Although I haven’t had a chance to test these recipes yet, when fresh pawpaws are available (late summer to early fall), I look forward to trying them. Take a look at Ky.St.Univ/Pawpaw/Recipes, which has recipes for everything from pawpaw ice cream to pawpaw punch. I’ve provided just a couple of those recipes below. If you’re a fan of the public television show “A Chef’s Life,” you might also want to try Vivian Howard’s recipe for Pawpaw Pudding with Vanilla Wafer and Sesame Crumble, PBS.org/recipes/pawpaw. Â
Pawpaw Cookies
- 1½ cup pawpaw pulp
- ¾ cup shortening
- 11/3 cup sugar
- 1 egg
- 3 cups sifted flour
- 1 Tbsp. baking soda
- 1 tsp. salt
- ¼ tsp. ginger
- ¼ tsp. allspice
- 1 tsp. nutmeg
- 1 tsp. cinnamon
Cream the shortening and sugar thoroughly. Add beaten egg and pawpaw pulp. Stir in the dry ingredients, which have been sifted together, and mix well. Form into small balls and place on cookie sheet. Press into round flat shape with the bottom of a glass that has been lightly greased. Bake in a moderate oven for about 15 minutes. Cool on a rack.
Pawpaw Cake
- ¼ cup shortening
- 1 cup sugar
- 1¼ cup sifted flour
- 1 tsp. baking powder
- 1 cup mashed pawpaw pulp
- 1 beaten egg
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- 1 tsp. vanilla
Cream shortening and sugar. Add well-beaten egg and mashed pawpaw pulp. Sift together flour, soda, baking powder, and salt. Stir into the creamed mixture. Add vanilla. Pour into an 8-inch square pan or two round layer cake pans. Bake at 375o F for 50 minutes. When cool, frost with cream cheese thinned with milk, or any simple white frosting. Top with fresh pawpaw slices.
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Featured photo courtesy Nancy Heltman, Va. Dept. Conservation & Recreation