Fruits With Condensed Milk

The fruits we had bought from the market the other day were not sweet and juicy at all.They were just idling in the bowl.Back in my home town ,when they are not sweet to the palate,we drizzle dashes of pepper and salt and eat them as 'acharu' - a sinhalese term for pickle.But I knew it would definitely go to waste if I tried to make a bowl of acharu with these fruits.The only  alternative was to make a fruit salad and sweeten it with condensed milk.And that's what I did last evening.I just couldn't believe .The children  enjoyed it.I cut a few mandarin,apples,pears,bananas and grapes.I coated the fruits well with a tablespoon each of lemon juice and sugar.And kept it in the freezer for half an hour and served it with sweetened condensed milk. 

                                            A variety of fruits could be used in a fruit salad.

Spicy Mango

When the mango season is on ,we love to try a variety.The other day my husband bought some juicy looking ones from the grocer and my daughters wanted to try them straight away.But unfortunately though outwardly they looked so deliciously juicy ,once we had the skin peeled ,they didn't taste sweet at all. Oh! Dear! The children were thoroughly disappointed.I didn't want these mangoes to go to waste.I told my children that I would make them something surprisingly good.I made them an 'anchar' a spicy pickle , with the unsweetened mangoes.Do you want to know how easy making that recipe was .I sliced two big mangoes and cut them into bite size pieces. Into this, I added some red chilly, salt ,sugar and vinegar.That was it! they really enjoyed.While preparing this ,I remembered my own childhood days when my siblings and I would sit under the mango tree in our garden and eat the unripened fruits sprinkled with lots of pepper and salt.