How to Serve Citrus Fruit

Sometimes in life we happen upon little nuggets of wonderfulness. Call it serendipity or call it luck, or maybe chance. I call it a gift. In the most unexpected places, without even looking for anything significant, life can give us things that hit us square in the face and make us say, “I’ve learned something new today.” I had that kind of moment in a little Chinese restaurant near my parent’s home. I was not expecting anything brilliant, I was not even expecting good food, but in the end they served us an orange half in a little bowl with our fortune cookies. I had never seen citrus fruits served in this fashion and of course had to dissect the creature right away to see how it was done. It was gorgeous and I can see platters of Citrus Boats adorning all of my future brunch buffets.

Using a very sharp knife cut a clean citrus fruit of your choice in half.

Cut a small wedge off the bottom of each half as in the picture above.

Using a sharp paring knife cut the fruit away from the peel and set aside.

Place the bottom back into the ring of peel you had just cut. It will fit tightly down in there and act as a base and lift your fruit.

Place the little bowl made with the peel into a pretty dish or on a platter covered with lettuce leaves- the flat bottoms prevent wobbling. Carefully separate the citrus fruit’s segments and place back into the peel. Top with a cherry or any other attractive berry. Serve with decorative picks or small spoons. This clever presentation completely trumps its tedium.

Note- You may want to use a cutting board with a “gutter” to catch all those wonderful juices to pour into a glass for later. No waste.