How do you feel about grapefruit? I have to admit, as a kid, I was not a fan: it was tart, and bitter, and really a thing just for adults. Because I was of the opinion that for some reason adults lose their taste buds. Too sweet? No such thing. But as I mature, as does my tongue along with the rest of my body, I get it: there IS such a thing as too sweet! The tart grapefruit in my adult life is delicious; some varietals are eaten without honey! Now I know some people use sugar, but that was never a thing in my house. I don’t know why we used honey instead of sugar on our grapefruit; maybe because my uncle kept bees, or maybe just because.
You would dip your clean grapefruit spoon into the bucket of honey, swirling and twisting trying to pile and load as much honey as you possibly could onto the spoon to hopefully drown out the grapefruit taste. Grapefruits were served simply sliced in half, exposing the triangular segments. It was a test in dexterity and skill to try to scoop out the segment perfectly while keeping the honey drizzled atop. Now those of you that know me, fine motor skills, not really my thing… honey and grapefruit juice would be all over the table, my shirt, and arm, sometimes in my hair.
We had special spoons with sharp edges in the drawer just for grapefruit eating. They weren’t actual “grapefruit spoons” but they worked! A couple of weeks ago my friend put a Facebook request out: she was looking for a grapefruit spoon, I implored the help of my parents (they go to antique stores and shows) and we both found one for her. I picked up a couple for myself as well. Real silverware, fancy grapefruit spoons. With such shiny new equipment, I had to get some grapefruit! Even with an amazing new grapefruit spoon, I got honey and grapefruit juice in my hair. It’s like homemade perfume…right? At least you can count on me always being a catastrophe.
Right now, we are in the midst of grapefruit season. With our world food market, I tend to lose track of fruit seasons and availability, because they are always there. Grapefruits are freshest and ripest November – April. The majority of fruit in North America is grown in California and Florida. The US is behind only China for growing the grapefruit. Grapefruits are a citrus fruit closely related to the pomelo. They range in color from pale yellow to a light red. Generally the darker pink or red the flesh the sweeter the fruit. The “ruby-red” grapefruit was patented in 1929 – is that one of the first instances of genetically modifying fruit? Is our the beloved grapefruit actually a mutation of the citrus world? Many less popular varietals of fruits and veggies die out or are selectively destroyed.
I do love to eat grapefruit just plain with honey usually, but I had purchased every variety of grapefruit I could find at the market. For curiosity sake, I wanted to see inside all the different sizes. It would mean an excessive amount of grapefruit, and I would have to cook something with them. I started looking for paleo grapefruit recipes and came to the realization, we need more of them! I have started some recipe development, but nothing has been perfected quite yet. I found a couple on Stalkerville, have you seen this site? All gluten-free recipes! (Check out our profile on there!!) And some fellow paleo bloggers came to the rescue with suggestions, scroll down for the links!
Using grapefruit for recipes, or if you are like me and don’t want to cover every surface nearby in grapefruit you can segment a grapefruit. I used to have a co-worker who could fillet my grapefruit into beautiful slices, but he’s busy now and not available for my grapefruit processing needs. So I guess I have to learn myself. This process seems easy enough…
Grapefruits have been known to interact with or change the efficiency or effectiveness of drugs or medications. I read thru the page and tried to boil it down for you, but, well, I can’t. Hahah, It has something to do with enzymes and how the body processes both the fruit and the drugs, but I still don’t have a firm grasp on it. I bet Raj could explain it better; he knows things about things. I think you should talk to your healthcare professional before you grapefruit. So that you know you are grapefruit-ing responsibly.
Easy Low Carb and Paleo Grapefruit Popsicles
Roasted Beet with Beet Greens and Grapefruit Salad
Spiced Citrus with Whipped Cream
Pink Grapefruit & Avocado Salad
Now you know a little more about them, what are your favorite grapefruit recipes or dishes? Please share them in the comments below! I’m looking for ideas!!
Haven’t had grapefruit for years! My mom taught me how to cut the sections making it much easier to eat. We didn’t add any sweetener. Maybe that is why I only like the pinker ones! And, yes, I am sure Raj could give an explanation about grapefruit juice interacting with medications. In fact, Raj, is there a problem with eating grapefruit and taking meds or is it just drinking grapefruit juice with medication that is the problem. We stopped serving the juice with medications at the hospital years ago.
I’ve never added sugar or sweetener to grapefruit either. The only time that I personally would, is if I was cooking with them and they needed it.
Drinking or eating grapefruit can cause in interaction with many drugs.
Here’s a quick explanation of how having grapefruit can make your medication(s) dangerous. There are a couple of main pathways that are involved in the breakdown of many medications of all different sorts. There’s a compound in grapefruit which reduces these pathways in your body and as a result the medication is not broken down as quickly as it normally would be, which in turn causes there to be more drug in your body for a longer period of time. This can cause increased side effects or even toxicity since dosing is based on normal function of your metabolic pathways. There is much more to it, and different possible outcomes and dangers depending on the specific medication(s) being used, but this is a quick and dirty explanation. Ask your pharmacist/doctor about grapefruit interacting with your medications.
Thanks Raj! I ended up more confused after reading about it. You are so smart!
My experience is so similar to yours, but we piled our grapefruits with sugar when I was a kid. Now, I love them straight-up (and I love my grapefruit spoons)! Great roundup.
Thank you for the “quick and dirty” on the grapefruit interaction, Raj!
We had honey on our grapefruits as kids, and even that wasn’t sweet enough for me. Now I adore red grapefruit straight-up, mostly just juiced with the pulp. OMG. Someday I’m going to learn how to grow grapefruit in the PacNW like Sepp Holzer does in Switzerland, and I’m’a grow me a grapefruit tree. 🙂
Ohh! I want one too! Funny how much taste buds change!