The past, present & future of the pawpaw

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THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2011
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The past, present & future of the pawpaw
OLIVIA YOUNG Staff Writer | oy311909@ohiou.edu
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2009 The pawpaw is designated Ohio’s state native fruit. 1999 Chris Chmiel founded the Pawpaw Festival, which is held at Albany’s Lake Snowden each fall.
hen the summer heat subsides, Southeast Ohio’s farmers inspect the progress of their crops. Rather than seeking the more traditional apples or pumpkins, they are looking for a fleshy green fruit that is celebrated in this neck of the woods. Athens is all about the pawpaw.
THE STORY GOES
Native Americans east of the Mississippi River first harvested the tropical-esque fruit, using the tree’s bark to make ropes and fishing nets. Centuries later, during the Lewis and Clark Expedition, William Clark wrote in his journal that pawpaws saved him from starvation. The pawpaw’s taste and texture are unlike anything found in the Kroger produce section, combining a banana’s texture with a mango’s taste. Even though the fruit trees wind through the temperate forest from southern Michigan to the Carolinas, they thrive in Southeast Ohio. “It’s really one of those hidden things of Athens and the region,” said Paul Wiehl, Athens mayor, who has several pawpaw trees of his own. “They are an asset to our local economy and culture.” In 1918, Southeast Ohio pawpaws took the top three spots in an East Coast taste test held by the American Genetic Association. Five of the top 10 entries in that contest were Ohio-grown. The region’s fascination with the fruit became official with the start of the annual festival at Lake Snowden in 1999. In addition to embracing the pawpaw, the festival celebrates the culture of sustainability that surrounds the fruit. “Every (pawpaw farmer) I know grows them organically because they don’t need any extra nutrition,” said Arthur Trese, associate professor of plant biology at Ohio University, who also has pawpaw trees. The pawpaw was recognized by Ohio in 2009 when it was named the state’s native fruit. Since then, the number of pawpaw products at the Athens Farmer’s Market and on restaurant menus throughout the county has soared.
packing his fresh pawpaws away every fall and sending them throughout the U.S., and his preserved products are a hit in the off-season. Thousands of pounds of pawpaws are picked and consumed in Athens each year, far more than any other county in the nation. From its hundreds of trees, Integration Acres froze 6,000 pounds of pawpaw pulp last year to send to grocery stores and make pawpaw beer for the festival. “We are in the pawpaw capital of the world,” Chmiel said. “Southern Ohio has been blessed with pawpaws.” In its first year, about 100 people attended the Pawpaw Festival, which was then a one-day, free event. In the last 13 years, the festival has grown into a three-day celebration, drawing in 6,000 pawpaw connoisseurs last year. “The (local) interest has grown,” Chmiel said. “I think it is mostly due to the fact that pawpaw products are available year-round.” Unlike bananas, pawpaws do not ripen after being picked and have a shelf life of about two days, which forbids them from landing in the fresh produce section. Instead, pawpaws, which are made up mostly of seeds, are more often found in frozen or packaged products. “It’s a difficult fruit to transport, and right now, it’s not very mainstream,” Wiehl said. “But acceptance of the pawpaw needs to grow and we need to learn ways to make them more economically viable.” There are about 20 people growing pawpaws in Athens County today. Athens needs more growers, Chmiel said, in order to find pawpaws a spot on grocery shelves.
1918 The American Genetic Assciation held a contest for the best pawpaws amongst Eastern states. The top three were grown in Southeast Ohio, while five of the top 10 came from Ohio.
1541 The earliest documentation of pawpaws, when Native Americans were found cultivating them east of the Mississippi River.
LONG LIVE THE PAWPAW …
… and all of its tasty productions. The Pawpaw Festival and other local events provide people an opportunity to learn about cultivating and distributing the local specialty. “Educating people about harvesting is the biggest roadblock,” Wiehl said, “followed by transportation. There is an assumption that products can easily stretch from here to China, but that’s not reality.” The future of this oversized fruit remains promising because innovators are still working on new ways to grow, harvest and utilize the plant. “The first person to figure out how to grow a seedless pawpaw will make a lot of money from it,” Trese said. With Southeast Ohio’s profusion of pawpaws, these kinds of advancements would be profitable for Athenian growers and the local food scene. “There’s not a huge demand for them right now,” Trese said. “But there is a potential niche market for the pawpaw’s flavor and novelty.”
