A vineyard owner named Grayson
Was unrepentantly brazen,
About the fact that it’s fun
To leave grapes in the sun,
Even when there’s not a good raisin.
The word “raisin” derives from the Latin racemus, meaning a cluster of berries or grapes. To make raisins, start with a seedless variety of grapes. Then blanch them to soften the skins. Toss them, stems and all, into a pot of boiling water for 30 seconds. Then cool them in ice water to halt the cooking process. Pat-dry them and place them on a tray. Cover them with a cloth and put them in direct sunlight for three to five days. This simple process has remained essentially unchanged for over 4,000 years. Nowadays, it’s not just a handful of grapes on a rock. Worldwide yearly production exceeds one million tons! Oh, and the play on words here is between “raisin” and “reason.”
