Pigs Do Fly

The morning “preschool” hours on Disney channel contain no normal commercials.  They have ads for thier own shows, and small (usually educational) shorts to fill the space at the end of programs until the next hour.  A few years ago, they aired a series called “This is Daniel Cook“. Daniel is a cute little red head that explores the world and has little mini adventures.  He might be making paper one week, learning to fly an airplane the next, riding with police officers in the following, etc.

In one episode (“This is Daniel Cook Trying New Fruits”), we are introduced to the Dragon Fruit.  After that, kidlet wanted to try it, but we could never find any.  Until this week!

I didn’t realize that there were multiple varieties available.  I thought that they all had white flesh with little back seeds, but apparently the fruit comes in 3 colors: 2 have pink skin, but with different colored flesh (one white, the other red), while another type is yellow with white flesh.

Ours happened to have flesh that is a lovely shade of pink.

I think it was a little overripe. It was juicier than I would have expected.  There is no way it was grown around here, and I guess the fruits do not ship well or have a long shelf life.  I don’t know if that affected the flavor, but for the most part, I found the flavor to be at odds with the exotic appearance of the fruit. I expected it to be a bold, bright flavor, which is not the case.  It is sweet, with a very subdued flavor.  It’s hard to describe — sorta like a cross between a kiwi and a pear, but more muted in flavor, like a melon. I do like the crunchy texture of the seeds with the flesh.

Kidlet and I liked it.  I don’t think I would spend the money on it as a snacking fruit, but for a change of pace, a shot of color (or not?) in a bento box, I would buy them again if they show up at the market.