Accessories make grilled fruit easier. This
fruit grill rack is from SurLaTable.com.

As long as the grill is hot, make grilled fruit for dessert!

Ingredients

Preparation
1. Select firm fruits: apples, pears, and pineapples hold their shape well. Softer fruits like bananas, mangoes and stone fruit (nectarines, peaches, plums) become even softer. If the fruit is too ripe, you can grill individual portions in foil.

2. Cut fruits in half or in thick slices, as appropriate (cut juicy fruits into thick slices and split bananas, but leave them in the peel). Keep the skins on.

3. Cover cut fruit in cold water with spices plus 1 teaspoon of lemon juice per cup of water, and soak for 20 to 30 minutes in the fridge (if there’s no room, you can leave the container on the counter, but add ice to keep the water cold).

4. If you want to add rum, you can marinate the fruit in it or add rum to the melted butter. (The alcohol may cause flames to flare.)

5. Clean the grill so that no meat or other food bits attach to the fruit. Lightly spray the grill with a bland vegetable cooking oil (not olive oil, which will add flavor to the fruit); or brush with melted butter.

6. Place large pieces directly on the grill, basted with butter to keep them from sticking. Smaller pieces can be grilled on skewers or a grill pan.

7. Close the top and cook for 10-12 minutes, turning at midpoint. Serve plain or with ice cream or whipped cream.

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Energy and enhanced cognitive activity are benefits. But drinking too much of a typical energy drink can result in anxiety and irritability, stomach cramps, even cardiac arrhythmia (an irregular heartbeat). Not to mention something resembling energy drink addiction (actually, it’s caffeine addiction).

Maté Sencha Shot, a fusion of yerba maté and sencha green tea, combines the energizing power of South American yerba maté with the antioxidants of Japanese green tea. There’s no sugar, it’s calorie-free and a healthy drink.

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You won’t get the jitters from Maté Sencha
Shot. Photo by Katharine Pollak | THE NIBBLE.

Are you thirsty? Hot? Using a low-calorie beverage instead of food to fill you up?

Jane E. Brody, health writer for the New York Times, provides a bucket full of facts in this week’s Personal Health column.

Hydrate with something satisfying, yet
sugar-free. Photo by Naheed Choudhry | THE NIBBLE.

 
And take a look at David Zinczenko and Matt Goulding’s book, Drink This, Not That. You’ll be floored by the number of calories in popular brands of smoothies, lattes and other harmless-sounding beverages.