Although it came into existence the decade before, canned fruit cocktail was a culinary highlight of the 1950s. The fact that it was so versatile made it every housewife’s dream. From plain ham and coffee cake to canned luncheon meat and basic oatmeal, this fruit cocktail can take any dish up a notch. The cocktail contained diced fruits like pears and pineapples in a sugary syrup. Here are five vintage recipes made with these.
4-decker fruit tart dessert
This dessert is a sure crowd-pleaser. You’ll need three eggs, ½ teaspoon almond extract, ¾ cup sugar, 1 cup syrup (from the can), 1-pint dairy sour cream, one teaspoon grated lemon peel, ¼ cup lemon juice, two envelopes unflavored gelatine, ½ teaspoon salt, and one can of drained Del Monte fruit cocktail.
Mix gelatine, salt, ½ cup sugar, syrup, and slightly beaten eggs in a saucepan and cook till thickened. Pour mixture into a large bowl and beat in sour cream, lemon juice, peel, extract, and 2 cups drained cocktail and chill, stirring occasionally. Then beat egg whites till foamy and add ¼ cup sugar gradually; fold it into the mixture. Spread the first pastry layer with ¼ mixture, top with the second layer, and repeat. Decorate with fruit cocktail and chill.
Rainbow pudding
This is another recipe that tastes great and also looks good. You’ll need evaporated milk, one teaspoon grated lemon rind, one tablespoon grated orange rind, tiny lady fingers, vanilla pudding, and one can of Del Monte cocktail.
Drain the syrup, add milk, and use it to make vanilla pudding. Line the bottom of a dish with lady fingers, split others lengthwise, and place them along the sides of the dish. Then sprinkle rinds over lady fingers, pour in the pudding, spread fruit cocktail over the top, and chill.
Oatmeal and fruit
Leave it to the Del Monte fruit cocktail to make any regular dish an elaborate one. Of course, oatmeals are a basic breakfast meal- but they are also the most versatile. You can mix them with almost anything.
Fruits and oatmeal have a long-standing history together. All you have to do is mix in the fruit cocktail while the oatmeal cooks.
5-fruit coffee cake
Coffee cake plus fruit cocktail makes for an interesting dessert. The recipe requires ½ cup chopped nutmeats, 2 cups biscuit mix, one teaspoon grated lemon rind, ½ cup milk, three tablespoons margarine, ½ cup brown sugar, ½ teaspoon cinnamon, and one can of Del Monte cocktail.
Drain 1½ cups of the cocktail on paper towels. Add milk to the biscuit mix, stir, and leave for 10 minutes. Then, roll it out on a floured board into 8×6-inch rectangles and place it on a cookie sheet. Spread softened butter, rind, and drained fruit on dough and sprinkle with nuts, cinnamon, and sugar. Then, roll like a jelly roll, pinch edges to seal, and join edges to form a ring. Turn slices to overlap, bake for 25 minutes, then glaze with sugar.
Fruit Boston recipe
The Fruit Boston is a baked dessert with the undeniable flavor of the Del Monte fruit cocktail. It’s a cake with a baked custard layer that’s easier to make than you think.
Make a regular custard cake, but stir in the fruit. Then, split your cooled nine-inch cake to make two thin layers. Simply place one layer over the platter of cooled custard cake to turn it out, then place the second layer over it.
