Stephanie Alexander’s perfect fruit platter tips!

Sweet in-season fruits are the ultimate party pleaser

Lychees

These look wonderful served as they are – glorious shells and twiggy branches too. You will need a plate for the peeled skins and seeds.

Mangoes

Carve off the cheeks – the flesh on either side of the pip. Make 3-4 equally spaced cuts down the flesh of each cheek through to the skin. Do the same across the mango and bend skin backwards to make the diamonds pop out. Cut free or serve mango halves like that with a wedge of fresh lime.

Papaya

Cut in half and scoop out the seeds. Cut the fruit down its length in wedges or cut away from the skin and thinly slice or cut into chunks. A few seeds can be crushed and sprinkled over tropical salads – they taste faintly peppery.

Pineapple

Cut skin away but leave the “eyes”. Turn pineapple on its side and cut a small V-shaped diagonal channel from top to bottom that traps all the “eyes”. Quarter the pineapple lengthwise, cut away the hard core and cut each wedge into pieces.

Fruit is an easy dessert to feed a crowd!

Edited extract from The Cook’s Apprentice by Stephanie Alexander (Lantern, $45)