Housekeeping in the Tropics

How To Use The

Pawpaw

THE tropical fruit, the pawpaw, has many uses. When green it can be cooked and eaten as a vegetable, and made into delicious pickles. When ripe, sliced and served with cream, it is an all-appeal ing dessert, and is greatly relished by in valids. Shredded with a fork or cut into cubes it is excellent for salads. It can be made into chutneys, jams and marmalades.

Pawpaws also make crystallised candies.

Its milk-like juice, when green, has cured many cases of eczema and other skin diseases. It is widely used in the treat ment of ulcers and all kinds of sores and for diphtheria and intestinal and numerous other ailments. The seeds are used in the treatment of constipation.

A slice of ripe fruit rubbed occasionally on the face will remove freckles and other skin blemishes.

The green fruit will remove stains from clothing.

The milk of the green pawpaw, rubbed into the toughest steak, will make it as tender as a young chicken.

The young pawpaw, still green in colour, may be used as a vegetable, cooked in its skin. It should be put into salted boiling water, cooked until tender (after the man ner of a squash) and served with melted

butter, pepper and salt, or a rich white sauce. Recipes:—

Stuffed Pawpaw

Peel an unripe pawpaw, remove the stem and a small slice, scoop out the seeds and place the paw paw into cold salted water, bring to boil, cook a short time —do not allow it to become too tender.

Take a tin of luncheon beef, one tablespoonful Worcestershire sauce and one tablespoonful of tomato sauce, finely chopped onion, dash of pepper and spice, mix well togetheb, and fill up the paw paw. Seal with small slice and place in a baking dish with a little butter, brown well in a moderate oven.

Stewed Pawpaw

Cut pawpaw into largish slices. Put these into an enamel pot and add water in the ratio of one pint to three lbs. of fruit. Also add small teacup of sugar, the juice of two lemons. When it boils simmer for 10 minutes and set aside to cool. Can be served with milk puddings.

Pawpaw Surprise

Take a firm ripe pawpaw, remove stem, cut small slice off end and scoop out seeds. Fill with made and half set red jelly, seal with small slice •and place in refrigerator until ready to serve.

Pawpaw—With Additions

Cut pawpaw in half and scoop out the seeds.

Take some of the pulp and chop it up finely. Fill the cavity with chopped pineapple and pawpaw, garnish with lemon and add crystallised cherries.

A few green leaves complete this attractive arrangement.

Pawpaw Chutney

Take 3 lb. pawpaw. 3 lb. apples, 1 lb. green tomatoes, 2 lb. seedless raisins, 1 lb. onions, Yi oz. garlic, 3 lb. brown sugar, y 2 lb. preserved ginger, Y oz. chillies, 4 oz. salt, 3 tablespoonsful mixed spice, V/ 2 pints vinegar. Peel the pawpaw and tomatoes and cut into strips. Put them into saucepan with vinegar and cook slowly for 20 minutes. Put the apples, onions, garlic, raisins, ginger and chillies through the mincing machine and add them to the mixture in saucepan. Add the sugar, salt and spice and cook very slowly, stirring constantly to prevent burning. Simmer slowly for 1 hour. It may be necessary to add a little more vinegar. Bottle and seal when cold.

From X.Y.Z., Wewak, New Guinea.