April 8, 2014 by MsDo 1 Comment
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End of the Rainbow Fruit Salad is a fun little book written by Eluka Moore, Larry Puzniak, and Marianne Welsh. My little one and I were delighted to receive a copy for review. Although the book was provided at no charge, all opinions are true and my own.
Our girl absolutely LOVES books! It doesn’t matter what kind of book, if it’s a book, she loves it! She also loves to be in the kitchen with me. Her bouncer was on the kitchen counter top from the time she was a newborn. Nowadays, there’s no more bouncer, it’s a stepstool pulled up to the cabinets instead. So, I knew that she would love the End of the Rainbow Fruit Salad book. After all, it combines some of her favorite things, cooking, eating, books, and me!
The goal behind the Kitchen Club Kids books is to share a story and a recipe while providing parents and young children with the opportunity to focus on basic numbers, colors, food recognition, and recipe sharing. Those are just the educational aspects provided by this cute little book. You’ll build countless memories you’ll both cherish forever!
End of the Rainbow Fruit Salad
End of the Rainbow Fruit SaladAs you can tell from the pictures, our girl was more than happy to help out with making the fruit salad. She was allowed to use a knife, plastic of course, for the first time. It was hysterical watching her try to use it, but she thought she was big stuff! She also used her plastic Funbites cutter to cut mango into perfect squares. I even let her handle my Polish crystal bowl. Am I insane? Nope, I want her to learn how to treat all things with the proper respect. This is one of those old-fashioned bought lessons compared to taught lessons.
Do I have anything negative to say about the End of the Rainbow Fruit Salad book? Not at all! The book is absolutely precious. I will warn that the price of the fruit salad might be a little more than you typically spend on a kitchen project with the kiddos. But price will depend on time of year and where you shop. I did have to substitute a few ingredients based on preference and availability, but the end result was the same.
We had lots of fun finding our own gold at the End of the Rainbow Fruit Salad. It had nothing to do with the price of the fruit or even the book itself. It has everything to do with spending time with our precious girl, cutting, counting, eating, playing, and making those precious memories that last a lifetime!
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End of the Rainbow Fruit Salad Book Review & Recipe
Rating
The goal of End of the Rainbow Fruit Salad book is to share a story and a recipe while providing educational fun, learning experiences, and the memories.
Ingredients
- 3 c Pineapple (1 Fresh Pineapple, I used 1 can of Pineapple Rings)
- 2 c Papaya (I used 2 Mangos)
- 1.5 c Strawberries
- 1.25 c Kiwi (I used 2 Kiwis)
- 2 c of Seedless Grapes - Purple, Green, or Both
- 1.5 c Cherries (Couldn't find ANY, so we skipped them)
- 1 c of Blueberries (I had frozen)
- 1 c Raspberries (I like and used Blackberries)
- 2 c Bananas (2-3 Medium)
- 1 Tbs Orange Juice (skip if using canned Pineapple)
Instructions
- Peel, core, and chop fresh pineapple into small chunks. Canned pineapple rings are easily torn apart and don't require the use of a knife by a little one. Save the pineapple juice.
- Peel and remove the seeds from two papayas before chopping. If substituting mango, peel, slice, and cube around the large seed in the center.
- Peel and cut the bananas. I hope more of your bananas make it into your fruit salad than made it into mine! 😉 Put bananas into a colander and dump the pineapple juice over the banana slices. The pineapple juice will help keep the banana from turning dark. If using fresh pineapple, use the orange juice instead.
- Peel the Kiwi. Cut into slices and then into quarters.
- Add the raspberries or blackberries
- Because grapes can be a choking hazard for little ones, cut them into half before adding them to the fruit salad.
- Cherries go in next. Warning! Cherry juice CAN stain! Notice how the blueberries and blackberries changed the color of my pineapple? I couldn't even find jarred cherries to put in mine! 🙁
- Blueberries, the king of fruit, are next to last. Mine were frozen but still packed a flavorful blast.
- Last but not least go in the fresh sliced strawberries, minus the stems.
- Stir it up. Mix the flavors. It's ready to eat!
