Summer Stone Fruit Salad

On a trip down memory lane, Jerri Green sets out to recreate childhood memories with a lovely summer fruit salad.
By Jerri Green

Certain foods carry me back to my childhood. My earliest memories of fresh food came from my great-grandmother’s kitchen. They had a small farm in their backyard that in the summer was full of fresh corn that we shucked ourselves, purple hull beans that we snapped until our fingers were inky, and ripe blackberries that were best popped right into your mouth from the prickly vine. There was also all manner of fruit trees on the property. And while I have fond memories of the bartlett pears, pink lady apples and dark cherries, my favorite by far was the red and black plums. I remember the ripe fruit would fall to the ground next to the watermelons swelling in size each day. There is just nothing better in my opinion than a juicy plum. Harking back to these sweet childhood memories, I decided to make a stone fruit salad after I came across some pristine plums at my market the other day.

This simple stone fruit salad is great at lunch. I recently had it myself along side an avocado drenched in olive oil and lemon juice, and some chickpeas mixed with tomatoes and red onion in a red wine vinegar dressing. It was divine. But this is also a refreshing fruit dish that I can get my carnivore hubby to eat on a hot summer day. It is wonderful with burgers and grilled corn (and would keep you form having to turn the oven on in these record breaking temps). I have even had it when my mom was visiting with a dollop of honey vanilla Greek yogurt topped as a delicious dessert. Any way I serve it, it always takes me back to my great-grandmother’s farm and her simple southern dishes.