spittybug
Well-Known Member
Unfortunately we had a biblical sized hail storm here in Texas Hill Country back in early June that decimated the very promising crop of prickly pear fruits. The same storm that took out the cactus did $10K worth of damage to my 5th wheel RV, $2K to my BMW and will require a new roof on my house that was only just delivered to me late June (yes, the contractor is on the hook, not me...). It hailed up to nearly golf ball sized hail for the better part of 30 minutes. Unbelievable, truly white out conditions.
Anyway, I foraged some fruit from neighbor's cacti this afternoon. Not much, but I puree'd the living crap out of them and added a bit of water to get maybe 2-3 pints worth of very attractive purple slurry. Doesn't smell too good I must admit. It has a kind of earthy raspberry taste; fairly sweet. I had intended to put it in a Saison for the color and maybe a hint of the taste, but I already have a Saison on tap.
Has anyone done anything with these that has come out well?
BTW, We have eaten the cactus pads - young tender ones, julienned and fried in oil or bacon fat & salted, and they are delicious as little bar snacks... A bit of work to de-thorn them, but a nice treat, especially when you consider they came off your property!
Anyway, I foraged some fruit from neighbor's cacti this afternoon. Not much, but I puree'd the living crap out of them and added a bit of water to get maybe 2-3 pints worth of very attractive purple slurry. Doesn't smell too good I must admit. It has a kind of earthy raspberry taste; fairly sweet. I had intended to put it in a Saison for the color and maybe a hint of the taste, but I already have a Saison on tap.
Has anyone done anything with these that has come out well?
BTW, We have eaten the cactus pads - young tender ones, julienned and fried in oil or bacon fat & salted, and they are delicious as little bar snacks... A bit of work to de-thorn them, but a nice treat, especially when you consider they came off your property!
