There is always something new to harvest on the farm. Right now, the mulberries have just started.
Mulberry Tree.
I will be collecting this fruit to make our very popular Mulberry Elixir. The final product is a beautiful dark purple colour and it has a lovely, rich berry taste.
This one is a local fruit called monkey cap. It has the consistency of peanut butter and is much-loved by the birds. For all bird-lovers out there, this is one to plant if want to attract all the birdies with pretty colours. The toucans like this one.
Monkey Caps.
The monkey cap tree also makes a nice ornamental for those into landscaping.
Monkey Cap Tree.
Oh, and last but not least…we got our first soursop of the year. Everyone in Belize loves this fruit. I can’t give it justice by describing it but it has a kind of wet cotton-like consistency with a unique tropical fruit taste. I asked Gnome to help me describe the flavour and this is what he said:
“Well…it tastes like a soursop!”
Well, Thank-you Gnome…that was extremely helpful!!
Happy Sunday to you all!! We have some more fruit on our farm; luckily this time, there is an abundance so we can share with the birdies, pacas, dogs and guinea-pigs.
The mulberries are giving plenty of fruit. There is one particular tree which is half hidden in the shade of a huge African oil palm so the birdies have not spotted this one. This year, we will be able to make mulberry Elixir (liqueur).
Mulberries.
This is wax-apple; we are into the second year of fruiting and it is producing so much. They are related to the Molly (Malay) apple but these fruits are crunchy in texture like apples. The guinea-pigs really love these ones!
Wax Apple.
The passionfruit are just starting to bear. I like to combine the pulp of this with the Mayan passionfruit (Kun Batz) to make juice. I find the Mayan variety is sweeter so that it helps to balance the acidity of this type.
Passionfruit.Ripe Kun Batz.
With all the passionfruit juice making, I have ended up with a whole lot of seeds. As an experiment, I tried toasting them on a skillet in a similar manner to pumpkin seeds. They actually turned out to be a very tasty snack/condiment; as you toast them, the residual passionfruit pulp around the seeds caramelises to add a unique sweetness. I used the toasted seeds as a condiment on soup which worked a treat. The crunchy texture gives an extra bite to a meal:
Toasted Passionfruit Seeds with Soup.
Also, we had some as an accompaniment to cassava hash browns and steamed young pumpkin. They added an extra “sweet and sour” flavour to the dish.
Toasted Passiflora Seeds with Cassava Hash Browns.
I would definitely recommend the toasting of passionfruit seeds. It just requires 10 to 15 minutes on medium heat on a skillet. Make sure to stir it around to stop it from initially sticking. You will know when it is done when the pulp caramelises around the seeds. It is so versatile that you can choose to eat it with sweet or savoury foods.
Hi There! Just something short and sweet…pictures from the farm. We find that the farm just keeps on producing and doing its own thing. Even although we have taken a few days from farm work it doesn’t stop it all from growing up…aagghhh…the bush and the grass are all coming back with the rains! Anyway, here are some things that make us feel that it is all worth it in the end.
Mulberry is in season; you would naturally consider this as a temperate fruit but it actually grows in Belize very well. The yields are very high…the only thing is that you have to pick them early morning before all the birds get them.
The bees are polinating the African oil palm. Again, this is a favourite with wild animals so you have to grab them while you can. The palm nuts are actually really nice boiled in soups and stews. Oh, and another thing, the dog likes them too. So much competition…we don’t mind sharing but the problem is that the rest of the other critters have no concept of leaving a few behind for us!
African Oil Palm Flowers.
This is a nice specimen of wild mushroom. They are Lepiota sp. unfortunately, not edible.
Lepiota Mushrooms.
These yellow fruit are called abiu. They have a clear, whitish pulp with some similarity to the texture of persimmon. A tasty fruit which can only be picked once there is a tinge of yellow on the outer shell. The birds seem to be able to eat them green so we tend to lose a lot of them to our little friends. Here is a nice picture of two surprisingly intact specimens:
Abiu Fruit.
It is mango season and the trees in Toledo are totally loaded. We are lamenting over this because when we initially started planting fruit trees on our farm, ten years ago, we were so excited about planting weird and exotic trees that we completely overlooked the common back-yard mango. So, now we have no mangoes on our farm and they are actually our favourite fruit. We are making up for it this year by planting seedlings but it is going to be quite a wait to have our own farm-fresh mango…about 5 years! Here is a picture of mangoes on a tree (not on our farm).
Mangoes!!
Oh, and this is an unusual fruit called velvet apple. They are furry red balls with a yellow/orange pulp which we have actually never tasted before. They have a very nice peachy smell to them. This picture was taken from a friend’s farm; they look like Christmas decorations:
Velvet Apple.
Hope you enjoy the pictures. Now is the time to stuff yourself silly with mangoes until July…then it will be avocado season! Lots of wonderful fruit to look forward to.
