Papaya Love

Now that you have the leftover flesh of the papaya fruit, what do you do with it? Well, you could eat it as is, use it as a bowl to add vanilla yogurt and homemade granola, cut out the meat and use it in a smoothie, chop it up and make papaya salsa, or try making your own papaya sorbet. The latter is what I decided upon. I found a recipe that required the flesh of one papaya diced, which is exactly what I had. I placed the papaya cubes in a saucepan with 1 cup of sugar and 2 1/2 cups water, brought the mix to a boil, cooked for a couple of minutes then removed from heat. Next I placed the mix into a blender to puree it. The recipe I found suggested using an ice cream maker, but since I didn't have one I decided to just pop it in the freezer and mix it every once in a while. The next day it had developed into a gorgeous sunset orange frozen ice. Not sure if that is truly a sorbet or more of an Italian ice, but whatever it is considered it looks lovely and tastes divine. I scooped the sorbet into a fancy glass, drizzled a bit of maple syrup over it and topped it with fresh mint. After first taste I fell in love. I will be making this again and again, and plan on being creative with the next batches. Maybe I will add honey, coconut, mint, or another fruit to the blend. Or, maybe I will layer it with Tahitian vanilla pound cake and fresh Kula strawberries. Aaaahh, the possibilities are endless!

While your indulging in this beautiful, tropical treat you can rest assure knowing that you are doing your body good too! Papaya flesh and its peppery seeds are very nutritious and contain needed digestive enzymes known as papain that help digest proteins. Rich in antioxidants, bioflavonoids, and Vitamin C, papaya is an excellent fruit to add to your diet. Papaya is also a good source of fiber, folate, potassium, Vitamin A, Vitamin E, and Vitamin K. Close your eyes, place the juicy flesh into your mouth and envision yourself in Hawaii or another exotic place just to make your spirit feel good.