I credit my mother, a non-cook, for my love of citrus maxima, better known as grapefruit.

(I also credit my mother with my love of anchovies, rare steak, bleu cheese, and the strongest coffee, flavored with cream and sugar. My three sisters and I all share these food preferences.)

But it’s no easy task to teach a child to love tart grapefruit.

Unless brown sugar is involved. And unless that brown sugar covers the entire surface of the sectioned grapefruit, and then it’s broiled until bubbly.

That’s how I ate grapefruit my whole life. Until it dawned upon me that what’s good for an orange is good for a grapefruit. Juiced grapefruits. Zested grapefruits. Sectioned grapefruits.

Let’s pause here for some grapefruit trivia:

• Grapefruit are so named because they grow in clusters, reminiscent of grape clusters.
• Grapefruit can cause problems with some medicines, oh such as its tendency to triple some medication’s absorption.
• Fresh grapefruit can last at room temperature for about a week, or 8 weeks if refrigerated. (Pardon me while I transfer my pretty bowl of grapefruit to my refrigerator’s produce bin.)

I have grapefruits on my mind this week for two reasons:

1. It was 104 friggin’ degrees last week, too hot to cook.
2. My friend, Joann, grows grapefruit in her Redding yard. (Yes, I’ve mentioned her before. She’s the one who has lemon trees. And violets. And she shares. She’s great.)

So Joann gave me a gift of two paper bags full of her gorgeous grapefruit. They are so sweet that even Bruce, not a fan of Citrus maxima, will eat them.

What to do with all these grapefruit? Many things, especially if you start with any recipe that calls for lemons, limes and oranges and replace those ingredients with grapefruit. Try it.

You probably expected me to suggest grapefruit sorbet. Sure, go for it.

But one of my favorite uses for grapefruit, especially when it’s so hot outside, is to make this Grapefruit Arugula Salad.

My inspiration for this recipe came from a salad we had in Florence, Italy, served on a large platter. That salad had pears, kiwi and Pecorino cheese, arranged over peppery arugula.

My salad has an arugula base, topped with grapefruit, apple, pear and kiwi, garnished with Pecorino cheese. What I love about the salad is that it’s basically different shades of white and green. You slice the pears, grapefruit and apple in similar shapes, and they’re all white, but when you take a bite, the textures are all different and the tastes are completely different. The kiwi, so pretty and translucent and green, add color to the white fruits, and the whole thing is topped with salty, dusty-white cheese shavings.

And if you have kids, and they’re not wild about grapefruit, borrow my mother’s trick and cover the grapefruit in broiled brown sugar.

Printer-friendly recipe

Doni’s Grapefruit Arugula Salad with Grapefruit Vinaigrette

2 or 3 fresh grapefruit, peeled and sectioned, removing all the white pith
2 Granny Smith or Pippin apples, peeled and sliced (like classic pie slices)
2 ripe pears, peeled and sliced to resemble the apples
4 to 6 tablespoons freshly squeezed grapefruit juice
4 cups of fresh arugula
3 kiwi, peeled and sliced into rounds
Pecorino cheese shavings, for garnish

Grapefruit Vinaigrette

2/3 cup freshly squeezed grapefruit juice
2 tablespoons lemon juice
3 tablespoons honey
1/3 teaspoon freshly chopped chives
Freshly ground pepper and salt, to taste
3/4 cup best olive oil

To start the salad, place the sliced pears and apples, topped by the grapefruit and grapefruit juice, in a mixing bowl. (This will help prevent the pears and apples from browning.)

Let the mixing bowl and its content chill in the refrigerator while you make the vinaigrette.

Vinaigrette: In a small saucepan simmer the grapefruit juice and reduce it to about half. Let cool. Add everything except the olive oil, whisking well. Very slowly - in the thinnest stream possible -pour the olive oil into the ingredients, whisking constantly. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.

To assemble the salad: Use a very shallow bowl or a large serving platter. Cover with the arugula, then arrange the chilled apples, pears and grapefruit over the greens. Add the kiwi rounds. Drizzle with dressing. (Dress sparingly. You can always add more but it’s hard to undress a salad.)

Top with Pecorino shavings. Close your eyes and imagine you’re in Florence.

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