winter fruit salad

Do you see what I see?  That would be the Bering Sea... starting to freeze.  

Well, there's no crying about it this year.  All those frozen tears would just add to the ice up.

Nope.

Today we are celebrating the chilly temps and the waning daylight  with this beautiful winter fruit salad, courtesy of the goodness that came in our CSA box this week.

To make it:

Start with 2 cups of water in a sauce pan, add 1/4 cup cane  sugar

1/2 vanilla bean

2 star anise

zested citrus rind of your choice.

(normally I would make a honey infusion with 1/2 cup of honey, but since honey is still on the semi-nos list for Sadie we did the simple syrup.)

Bring to a boil, 

reduce heat and simmer.

While that is simmering, 

cut up 1 1/2 cups of dried fruit of your choice. I used dates and pears, because that's what we had.

Turn heat off on simple syrup. 

Add dried fruit.  

while it softens, 

cut up about 4 cups of seasonal fruit.

I used:

1 pear

1 granny smith apple,

1 persimmon

and 1 pomegranate

Pour  the now cool(ish) dried fruit/s.syrup solution over your diced fruit mix

Top with plain yogurt if you wish.

Serve to a delighted 16-month old.

Enjoy as you watch the sun begin its rapid descent towards the horizon 

at 2 pm.