A Forgotten Fruit?

My older brother, who is currently living in Washington, D.C. trying to make his way in the world of politics with a political science degree, sent me this article.  He knows I love fruit, so that's partly why he sent it, but also because it is a little piece of history that is actually really cool!


http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2011/09/29/140894570/the-pawpaw-foraging-for-americas-forgotten-fruit?sc=fb&cc=fp




The PawPaw is a little fruit that "grows along the banks of the Potomac — a speckled and homely skin that hides a tasty treat."  It's a tropical fruit in the United States! What? Here's the history: "Thomas Jefferson had pawpaws at Monticello. And when he was minister to France in 1786, he had pawpaw seeds shipped over to friends there. He probably wanted to impress his friends with something exotic from America."  Furthermore, "Lewis and Clark wrote in their journals that they were quite fond of the pawpaw. At one point during their expedition in 1806, they relied on pawpaws when other provisions ran low. And from Michigan to West Virginia, people have even named towns and lakes after the pawpaw."


Who would have thought a little piece of fruit would have so much history attached?? I thought this was more than fitting to blog about -- so much American history!  And a side note -- pawpaws are apparently full of antioxidants, so eat up!