FWNAB: Custard Apples

Opening a custard apple: not what I expected!

After a quick search on Wikipedia, I realised that the term “custard apple” can apply to at least six different fruits. So, what exactly did we buy?

Well, I hope not to be mistaken, as I could not find any photos looking quite like the specimen I have, but I think this otherworldly-looking fruit is known as Annona Squamosa, a name that does not do much to dispel its aura of alien predator spawn, just landed on the planet to enslave us all with its deliciousness.

Despite being called custard apples, or sugar apples, these fruits are not really related to apples. Yes, they grow on trees and have seeds, but the similarities pretty much end there.
First of all, unlike apples, they are very soft and almost gooey: you can open them with ease, no need for knifes or anything else.
Second, they taste definitely very tropical, similar to guava, very sweet and sugary.

Custard apples in their container.

This fruit is widely cultivated all over the world, especially in hot and dry climates, and the ones we bought were from India.
As many tropical fruits, custard apples are high in calories and excellent sources of many vitamins (especially vitamin C), potassium, fibers and manganese.

This Australian website has plenty of serving suggestions and information about it, and I also found recipes to make tons of different desserts, such as spiced teacakes, tropical trifle, ice cream, milkshakes and cream.