Nostalgisk efterrätt

det vill säga, det är väl inte troligt att efterrätten är nostalgisk — men de av oss som genomlevt middagar med denna trista uppfinning, kanske blir det, när de tänker tillbaka på dessa måltider.

Fruit Cocktail in Light Syrup

 

Rocket-shaped popsicles that dyed your lips blue
were popular when I was a kid. That era got labeled
"the space age" in honor of some longed-for,
supersonic, utopian future. Another food of my
youth was candy corn, mostly seen on Halloween.
With its striped triangular "kernels" made
of sugar, wax and corn syrup, candy corn
was a nostalgic treat, harkening back to days
when humans grew, rather than manufactured,
food. But what was fruit cocktail's secret
meaning? It glistened as though varnished.
Faint of taste and watery, it contained anemic
grapes, wrinkled and pale. Also deflated
maraschino cherries. Fan-shaped pineapple
chunks, and squares of bleached peach
and pear completed the scene. Fruit cocktail's
colorlessness, its lack of connection to anything
living, (like tree, seed or leaf) seemed
cautionary, sad. A bowl of soupy, faded, funeral
fruit. No more nourishing than a child's
finger painting, masquerading as happy
appetizer, fruit cocktail insisted on pretending
everything was ok. Eating it meant you embraced
tastelessness. It meant you were easily fooled.
It meant you'd pretend semblances,
no matter how pathetic, were real, and that
when things got dicey, you'd spurn the truth.
Eating fruit cocktail meant you might deny
that ghosts whirled throughout the house
and got sucked up the chimney on nights
Dad wadded old newspapers, warned you
away from the hearth, and finally lit a fire.

                                         Amy Gerstler

Fruit salad

James Rosenquist 

Det var den här målningen från 1964 som inspirerade Amy Gerstler att skriva poemet om den tråkiga och smaklösa efterrätten

Vem som "uppfann" den konserverade "fruit cocktail" är ingen som vet — men vad man vet är att den kom till för att få användning för restbitar av frukt som inte dög till något annat, och att skillnaden mellan frukt cocktail och frukt sallad är att bitarna i cocktailen är jämnstora, och mindre än de i en sallad.

Amerikaner som har dille på att äta sliskiga frukostar, säger att den här mjuka kakan är idealisk som frukosträtt:

Fruit Cocktail Cake

this easy cake recipe is the perfect coffee cake for breakfast! It's full of coconut and fruit with no oil! This old fashioned recipe is the perfect way to use up canned fruit cocktail. 

Total Time 45 minutes 

Yield 10 -12 servings

2 eggs 

1 cup sugar 

2 teaspoons baking soda 

1/2 teaspoon salt 

1 teaspoon vanilla 

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon 

1 can 15 ounces Libby's Fruit Cocktail with juice 

1 1/4 cups all purpose flour 

1/2 cup coconut 

1/2 cup brown sugar 

1/4 cup powdered sugar 

2-3 teaspoons milk

Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray a 9x13” pan with nonstick cooking spray. 

Stir together eggs, sugar, baking soda, salt, vanilla, and cinnamon in a large bowl using a wooden spoon or spatula. 

Stir in fruit cocktail with the juice, then stir in flour. 

Pour into prepared pan. 

Stir coconut and brown sugar together and sprinkle over the top of the cake. 

Bake for 25-35 minutes or until golden brown and a toothpick comes out mostly clean. 

Make the glaze (optional) by whisking powdered sugar and enough milk for a pourable consistency. Drizzle over cake. 

Serve warm or room temperature. 

Store loosely covered for up to 2 days.

Jag har sett liknande recept både i böcker och på nätet, där man använt olika märken av den burkade frukten. 

Det här receptet hittade jag här.