FWNAB: Pitaya (or Dragon Fruit)

Looks almost like a flower!

It is impossible not to be drawn towards this beautiful fruit. With its striking colours and lovely shape, it looks almost like a fairy-tale plant and it is really an eye-catcher in the fruit section of any supermarket here!

Colloquially known as ‘Dragon Fruit’, the Pitaya is the fruit of a cactus and exists in three different varieties: the one we tried, the most common, is called Pitaya blanca or White-fleshed Pitaya (source: Wikipedia).

Pitaya opened.

Despite looking a bit like a pineapple, this fruit, once opened, is soft and easy to eat with just a simple spoon.

To me its taste reminded a bit of figs (which I love), but the general opinion is that it tastes sweet with a nutty taste, and many liken it to kiwis or lychees.

The Pitaya is not only delicious but apparently it is also very healthy.
Full of several nutrients, it is also very low in calories despite having a very rich and sweet taste. More in depth nutritional information can be found on this dedicated website.

A perfect fit!

This fruit is easy to add to many different recipes, mostly for sweet dishes, but I don’t see why it could not be used for a sweet and sour sauce or to make chutney! I will have to try!

So far I just added it to an impromptu fruit salad, together with grapes and strawberries and it just tasted great, but BBC Food has more ideas about yummy desserts where to use it.
I am also planning on trying this granita recipe and smoothie recipe, and of course also this muffins recipe!

The possibilities to turn this gorgeous fruit into awesome treats seem endless, and I can wait to try more of them.