Ambrosia with Coconut and Toasted Almonds

Dietitian's tip: This Southern classic is pretty and refreshing for dessert or as a snack. The bananas and oranges provide 45 milligrams of vitamin C — more than 75 percent of your daily needs for the vitamin.

Serves 8

Ingredients

1/2 cup slivered almonds
1/2 cup unsweetened flaked coconut
1 small pineapple
5 oranges
2 red apples, cored and diced
1 banana, halved lengthwise, peeled and sliced crosswise
2 tablespoons cream sherry
Fresh mint leaves for garnish

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 325 F.
2. Spread the almonds on a baking sheet and bake, stirring occasionally, until golden and fragrant, about 10 minutes.
3. Transfer immediately to a plate to cool.
4. Add the coconut to the sheet and bake, stirring often, until lightly browned, about 10 minutes.
5. Transfer immediately to a plate to cool.
6. Cut off the crown of leaves and the base of the pineapple.
7. Stand the pineapple upright and, using a large, sharp knife, pare off the skin, cutting downward just below the surface in long, vertical strips and leaving the small brown "eyes" on the fruit.
8. Lay the pineapple on its side. Aligning the knife blade with the diagonal rows of eyes, cut a shallow furrow, following a spiral pattern around the pineapple, to remove all the eyes.
9. Cut the pineapple crosswise into slices 3/4-inch thick, and remove the core with a small, sharp knife or small cookie cutter.
10. Cut into cubes and set aside.
11. Working with 1 orange at a time, cut a thin slice off the top and the bottom, exposing the flesh.
12. Stand the orange upright and, using a sharp knife, thickly cut off the peel, following the contour of the fruit and removing all the white pith and membrane.
13. Holding the orange over a bowl, carefully cut along both sides of each section to free it from the membrane.
14. As you work, discard any seeds and let the sections fall into the bowl.
15. Repeat with the remaining oranges.
16. In a large bowl, combine the pineapple, oranges, apples, banana and sherry.
17. Toss gently to mix well.
18. Divide the fruit mixture evenly among individual bowls.
19. Sprinkle evenly with the toasted almonds and coconut and garnish with the mint.
20. Serve immediately.

Nutritional Analysis

(per serving)

Calories	146	Monounsaturated fat	1 g
Protein	2 g	Cholesterol	0 mg
Carbohydrate	26 g	Sodium	1 mg
Total fat	4 g	Fiber	4 g
Saturated fat	1 g