A Grapefruit Date Your Valentine Will Love!

With Valentine’s Day right around the corner, what better way to celebrate with the one you love than by eating good food that is prepared with love at home.

Winter Sweetz Texas red grapefruit are the ideal pairing for Valentine’s Day. Not only do they match the color scheme, but they also serve as the perfect balance between sweet and tart. From refreshingly tart drinks to spicy shrimp, we’ve got every recipe you need to make a delicious Valentine’s dinner.

Show your Valentine you care by preparing for them our delicious meals that embrace the sweetness of our Texas reds, or prepare the dinner together for a close and romantic evening.

Appetizer — Goat Cheese, Avocado, and Grapefruit Crostini

Kick off your romantic evening with a refreshing appetizer. These crostini offer a light and delicious start to any meal and a romantic atmosphere to any table.

What You’ll Need:

• 2-3 Winter Sweetz Texas red grapefruit
• 1 large baguette
• 5 ounces of goat cheese
• 1-2 avocados
• 1 handful fresh basil
• honey for drizzling (optional)

How to Make Them:

1. Cut your red grapefruit into segmentz and place them on a cooling rack lined with paper towels. Set aside.
2. Preheat your oven to 325°F. Cut your baguette into 1” thick slices and toast them directly on the oven rack until lightly golden, or for about 5 minutes. You can also use a toaster oven to prepare your baguette. When toasted, place slices on a serving tray.
3. Cut your avocado into thin slices. Then, top each crostini slice with about ½ tablespoon of goat cheese spread and an avocado slice, followed lastly by a grapefruit segment.
4. To garnish, release the fragrant aroma of the fresh basil by rubbing it between your fingers and sprinkle it on your crostini. Drizzle honey (optional) and serve.

Time: 20 minutes

Serves: 18-24 pieces

Main Course — Herbed Steamed Shrimp with Spicy Texas Red Grapefruit

Follow up your crostini and creamy goat cheese with some spicy shrimp. The tasty shrimp in this main dish not only makes your dining experience a memorable one but also a healthy one as well.

The Ingredients:

• 1 Winter Sweetz Texas red grapefruit
• 1 pound peeled and deveined medium shrimp with tails
• 1 small head of fennel thinly sliced, fronds set aside
• 1 shallot minced
• 6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon capers
• ½ cup fresh squeezed Texas red grapefruit juice
• ¼ cup dry white wine
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons herb mixture including parsley, chives, tarragon, red pepper flakes, to taste
• salt and pepper to taste

Get to Cookin’:

1. Peel grapefruit, section, and set aside.
2. Heat olive oil in a 12 to 14-inch saute pan over medium heat until it just starts to smoke.
3. Once olive oil is up to temp, add fennel and shrimp. Cook until the fennel is tender or about 2 minutes.
4. Now add shallots, garlic, and capers. Use white wine and grapefruit juice to deglaze the pan.
5. Add your grapefruit and herb mix to taste. Cook until shrimp is opaque, and season with salt and pepper. Garnish with the fennel fronds you set aside.

Time: 30-45 mins

Serves: 4

Dessert — Grapefruit Mini Cheesecakes

Treat your Valentine to a little sweetness. Sure, mini cheesecakes may make a great dessert, but add the sweetness and slight tartness from some Texas red grapefruit and you have yourself a masterpiece.

What to Get:

• 1 Winter Sweetz Texas red grapefruit, sectioned
• ¼ cup grapefruit juice
• 1 envelope unflavored gelatin
• 8 oz. cream cheese
• ½ cup sugar
• ¼ cup brown sugar
• ½ cup water
• ½ cup sour cream
• 1 and ⅔ cup heavy cream whipped
• 1 box vanilla wafers
• mini muffin cups
• mini muffin tin

What to Do:

1. Pour water and gelatin into a small saucepan and let stand for one minute. After a minute, cook over low heat for 3 minutes. Then, set aside to cool for about one minute.
2. Mix the cooled gelatin, sugar, brown sugar, grapefruit juice, sour cream, and cream cheese well into a large bowl.
3. To achieve a thick and creamy consistency, gently fold in your whipped cream.
4. Prepare the baking tin by placing a muffin cup in each cup of your tin. Put a vanilla wafer in each cup, and pour the mixture on top.
5. Chill cakes in the tin for about 4 hours or until firm. Garnish with mint and sectioned grapefruit.

Time: 4 hours and 20 minutes (refrigeration and prep time combined)

Serves: 4

Drinks — Cucumber and Grapefruit Valentine’s Day Cocktail

This refreshingly tart cocktail is surprisingly simple and completely delicious. If your Valentine doesn’t drink, drop the alcohol and go for fresh grapefruit juice with a garnish.

The Ingredients:

• Two parts fresh Winter Sweetz Texas red grapefruit juice
• one part cucumber vodka of your choice
• one part triple sec
• edible flowers

How to Make It:

1. In a shaker, mix all ingredients except the flowers with ice.
2. Pour the drink over fresh ice in your glass.
3. Garnish with a slice of grapefruit and edible flowers and serve.

Time: 10 minutes max

Serves: One

You can find Winter Sweetz delicious Texas red grapefruit at any of these retailers, or ask your grocer to contact us at (956) 424-7775 about stocking our grapefruit today!