Do you avoid buying custard apples because of their unattractive appearance?.

Custard Apple

True, their knobbly leathery skin can be off-putting , but break open the flesh of a ripe fruit, and I guarantee you will fall in love with its delicate custardy flavour.
Dip in a spoon and scoop out some of the perfumed flesh.  Remove (or spit out any smooth black seeds) and sit back and savour this luscious fruit – it’s all you’ll need for dessert.
Custard apples are a sub-tropical deciduous tree belonging to the Annonaceae family which contains over 2000 members spread throughout the world. Of this family, it is the atemeoya, a hybrid of the Annona genus, that Australia’s commercial cultivars derive from.  There are two main varieties of Custard Apples, the Pink Mammoth (or Hillary White) and the African Pride. Both are sweet, juicy and full of flavour.They grow well in sub-tropical areas and thrive where bananas grow well. I’ve seen  them  growing abundantly in northern NSW and my mother grows them in her orchard in south-eastern Queensland.
Try mixing the flesh with mashed banana and cream –taste as your go. This can also be used as a filling for cakes or in trifles.  They’re also good added to smoothies and cheesecakes.
Custard apples can also be used in savoury dishes such as a Thai Red Curry of Chicken & Pumpkin (see my Facbook page:AroundMumsTable).  Their sweetness gives the curry a whole new dimension. Or try them as an accompaniment to glazed pork chops (instead of the usual stewed apple).