In my family growing up, Christmas morning breakfast was a ritual. We always ate it off the “fancy” china, and we always had two things: a special homemade coffee cake, and fresh Florida grapefruit, halved, sectioned, and lightly sprinkled with sugar. Something about the juicy, tart-sweet fruit really set off the flavor of the rich cake.
The History of Grapefruit
Did you know that grapefruit is a hybrid of the orange and a fruit called the pommelo? It’s true. First seen in the Caribbean, the fruit was brought to Florida sometime in the early 1800s by an interesting character, Count Odet Philippe.At first, grapefruit were either pale pink or white. Some varieties were extremely flavorful, but they all tended towards the more sour end of the spectrum. But in 1929, a new grapefruit mutation was discovered with red flesh and a much sweeter taste. This was the birth of the “Ruby Red” grapefruit, which soon became explosively popular due to its incredibly enjoyable and approachable flavor. Other delectably sweet and juicy “red” varieties have followed.
Grapefruit is certainly a delicious addition to the breakfast table. I love it because it’s absolutely never dry or bland, and always adds such a pop of juicy flavor to my day. But there’s a lot more to grapefruit than the halved fruit in a bowl that I enjoyed as a kid. Grapefruit and grapefruit juice can bring a refreshing and sparkling zing to cocktails, appetizers, main dishes, salads, and desserts (along, of course, with breakfast).
One important but very easy thing to learn about grapefruit is the various ways to section and cut it for eating and cooking. We found a great tutorial showing 3 basic ways: halving and sectioning (basically, the “old-fashioned way” you probably know from childhood); removing beautiful sections from the peel and membrane using a knife, also called supreming; and a slightly more time-consuming method of removing the fruit from the membrane by hand. If you’re going to use grapefruit in a recipe, method #2, supreming, is probably the easiest and fastest.
Here are 10 ways to enjoy grapefruit that you probably haven’t tried before. Take a second look at this sometimes-underused fruit and see how sophisticated, luscious, and yes, sexy it can be.
Grapefruit Cocktails: Sweet and Sour
Have you ever grilled a grapefruit? Me neither, but I’m definitely intrigued by this exotic cocktail featuring honey syrup, fresh sage, silver tequila, and wheels of Ruby Red grapefruit that have been lightly grilled. Not a drink you see every day.Grilled Grapefruit and Sage Cocktail
Looking for something a little simpler? This grapefruit martini may remind you a little bit of a Cosmopolitan, but with a fresher, more sophisticated flair. As long as you have simple syrup on hand, it’s a cinch to make.
Ruby Red Grapefruit Martini
Grapefruit in Salads: Fresh and Luscious
This cool, delectable salad of fresh grapefruit, perfect avocado, Bibb lettuce, and tender shrimp looks like it really ought to be eaten poolside in Florida on a 70-degree day in February. If you can’t manage that, well…you could eat it indoors on a 40-degree day somewhere else and just imagine you’re down here.Grapefruit Avocado Shrimp Salad
Grapefruit and seafood are often paired, and for a reason—they really complement each other. Here, mahi mahi gets glazed with grapefruit juice and seared, then served over fresh greens and yellow peppers and topped with supremed grapefruit and pistachios.
Grapefruit and Spinach Salad with Glazed Mahi Mahi
Grapefruit in Main Dishes: Juicy and Savory
Here’s a truly Floridian dish: fresh Florida pompano in a sauce made from butter, white wine, and the juice of fresh ruby red grapefruit, with chopped pistachios on top.Florida Pompano with a Meyer Lemon Grapefruit Sauce
What? Grapefruit…risotto? Yes! Combined with fresh thyme, red onions, and parmesan, this is a completely different dish.
Red Grapefruit Risotto with Red Onions and Thyme
Grapefruit in Desserts: Sweet and Gorgeous
I had a grapefruit pie at a local restaurant last winter that’s haunted my dreams ever since. It was kind of like lemon meringue, but not so sweet, with a graham cracker crust, and there was some kind of caramel involved, too. This recipe isn’t quite the same, but it’s similar.Chilled Grapefruit Caramel Meringue Pie
A pavlova is a showstopper dessert combining a crispy meringue shell, fresh fruit, and whipped cream. Here, we get meringue nests burnished with reduced grapefruit juice filled to the rim with whipped cream that’s mixed with juicy supremed red grapefruit….wow!
Grapefruit Pavlova with Grapefruit Mousse
Grapefruit for Breakfast: Tangy Good Morning
Okay, you’ve had donuts. You’ve had grapefruit. But we bet you haven’t had grapefruit donuts—right? The juicy grapefruit flavor is in the donut and the glaze here. How fun is that?Grapefruit Donuts
Citrus and poppyseeds go together like…well, they just go together. These bright-flavored treats feature grapefruit in the scones themselves and in the pretty pink glaze.
Glazed Grapefruit Poppyseed Scones
If you’d like to see more grapefuit recipes and ideas, visit our Pinterest page. Enjoy these new ways to savor this healthful and delicious fruit.
