Feed - mint sweet apricot

The velvet-skinned apricot is an early arrival to the summer season. It is my favorite fruit because it is both sweet and sour. Its place in a meal depends on its ripeness. When soft, I bake the apricots in wine and serve them as dessert. When firm, I make a salad, reminiscent of the “macedonia di frutta” I grew up with in Italy.

This is a recipe for a simple salad made with a handful of uncomplicated ingredients. Choose tart, firm apricots and marinate them with the zest and juice of an orange mixed with honey and a bunch of fresh mint. It’s as uncomplicated as that.

Ingredients

12 firm apricots
the zest and juice of one organic orange
25 grams of local organic honey or orange infused honey
a handful of fresh mint leaves

Wash the apricots and cut them in half, removing their pits. Cut the fruit into quarters. Wash the orange and grate its perfumed outer layer into threads with a citrus zester, scattering it over the fruit. Cut the orange in half and squeeze its juices over the apricots. Stir in the honey and chill the fruit in a bowl for 30 minutes. Remove the apricots from the refrigerator. Wash the fresh mint and pick the leaves from the stems. Cut the mint into ribbons and toss it through the marinated apricots.

♦ Suggested combinations
Serve the apricots as an appetizer with a fresh goat’s cheese, like the Crottin. Toss them through a salad with sharp, fresh arugula. When marinated for longer than two hours, the apricots soften from the juices of the orange and honey. Stir the apricots and through ripe summer fruits like peaches, nectarines and melon.

Make a sweet and savory dish of marinated apricots, fresh buffalo mozzarella, cracked pink pepper, extra virgin olive oil and lavender.

♦ Notes
Fresh apricots fill the wooden crates in my pantry only to be replaced by jars of dried apricots in autumn and winter. Dried apricots are the perfect basis for jams and tart fillings.

A macedonia di frutta is a mixture of fresh seasonal fruits cut into pleasantly bite-size pieces, flavored with lemon juice and served as a salad. Macedonia is often the pride of trattorie throughout Italy, a family tradition in most homes and a dish that reminds me of sitting on a terrace with a view of the Uffizi Gallery in Florence.

Ricinus Communis (Castor) Seed Oil, Oleic/Linoleic/Linolenic Polyglycerides, Hydrogenated Castor Oil/ Sebacic Acid Copolymer, Jojoba Esters, Oryza Sativa (Rice) Bran Wax, Punica Granatum (Pomegranate) Sterols, Tribehenin, Calcium Sodium Borosilicate, Theobroma Grandiflorum Seed Butter, Mangifera Indica (Mango) Seed Butter, Punica Granatum (Pomegranate) Seed Oil, Mentha Piperita (Peppermint) Oil, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil, Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil, Persea Gratissima (Avocado) Oil, Orbignya Oleifera (Babassu) Seed Oil, Aleurites Moluccana (Kukui) Seed Oil, Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Hydrogenated Jojoba Oil, Vegetable Oil\Olus\Huile Vegetale, Glycyrrhiza Glabra (Licorice) Root Extract, Bixa Orellana Seed Extract, Garcinia Mangostana Peel Extract, Phytosterols, Ascorbyl Palmitate, Menthol, Tocotrienols, Linolenic Acid, Linoleic Acid, Tocopherol, Oleic Acid, Alumina, Silica, Flavor (Aroma), Geraniol, Eugenol, Limonene, Citronellol, Linalool, Citral, Cinnamal, Benzyl Benzoate, Calcium Aluminum Borosilicate, Tin Oxide, Phenoxyethanol, [+/- Mica, Titanium Dioxide (Ci 77891), Iron Oxides (Ci 77491), Iron Oxides (Ci 77492), Iron Oxides (Ci 77499), Red 7 Lake (Ci 15850), Red 33 Lake (Ci 17200), Red 6 (Ci 15850), Yellow 6 Lake (Ci 15985), Yellow 5 Lake (Ci 19140), Orange 5 (Ci 45370), Manganese Violet (Ci 77742), Blue 1 Lake (Ci 42090)]

Level: Easy

Total: 1 hr 20 min (includes marinating time)
Active: 20 min

Yield: About 2 cups

Level: Easy

Total: 1 hr 20 min (includes marinating time)
Active: 20 min

Yield: About 2 cups

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1/2 cup dried apricots

1 teaspoon plus 1 tablespoon honey

1 1/4 cups fresh mint leaves

1 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves

1/2 cup fresh cilantro stems and leaves

2/3 cup red wine vinegar

Zest and juice of 1 lemon

2 cloves garlic, peeled

1 teaspoon chipotle adobo sauce

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Pinch crushed red pepper

1 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Place the apricots and 1 teaspoon honey in a heat-proof bowl and cover with boiling water. Soak the apricots for 10 minutes to plump. Remove the apricots from the hot water and roughly chop.
In a food processor, combine the mint, parsley, cilantro, vinegar, lemon zest and juice, garlic, adobo sauce, cumin, paprika, salt, black pepper, red pepper, remaining tablespoon honey and olive oil and pulse until finely chopped. Add the rehydrated apricots and pulse until the consistency resembles a thick chunky sauce. Cover and store in the refrigerator to allow flavors to come together and serve with grilled meats.