泽熙美文Reading Comprehension
Go Ahead—Cook with It
别怕—就用它来烹饪
It’s grapefruit season. From now through March, the golden orbs are ripe for the picking. And they’re not just for breakfast any more.
Hanging around on trees all about California: grapefruit—heavy with juice, tartly sweet, beguilingly perfumed．Round and yellow as happy faces or suns, they seem to ripe just as the general populace sinks into its annual round of post-holiday dietary self-chastisement.
Coincidence? Perhaps. But we say run with it.
Look beyond the obvious salvo of half a grapefruit for breakfast attacked with a jagged spoon and you’ll find a marvelous fruit for peeling and eating out of hanD．There’s nothing like it for inducing simultaneous feelings of gastronomic piety and delight at recapturing a long-lost pleasure. It’s sensual: the aroma of essential oils as they spurt daintily from the pores of the thick skin, the ripping sound of the tenacious segments being pulled apart, the juice dripping down. And it’s delicious.
But don’t stop there. Cook with grapefruit. Use its juice to flavor sauces. Section and scatter it. Bake with it. Candy its peel. Grapefruit is milder and sweeter than lemon, but it can be used in many of the same ways—squeezed on grilled fish, made into a brightly flavored curD．And if you’re looking for gorgeous color, red grapefruit offers extra plate appeal.
The notion that red grapefruit is sweeter than white or yellow grapefruit is, however, a myth, according to citrus specialists. (The story grew out of a marketing campaign by Texas growers. ) Red grapefruits get their color from lycopene, which has health benefits (its an antioxidant)but does not affect flavor.
Sweetness is determined, rather, by the length of time the fruit has been hanging on a tree. A grapefruit picked in December isn’t as sweet as one picked in February, so if you have a tree, just pick fruit as needed．
If not, ask at your farmers market about the different varieties available, all of which have their fans. California reds include the medium-pink Rio Reds from the Caochella Valley and the Star Ruby from Central Valley (and Texas). Yellow Marsh is a familiar yellow variety and the Duncan, while not usually labeled as such in supermarkets, is a reliable white.
For those who don’t like the tartness of a true grapefruit, Oro Blanco—the half-grapefruit, half-acidless pummelo—is sweeter and can be used in salads.
Our salad of jicama strips, thinly sliced snow peas, fresh pea sprouts (available in Asian markets)and red grapefruit sections has an appealing crunch. Its delicately harmonious flavors are pulled together with a faintly sweet dressing of grapefruit juice, tarragon and mint.
The strikingly pink sauce of our baked halibut dish contrasts with the white flesh of the fish for an artful plate—and it’s easy to make. Before baking, marinate the halibut in grapefruit juice with garlic and thyme. Sauce it with a reduction of grapefruit juice combined with blood orange juice, which deepens the color and softens the flavor. Then whisk in bits of cold butter for silkiness.
A rich crust is a perfect foil for the tangy grapefruit curd filling in our pretty tartlets. Both grapefruit juice and lemon juice are used in the curd to focus the flavor; grapefruits zest enlivens the crust. Garnish them with whipped cream and candied grapefruit peel.
For cooking, select heavy fruit, which indicates juiciness. (If you’re making a batch of candied peel, however, lighter fruit will indicate more peel.) Before juicing, roll a grapefruit under your hand on the countertop to help extract the most juice. Avoid lumpy fruit, which may be over-ripe.
And finally, for those whose resolute January superegos care about such things, here’s a reassuring thought: Grapefruit is low in calories (40 to 60 each), high in vitamins C and A, and an excellent source of fiber. It contains no fat, sodium or cholesterol.
So peel away.
1. The writer thinks that the grapefruit seems to ripe just at the fight time. Why?
A.The grapefruit becomes ripe just after a holiday in a year so that people can consume more food．
B.The grapefruit matures in autumn to provide people with a kind of rich food．
C.The grapefruit can provide people with a kind of favorite fruit when they have been on diet for a few days after the Christmas holiday during which they ate too many rich foods.
D.The grapefruit matures as self-chastisement for people.
正确答案：C
2. Which of the following is NOT the way to cook with the fruit?
A.Fry it with meat.
B.Section and scatter it.
C.Bake with it.
D.Candy its peel.
正确答案：A
3. The sweetness of the grapefruit is determined by______.
A.lycopene
B.the length of time the fruit is exposed to the sun
C.the length of time the fruit is hanging on a tree
D.the specific nutrient the fruit takes from the soil
正确答案：C
4. What is the meaning of “superegos” in the last but two paragraph?
A.absolute selfishness of one’s character
B.personal likings
C.personal attentions
D.personal regrets
正确答案：B
5. The reasons the grapefruit is good to health include that______.
A.it is an excellent appetizer
B.it is sweet and juicy
C.it contains no fat, sodium and cholesterol
D.it contains no calories and fat
正确答案：C
The landscape of the Giant’s Causeway, lurking below the gaunt sea wall where the land ends, must have struck wonder into the hearts of the ancient Irish, who subsequently felt inspired and created legends about its builder: the giant Finn McCool. The Causeway Coast has an unparalleled display of geological formations representing volcanic activity during the Early Tertiary Period some 50-60 million years ago. Its Tertiary lavas of the Antrim Plateau, covering some 3,800 sq km, represent the largest remaining lava plateau in Europe.
The Causeway is a mass of basalt columns packed tightly together. The tops of the columns form stepping stones that lead from the cliff foot and disappear under the sea. Altogether there are 40,000 of these stone columns, mostly hexagonal, but some are quadrangular, pentagonal, heptagonal and octagonal. The tallest ate about 40 feet high, and the solidified lava in the cliffs is 90 feet thick in places.
A fine circular walk will take you down to the Giant’s Causeway, past amphitheatres of stone columns and formations, with fanciful names like the Honeycomb, the Wishing Well, and the Giant’s Granny, past a wooden staircase to Benbane Head, and back along the cliff-top. Further down the coast, the stunning Carrick-a-rede rope bridge spans a gaping chasm between the coast and a small island used by fishermen. The eighty-foot drop can be crossed via the swinging bridge-and is not for the faint—hearted!
The Giant’s Causeway and Causeway Coast site was inscribed as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1986. The site is of outstanding universal value and meets the criteria set in the World Heritage Convention. Namely, it is an outstanding example representing major stages of the earth’s history including the record of life: significant on-going geological processes in landform developments, and significant geomorphic and physiographic features; moreover, it also contains superlative natural phenomena and areas of exceptional natural beauty and aesthetic importance.
Moyle District Council’s Causeway Visitor Centre is open daily all year round and located on the cliff top 1 km from the site. The Centre is the ideal starting point for walks along the coastal and cliff-top paths, providing all excellent range of visitor services. A 12-minute audio-visual presentation, with commentary available in 5 European languages, enables visitors to further explore the origins of the Giant’s Causeway through local folklore and scientific theory, and highlights the many other attractions of the Causeway Coast and
