Or Ambrosia (first in the Alphabytes series)
There’s a sort of melon called an “ambrosia melon,†but it tastes mostly like a honeydew. That’s not to say it isn’t a good-tasting melon. Indeed, it is quite pleasant, but not what I’d call ambrosia. Watermelon, the most literally named fruit I know of, is as manna to a thirsty body on a hot summer afternoon, however. Were I Queen of Naming Things, watermelon would now be called Ambrosia Melon. I bought a melon this Saturday when I was doing the shopping because they were on special because of the holiday. We sliced into it last night, and it was excellent. I’ll probably be eating melon as an after-work snack for the rest of the week.
One of my grandmas used to make this bizarre rice-based dessert she called “ambrosia,†which was cooked rice with a can of fruit cocktail and some Cool-Whip stirred up into it. Though she originally hailed from up-state New York, but eventually settled in California, this foodstuff seems stereotypically Midwestern. I could easily see it at a North Dakotan church potluck supper, a Nebraskan branding, or a Wyoming graduation reception, along with several different colors of Jell-O Salad, a potato salad, a couple of incarnations of pasta salads, and any number of other “covered dishes.â€
A friend of mine used to throw a Tacky Party every summer around Labor Day. I think I may co-opt her theme this year and throw a Tacky Party with the theme of Generic Midwestern Social Gathering, and suggest that guests may bring a covered dish (and I will have a whole bunch of different cream-of-mushroom-soup-based hot-dishes available for sampling). It could be very amusing, if not terribly gustatorially advisable. With any luck, a good time will be had by all.