What’s larger than a football, softer than a pillow, and edible?

Give up? It’s the strange looking Guanábana or soursop fruit. Since it thrives in areas of high humidity and warm temperatures, it grows well - and wild - in our Caribbean area.

I first noticed this unusual looking fruit in a Tica neighbor’s tree and asked her what it was and what it tasted like. She explained that the ones we were looking at were not yet large enough to eat. A couple of days later her husband showed up at our door with a ripe, football-sized fruit, along with instructions on how to turn it into a tasty drink, or make “helado,” a frozen ice cream-like treat that is eaten out of a plastic baggy.

I decided to make some of each. So, with knife, plastic bags and blender on hand, I was ready to start.

Step one. Cut the massive fruit in half. The spikes on the exterior were deceiving - they‘re soft.

Step two. Squeeze out the juice and the edible white pulp while making sure to discard the indigestible black seeds. The fruit is extremely juicy - there was juice and pulp everywhere including all over me.

Step three. Into the blender with some milk and sugar (I used a little sweetened condensed milk in place of sugar). No real measurements, just enough till it tasted good.

Since my instructions were verbal and in Spanish, of course, I may have inadvertently taken liberties with the recipe. But, in the end, the Guanábana drink and frozen treats were refreshing and creamy with a sweet and slightly sour taste. I guess it is best described as “unique.”

Guanábana is high in carbohydrates (particularly fructose) with significant amounts of vitamin C, vitamin B1, and vitamin B2. Many herbal medicine practitioners believe the fruit has strong anti-cancer properties and the fruit, seeds and leaves are commonly used among indigenous peoples where the plant is grown.

One Guanábana a year is probably good enough for us.

Water Apples Everywhere

Apparently the Water Apples (or Manzana de Agua) are in season now on the Caribbean Coast of Costa Rica where we live. The trees in our neighborhood are upwards of 35 feet high and just loaded with these popular fruits. The deep green leaves and bright red fruit make a striking contrast. I had some difficulty getting information on them (even from my reliable "wiki" source). I did find out there are also called a Mountain Apple or Wax Jambu (and scientifically Syzygium malaccense or Myrtaceae) All I know is they are everywhere - the fruit vendors have bushels full and the ground is covered with them. The taste is similar to an American-style apple but a bit more juicy and not as sweet. I've been chopping them up, adding cinnamon and putting them in oatmeal and have also had them served like a chunky applesauce. I just love being able to find edible fruits in the wilds.

One photo shows the water apples under the tree next door to us and the other gives you an idea of the size and shape.

Noni, no me

Anyone with an interest in pursuing a pharmaceutical-free lifestyle or just exploring the world of natural “wonder foods” has probably heard of Noni. Noni is most commonly available in the USA as a juice, and its proponents claim, among other things, that it provides a tremendous boost to the immune system. In Costa Rica the “Morinda Citrifolica” or Noni tree grows wild. It is a member of the coffee family and is easily recognized by its odd looking (and foul-smelling) fruit. The fruit goes from green to an almost translucent white when ripe. It is neither firm nor soft to the touch. For some reason it reminds me of a sea cucumber although I can’t ever remember actually touching one of those. Commercially available juice had additional ingredients added to the noni to mask the odor and improve the taste. But here, where it grows wild, you will find that people just drop the whole fruit into a blender and hold their nose or put the fruits in a glass jar to naturally ferment (see photo of fruits during the fermenting process). So far neither method looks appetizing to me. I have drawn the line. No noni, not for me.

Fresh beginnings.

I am a breakfast person. And there is nothing I love more for breakfast than fresh fruit. So I try to take advantage of the fresh, organic fruit selections available at our weekly farmers’ market, and am always ready to try something new. Shown in the photo are a few staples like pineapple and mango along with some “new” items we wanted to try. On the blue plate is chocolate bread. Homemade bread with ribbons of organic dark chocolate. This is now a standard for our Saturday morning breakfasts! The prickly fruit in the back is a durian. I have read that this is an immensely popular fruit in many Asian countries. But, the kindest thing I can say about the durian I tried is that once you smell it you will never forgot the aroma. To open it I had to roll it on the ground under my foot until it cracked enough to break open. Judging from the reactions of our breakfast guests the durian must be an acquired taste. We threw it across the street into the jungle to keep the smell away…and the dogs did not run after it. The dark colored fruit at the front of the photo is a sapodilla. I was told that the sapodilla tasted a bit like our melons. I have since read the taste described as a mix of brown sugar and root beer. It was definitely unique. I could probably acquire a taste for this one. The bark of the sapodilla tree contains a rubbery substance called “chicle” which used to be a primary ingredient in chewing gum. Perhaps chewing the bark would be more satisfying to me.