This spiky looking thing is called a horned melon! Although it looked intimidating, I had to try it.
It's exterior is very firm, not unlike a watermelon, sounds hollow when you tap it, and hard to cut into. But once you get to the inside, it explodes!!
It's as if the fruit inside is scared of you when it's cut into, it just runs everywhere! Never in my mind would I have imagined that it looked like this on the inside LOL! I had no idea how long to wait until it was "ripe" or what, so I cut into it the day after I bought it. The actual "pulp" if you will tasted very much like a bitter cucumber. So perplexing! I had no idea how to eat it so I went at it with a spoon.
It didn't want to stay on the spoon, which made me have that much more fun with this crazy fruit. I had no intentions of letting the fruit go to waste though, I wanted to finish it! So I added a bit of sugar to it, and it took it to a whole different level. Now it tasted like a grape! How did it do that? LOL. Give this fruit a try some time. Have a sharp knife and a bowl ready! Oh and maybe look up online how long to ripen it!
Next up is something that I have fallen in love with! Bubble Tea! A man in the mall has his own stand and I bought Bubble Tea from him just about every Saturday last summer. Here are two of my favorite flavors:
The green one is kiwi boba and it was devine! Had a great balance of tart and sweet in it, and super smooth ice. The slushy made the pearls firm up a bit making them even more chewy, loved it!
This yellow one is pineapple! Oh so sweet and bright. Perfect way to cool off from a hot summer's day.
Next up are these adorable jellies I found at an Asian food store. They came in a large bag with 4 flavors. I only have pictures of 3 because my sister and I ate a lot on the ride home LOL.
These I actually ate at room temperature, just as they were displayed on the shelf. They aren't your typical American jelly/jello. They have a lot more bite to them. I think perhaps they had tapioca starch in them. There is just the tiniest amount of syrup with them too so you better open them on a flat surface!
Here's a look at the jellies out of their package:
ADORABLE!! They have a swooping heart shape! Some are opaque and others are almost see through. Very fruity in flavor, they taste more like real fruit than artificially flavored fruit. Try these if you see them!!
Next up is a very yummy soda which I have loved since I was a small child. It's root beer! But not just any root beer, artisanal root beer! Hand crafted in Virginia and sold at farmer's markets all over.
Look at this awesome packaging! It was a little sweeter than say IBC or A&W root beer, but still oh so bubbly and refreshing. I was one of those weird kids who ate those root beer barrel shaped candies. They have a slightly effervescent hint to them, yummy!! Anyway, this root beer has that great foam on top as if it were real beer too. I loved eating the foam off of root beer floats as a kid.
Lastly is a more adult beverage. This drink I discovered at a french restaurant with my lovely mom and grandma. It's called Lambic, and it is a FRUIT beer. Sounds girly I know, but who cares! I am a girl and I like what I like! There are such a wide variety of Lambics out there I hope to try them all. But here are the two I enjoyed:
The one on the left is "Peche/Peach" and the one on the right is "Fraises/Strawberry". The strawberry was significantly sweeter than the peach, but they were both very bubbly. The peach was more savory and took on more beer personality. They had a slight head in the glass when poured, and were super refreshing. I actually had them served on ice but you can choose to do without. They come in a 12 oz. bottle and are corked in front of you. Great presentation and great taste. Please try one if you see it on a menu!
Those are just a few things I have tried recently! I encourage all of you to try new foods, even if you end up hating it, it's all about the experience. I can't wait to post more things I try in the future, maybe I will try a creepy crawly or fermented foods LOL! Who knows! Take care and thanks for reading!
