Ground Cherries

I’d never seen these things before going to Onna.  I figured they were some kind of tomatillo (and they are a close relative) but they are called ground cherries and grow on a bush.  They fall to the ground before they are ripe and need to be ripened with their husks on after that.  In their husks, they’ll stay fresh for up to 3 months if kept in a cool place.  (Info happened to be in the current issue of Organic Gardening Magazine which you can get for free by saving the tops of Yo Baby Yoghurt)

 

They can be eaten on their own (as my son did with the WHOLE container at lunch today) or as Mindy mentioned, dipped in melted chocolate or added to pancakes.  But the magazine also included this recipe which is fabulous since we also got pineapples in our TropOki’s this week:

 

 

 

Ground Cherry-Pineapple Crumble

Combine 3 c. halved ground cherries and 3 c. fresh pineapple chunks with 1/2 c. sugar.  Spread in a baking pan.  In a food processor, pulse 1/2 c. almonds until coarsely chopped, and then add 1/4 c. unsalted butter, 1/4 c. flour, and 1/2 c. brown sugar.  Pulse until roughly blended; then spread over the fruit.  Bake at 375 F for 35 minutes, or until bubbling and golden brown.  Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.