Fruit Maven » Sapote

Star Apple (Caimito)

Fruit Maven — Thu, 03 May 2012 18:36:53 +0000

I love brightly colored fruit. It takes what I already think is super fun and just multiplies it times a billion. Plus I’m a sucker for star patterns in fruit, so I was ecstatic when Specialty Produce let me know they had gotten a few of these in stock.

Star apples, or caimitos are also related to the mamey sapote, which I tried for the first time last week and enjoyed. This group of tropicals must be coming in to season as we start spring. Yay! Because the wait for all the summer fruit is basically killing me.

Unfortunately, the star apple was all promise and no pizzazz. It was horribly difficult to cut in any pleasing way. I could not for the life of me get that star to look great. And it’s covered in a light bit of latex, which tastes bitter and will coat your mouth in an awful way. When you try this fruit, be sure to rinse the fruit even after cutting. I have a history with latex and jackfruit, so I was relieved that my fingers didn’t stick together this time–but still a pain.

All in all, this is a super fun fruit for showing your friends and seeking out if you are a fruit adventurer, like me (and you)? But the flavor was mediocre at best. I’d reach for a longan, lychee, rambutan or even a grape way before a star apple.

Star Apple

APPEARANCE 3.5 out of 5 stars

Slightly bigger than a golf ball. Purple, rust and green skin. Fuschia to deep purple flesh with a white center and black seeds that form a star pattern.

AROMA 4 out of 5 stars

Sweet, herbal and faintly tropical.

TEXTURE 1.5 out of 5 stars

Chewy, gelatinous and slightly fibrous. Not dense and luscious like the best longans, lychees and rambutans. Similar in texture to a peeled grape. I scooped the flesh easily with a spoon.

TASTE 2.5 out of 5 stars

Slightly sweet and a bit herbal – dangling right on the edge of bitter. Some bites reminiscent of an apple, which I probably mainly think because the name of the fruit gives that away. Leaves a slight film in my mouth.

OVERALL 2.88 out of 5 stars

This is a cool looking fruit, with the range of purple and pink colors and the promise of a star pattern in the flesh. Plus it is unusual, which always wins points with me. But it has latex, was hard to cut in an appealing way, tricky to eat and wasn’t all that delightful. I can’t imagine going out of my way to get one of these again. Let me know if you’ve had one of these and loved it. Did I miss something?

FRUIT Star Apple	PEAK Spring	PROVIDED BY Specialty Produce
VARIETY Unknown	GROWN Florida

Mamey Sapote

Fruit Maven — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 03:34:28 +0000

It was an innocent Monday afternoon and I placed my latest prize on the table. I cut in to the one that looked the closest to perfect: a slight give in the skin, no obvious bruising, heavy flesh.

It was a gorgeous orange and I ran my spoon in to the soft flesh as it gave easily. Pausing briefly to take in the yeasty aroma, I tucked a small bite in to my mouth. It softened on my tongue and the texture quickly changed to a powdery substance. Suddenly my lips were smacking like a dog who had eaten peanut butter. The mumbling and cussing began, “What the? Did someone just swap out my mamey sapote for a poisoned cotton ball?”

I headed directly to Google noting this was not the first time I’ve come close to being poisoned from my fruit ventures. My lips and tongue were still smacking. The tannic coating was everywhere. This could not be right…

Luckily, the internet delivered, as it often does, with information that would have been useful prior to me shoving the fruit in my mouth. Apparently this one, with its gorgeous orange flesh wasn’t quite ripe. The skin should be a slightly deeper color, closer to red and the texture on the outside should give very easily when pressed. Luckily I had another one and while the flavor here was quite good, the texture was a mix of perfectly soft pudding and cooking string. I think this one was a day too late. I ate a few bites and then scooped the rest to freeze for a milkshake. I only had access to two of these and they were a generous gift from my friends at Specialty Produce, so I don’t blame the fruit at all for my failures. If you can get your hands on one, my advice would be to get some insight from whoever is selling or giving it to you on when to eat it because the flavor is very promising.

APPEARANCE 3.5 out of 5 stars

Brown sand paper, leathery pod, about the size of an average man’s full hand. Orange/red, salmon flesh with a large, shiny brown seed.

AROMA 3 out of 5 stars

Strong sweet potato and yeast combo. Slightly sweet. Neither good nor bad.

TEXTURE 3.5 out of 5 stars

Soft texture. Dense and smooth in some spots, stringy in others (like a mediocre avocado). Slippery in your mouth.

TASTE 4 out of 5 stars

Cooked sweet pumpkin or sweet potato with a nutty undertone.

OVERALL 3.5 out of 5 stars

While this first foray in to the world of the mamey sapote was a bit dicey, I would definitely look for more of these. I adore pumpkin and sweet potato and pudding so somewhere in here there is bound to be a favorite fruit. I just know it.

FRUIT Mamey Sapote	PEAK Spring	PROVIDED BY Specialty Produce
VARIETY Unknown	GROWN California

OTHER NONSENSE

Mamey Sapote is the national fruit of Cuba, which leads me to wonder about the national fruit of the United States. Apparently we don’t have one. WHAT a travesty! Why aren’t fruit growers canvasing the streets? Why aren’t our presidential hopefuls talking about this grave absence? Where is the dignity?

White Sapote

Fruit Maven — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 03:21:06 +0000

If you think the most important work Bill Cosby has ever done included Jello Pudding Pops, then this is the fruit for you!

Photo is courtesy of Specialty Produce. My old photo was terrible and when I bought more of these to take a better picture, I accidentally ate them all. Will try again next week.

APPEARANCE 2.5 out of 5 stars

Goofy roundish green shape, with various brown markings, white flesh

AROMA 4.5 out of 5 stars

Very bright, perfumy vanilla fragrance

TEXTURE 3.5 out of 5 stars

Soft and creamy, with lots of watery juice

TASTE 5 out of 5 stars

Spicy vanilla cream

OVERALL 3.88 out of 5 stars

This is a grown up pudding cup inside lovely fruit shaped packaging. Messy, spicy, vanilla goodness. Delicious! Please excuse me while I go eat three more of these.

FRUIT

White Sapote

VARIETY

Unknown

PEAK

Sept-Oct

ORIGIN

Mexico

GROWN

Koral’s Tropical Fruit Farm
Vista, California

PURCHASED

Farmer’s Market

NOTES

The seeds are said to be fatally toxic if eaten raw by humans or animals. To eat, cut in half and scoop with a spoon. Don’t eat the skin. They are also known as custard apples.
More about White Sapotes.

RECIPES

Sapote Smoothie
Sapote Shortbread