freestone or Clingstone fruits.  Apricots are considered a Clingstone fruit.

Mango Gelato

What you need:

1 cup sugar

4 egg yolks

1 3/4 cup milk

1/2 cup cream

2 large mangos

1 tablespoon lemon juice

What you need to do:

Peel and cut the mango into pieces.  Get as much flesh off as possible.  Blend it in a food processor along with the lemon juice.  Strain the mango mix into a bowl to get out the stringy bits.  You should have about 1 1/4 cup puree.

Whisk egg yolks and sugar until pail an lemony colored.  In a medium sauce pan, bring the milk and cream to a simmer.  Turn off the heat and whisk half of the mixture into the yolks very slowly.  Whisk vigorously.  Return everything to the sauce pan over a very low heat and keep on stirring until it thickens.

Remove from heat and strain into a large bowl.  Let it cool for 5 or 6 minutes and then mix in the mango puree.   Refrigerate overnight.

Place the ice cream machine bowl and blender in the freeze and leave over night. 

Add the cold mango cream into the frozen ice cream bowl and process as directed using your ice cream maker.

 

YUMMY!!!!