Custard Apple
Until I lived in Costa Rica (and had to watch out for falling coconuts on my way to Spanish class!), I never knew how intriguing and bizarre fruits could be. In the Midwest, we’re fortunate to have a world of berries and apples and pears and cherries at our fingertips — and of course we have tropical staples like avocadoes and bananas in our markets — but when you get closer to rainforests, fruit gets downright odd. I mean that in a good way.
Take the cherimoya family of fruit. It includes custard apples (pictured) and soursops, both of which have the texture of custard and a flavor that’s…well, so fragrantly tropical that you just can’t compare it to anything else. (Vanilla/pineapple/banana/passionfruit, maybe?) Soursops are slightly less sweet than custard apples, but both are studded with large, easily-removed seeds nestled into a soft flesh that can be scooped out or cut into quarters and eaten like an apple. Just don’t try to peel a ripe cherimoya — the thin, green, almost-scaly-looking skin would tear.
When I was in Costa Rica, the soursop ice cream was my favorite, so I was almost giddy with delight when I found custard apples in my local produce market. Tropical produce seems to be getting more and more common — you might stumble across a cherimoya as well. If you do, choose one that’s mottled with brown spots and is soft to the touch. Handle with care, though, because these heavy fruits (each usually weighs a pound or more) are delicate and bruise easily. If there are only fully-green ones available, bring one home and let it ripen out on the countertop.
You can eat it straight out of the skin, you can drizzle it with a bit of lime juice first, or you can scoop out the flesh, remove the seeds, and then blend the flesh with coconut milk or pineapple juice or anything else tropical that strikes your fancy. Homemade cherimoya-coconut ice cream would be fabulous! Or how about a cherimoya daiquiri?
If you can’t use it all at once, cut the cherimoya in half, rub the unused half with lime or lemon juice, wrap it securely in plastic wrap, and refrigerate it overnight. It’ll be just as fresh and tantalizing the next day.
Enjoy!
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Tags: cherimoya, cocktails, custard apple, dessert, soursop, tropical drinks
