POM Wonderful!!!

I remember the first time I saw a pomegranate. Mom had purchased it at the grocery store as a novelty, and you can only imagine the anticipation Aaron and I experienced as we stood on tiptoe and leaned our tousled heads over to look at the cutting board where she had placed the ruby red fruit. The vision to come was ecstasy. Really, I can't think of a fruit more beautiful than the pomegranate. I can't remember what it tasted like that first time, though, so just a couple of days ago we bought another one.

 

It certainly was an interesting experience, and it began with the fact that I had to get a pamphlet that explained how to open it! It really wasn't very difficult, just a little messy with all that juice. I actually found several YouTube videos on opening this tricky little fruit, and here's the best one:

But just the sight of the inside of that wonderful fruit was worth all the cutting and straining! The smooth, silky outside, the meaty white pulp, and then the little arils, like jewels, seeming to shine with an inner light.

Eating the arils was tricky though. You see, we all tried to suck off the red stuff and then spit out the seeds, and from looking at what some people have said in forums, it seems like it's actually "permissible" to eat the aril, hard little seed and all! That probably would have made the experience more enjoyable. By the end of my lunch I was wondering how long it took Persephone to eat six of those things, and how thin you would be if that's all you got to eat; it would take an hour to get through a single bowl!

However, now that I know that you can eat the seeds, maybe I'll buy another pomegranate. Believe it or not, there are hundreds of recipes out there with pomegranates in them! Here's a sampling: Cinnamon French Toast with Pomegranate Apple Compote; Pan Toasted Brie with a Pomegranate Reduction Sauce; Pomegranate Velvet Cupcakes with Pomegranate Cream Cheese Frosting; Butternut Squash Ravioli with Peppered Pomegranate Sauce. Wow! Certainly sounds like good eats to me!

Maybe you'll be inspired to try this exotic fruit yourself; it's in season right now, and the stores are full of them. I guarantee that it'll be a unique experience!

CAIRETE!
Abby Rogers