Fresh buko (coconut) and fruit salad

In the Philippines, when one says “fruit salad”, one is referring to a cold sweet dessert made with grated coconut, drained canned fruits, cream and sweetened condensed milk. It’s a dish associated with Christmas. I have my own version of fruit salad in the archives–a version without coconut but with nata de coco and macapuno balls added to the drained canned fruits.

This fresh buko (coconut) and fruit salad uses the same mixture of cream and sweetened condensed milk for the dressing. But since this is a “toast to the summer” kind of dish, I only used fresh fruits–a variation of my previous tropical fresh fruit salad. In a nutshell, this is a dessert made with strips of tender buko, chunks of sweet ripe mangoes and melon, and slices of ripe bananas served chilled with a dressing made from a mixture of all-purpose cream and sweetened condensed milk.

Ingredients :

meat of 4 young coconuts
3 ripe mangoes
1 medium-sized melon
6 ripe bananas
1 c. of all purpose cream
1 c. sweetened condensed milk
2 tsps. of kalamansi (native lemon) juice

Cooking procedure :

Cut the coconut meat into slivers about half an inch wide and three inches long.

Cut the mangoes on both sides to remove the stone (seed). With a spoon, scoop out the meat then cut into chunks about two-by-two inches.

Cut the melon into quarters. Scape off the seeds with a spoon. Sccop out the meat with a spoon then cut into chunks as with the mangoes.

Peel the bananas and cut into rings about half an inch thick. Place in a glass bowl and toss with the kalamansi juice to avoid discoloration. The zesty citrous taste also sets off the sweetness of the milk-cream mixture wonderfully.

In a large bowl, mix together the cream and the sweetened condensed milk using a wire whisk.

Place all the fruits in a large bowl. Add the conocut strips and toss lightly. Pour in the cream-milk mixutre and stir lightly. Chill for a few hours before serving.