Ground Cherry - an elegant presentation

This is a ground cherry

We found some in a local Farmers' Market and I decided to try to grow some. I planted the seed in pots in the early spring and they soon sprouted.

They were ready to transplant into the garden in late March.
They grew like weeds, literally. I found that in some parts of the country they invade vacant property and take it over. They soon showed that characteristic in our garden.

As the fruit matures and ripens the papery covering turns brown and the fruit drops to the ground, hence the name "ground cherry".

The right plate is the ground cherry as picked up and the left is the ground cherry fruit after removing the outer husk.

The fruit has a distinctive taste, somewhat like a pineapple-flavored tomato with lots of small hard seeds. Sandra dipped some in white chocolate and it has a much different taste - even more delicious.

Recently I looked at ground cherry information on the web and found that it has been planted in Taiwan and is known as the lantern fruit. It is said to be detoxifying, an aid in controlling diabetes, an antitussive, and a diuretic. So, just eat a few at a time.

A few days ago we picked up some and gave to a friend to take home. She gave some to her children to eat. Later we asked her daughter how she liked it. She replied that it was bad, “Tasted like paper”. We found out that she had eaten the whole thing including the papery husk. When I asked her mother if she had told her to peel it first she replied, “That’s just common sense”.

Fortunately, there is information that indicates the outer covering can be used as a tea that has a detoxification effect. This incident reminded me of the time we gave our friends some jongdz; we had to remind them to remove the bamboo leaves before eating.

The Four Seasons Hotel in Hong Kong serves a tart with ground cherry at their afternoon tea. I don't think it can compare in elegance or taste with the one prepared by Sandra.