Not Your Grandmothers Grapefruit

I just want to start off by letting everyone know this isn't your grandmother's baked grapefruit.  That is, unless your grandma is the type to start the day off with a stiff drink.  Well maybe not a stiff drink, but a little something, something.  I would not recommend this breakfast before a busy day at work.  Think more along the lines of a champagne brunch or breakfast in bed.  This dish was actually really fun for me.  I got the idea around New Years Eve, I was thinking of my wild days in the military and how we used to put alcohol in anything we could.  Jello, fruit, gummy bears; like I said, anything we could.  A vodka watermelon was always a crowd pleaser.  I didn't really feel like buying a watermelon (or eating a whole one myself) so I picked a smaller fruit and tried to class it up a bit.  I've been craving grapefruit lately so that became my muse.  I can distinctly remember being made fun on in culinary school for topping my grapefruit with honey, so lets see what people think of this.  Pick out a nice white wine (I had a Torrontes on hand).  Torrontes is not a common household wine, it has a slightly acidic taste, a little on the dry side for a white and a wonderful fruity pebble smell. (yes, like the cereal)

  A good Sauvignon Blanc or nice Riesling would work too.  The method is the same as a vodka watermelon.  Pierce a small hole in the flesh of the fruit and fit with a funnel.  I used the topper to a squeeze bottle to compensate for the small size of the grapefruit.  Add wine a funnel full at a time until the fruit will no longer absorb it.  This can take quite a while to accomplish, I checked mine every half hour for the better part of the evening.  Once your satisfied with the fruit to alcohol ratio you can slice it in half and separate the segments.  If you are prepping the night before, just put your wine saturate fruit into the fridge until you are ready to slice and use.  There is such a thing as a grapefruit knife but I find a paring knife to work just fine.  Pop the grapefruit in a 350 degree oven for five minutes, just enough to take away the chill.  Remove from the oven and crank it up to a high broil.  Top the grapefruit with honey and put it back into the oven for just a couple minutes, checking frequently.  The top of the fruit will swell up under the heat and the honey will darken and caramelize.  Remove and enjoy!  If you don't have honey on hand a couple spoonfuls of white or brown sugar will do the trick. 

This is round one for grapefruit. I still have a couple left in the kitchen and plan to try a meringue topped treat.  Stay tuned!