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Mark Thorson Mark Thorson is offline
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Default Is This A Good Plan For Tomorrow ???

I'm planning to make a fruit salad tomorrow to bring
over to Mom's house for Christmas. However, only
after buying the ingrediants did I realize that this
is a wholly new recipe, not even close to anything
I've ever made before. Therefore constructive comments
(hah!) would be appreciated.

I'm planning on combining peeled and cut-up chunks
of two ripe mangoes, two Asian pears, and two
chayote squash. I'll take a whole bottle of TJ's
balsamic vinegar and reduce it to a syrup, and use
that for a dressing. Does anybody see a flaw in
that plan?

Sources of concern a a) I've never made a
fruit salad of any type before (though I've eaten
them) and b) I've never reduced balsamic vinegar
before, nor eaten anything with a reduction of
balsamic vinegar. I saw Lidia Bastianich do it
on TV, which gave me the idea.

I have eaten raw, peeled, and sliced chayote
squash drizzled with balsamic vinegar straight
from the bottle, and that is a good combination.
That's what gave me the idea of making this salad.
That, plus I bought the vinegar a couple months
ago on a whim, haven't opened it, and it is
apparent I won't be using it in my normal
cooking. (In the past, I would add it to beer,
but I stopped drinking beer a few months ago
when the supermarket I frequent stopped carrying
my brand.)

The vinegar in question comes in a small square
bottle -- TJ's carries a few types, and this
is the one that seems especially good for a
low-priced balsamic vinegar.

I'm considering poaching some of TJ's dried
wild blueberries in the vinegar while reducing it
and adding those to the salad, but that seems
like too much of a risk. I'm already venturing
far enough into uncharted territory. I've
already got the blueberries, so it would be
no effort to change my mind, though.