I tried two new fruits today: a feijoa and a pepino melon!

Feijoa

Feijoa, aka “pineapple guava,” “fig guava,” and “guavasteen,” is apparently the big sleeper of  Fruit World. In the late 1800s it received lots of praise yet very little has come from that.

The Feijoa flower is quite beautiful, don’t you think?

The actual fruit isn’t quite as impressive:

The fruits bruise easily, and may overripen without it being apparent from the outside. So for those reasons the Feijoa is not widely exported. In the US Feijoa are grown in California and Florida.

The fruit has an extremely sweet smell that is apparent even before you cut it open. The taste is sweet with a somewhat gritty texture. I could see these being used to make a smoothie or a pudding. I ate it straight and while it was OK, I’m not in a hurry to get another one.

Pepino Melon

The pepino melon, aka “tree melon,” “bush melon,” and “mellowfruit,” is really cute!

I was not however, lovin’ the taste. It was OK – a light, mild melon/cucumber flavor.
After doing some research, however, I figured out that my pepino melon was not ripe. Here’s a ripe pepino melon:

Here’s what it looked like when I cut it open:

So…I was a little disappointed with my foray into unusual fruits today. I did pick up a few Hachiya persimmons today – I’m excited to compare them to the Fuyus I sampled a few days ago.

Have you tried any new foods lately?