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Athens’ locavores sport pawpaw bumper stickers and smother their toast with pawpaw jam. Salsa, beer and popsicles also have become popular mediums for the local flavor. Only in the past 20 years have farmers started selectively breeding trees to grow bigger pawpaws, Trese said. As a result of the pawpaw’s development, local harvesters now fancy grafted plants instead of the free seeds abundant in the woods of Strouds Run State Park and The Ridges. Albany’s Integration Acres, which is owned by Chris Chmiel, the Pawpaw Festival’s founder, is the nation’s largest pawpaw distributor. Since 1996, Chmiel has been
Cantina Karaoke with The Constant Gardener: 10 p.m.; Casa Nueva, 4 W. State St.; free 21 and older, $2 younger than 21 Joey Hebdo with Jesse Henry (of the Spikedrivers): 9 p.m.; Jackie O’s Pub and Brewery, 24 W. Union St.; free Donkey Musicians Open Stage: 9 p.m.; Donkey Coffee and Espresso, 17 1/2 W. Washington St.; free Comedy in the Round: 9 p.m.; Pyramids, 5 Mill St.; free OU Improv: 9 p.m.; Bentley Hall, Room 124; free ACRN Night: 9 p.m.; Smiling Skull Saloon, 108 W. Union St. The Sweetback Sisters (part of the Summer Concert Series): 7 p.m.; Stuart’s Opera House, 46 Public Square; free
FRIDAY
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WHAT: The 13th Annual Ohio Pawpaw Festival WHEN: Friday through Sunday WHERE: Lake Snowden, Albany, OH ADMISSION: Weekend Pass $12, Two-Day Pass $10, Day Pass $6
International Dance Night with Self Help: 10 p.m.; Casa Nueva, 4 W. State St.; free 21 and older, $2 younger than 21 Merengue Night: 8 p.m.; Jackie O’s Pub and Brewery, 24 W. Union St.; $2 21 and older, $4 younger than 21 Dave Rave: 9 p.m.; The Union, 18 W. Union St.; $5 Pawpaw Festival featuring Zach Parkman and the Damaged Goods, Clifftones, Joey Hebdo and more: 4 p.m.; Lake Snowden; $6 day pass, $10 two-day pass, $12 weekend pass
PAWPAW RECIPES
PAWPAW AND MANGO PUNCH
Recipie from allrecipes.com Ingredients: 1 cup sliced mango 1 cup diced, peeled pawpaw 1 cup orange juice 1/4 cup lime juice 1/4 cup white sugar, or to taste 1 teaspoon grated orange zest 4 cups water How to make: Place the mango and pawpaw into a blender. Cover and puree until smooth; add the orange juice, lime juice, sugar, orange zest and water. Blend well. Serve over crushed ice.
SATURDAY
The Royales: 6:30 p.m.; Casa Nueva, 4 W. State St.; free 21 and older, $2 younger than 21 Break the Space (DJs): 10 p.m.; Jackie O’s Pub and Brewery, 24 W. Union St.; cover The Heartlanders of Cincinnati and Michael Rinaldi-Eicheberg: 9 p.m.; Donkey Coffee and Espresso, 17 1/2 W. Washington St.; free Athens Open Mic: 8 p.m.; The Front Room, 1 Park Place; free First Street Heat: 9 p.m.; The Union, 18 W. Union St.; $5
PAWPAW ICE CREAM*
PAWPAW CRÈME BRULEE*
Ingredients: 14 ounces egg yolks 6 cups heavy cream 4 cups half and half 4 cups sugar 2 teaspoons vanilla 3 cups pawpaw puree Pinch five-spice powder
Ingredients: 3 quarts of half-and-half (11% butterfat coffee cream) 1 to 2 cups sugar or alternative sweetener 1 dozen whole eggs 3 to 6 cups of ripe or overripe pawpaw pulp How to make: • Mix all ingredients together thoroughly in a large pan. If using a hand-held mixer, you may continue blending in the pan as the mixture is heated and stirred on the stove. This improves the heating, reduces burn on and gives a rich, creamy mixture. • Cook the custard, which should be heated until it starts to thicken (at about 150 F) , and then cool immediately in a sink of cold water. If it is over cooked, the custard can break. • Many flavoring ingredients, including other fruits, cocoa or chocolate can be added to the custard mix before it is cooked. • Refrigerate the mix overnight before attempting to freeze it. • Hand crank or use an ice cream maker, following the manufacturer’s instructions. Any sort of flavorings, nuts or good liquor can be added to the ice cream mix before it is frozen.
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How to make: • Blend yolks and sugar. • Add vanilla and set aside. • Combine half and half and heavy cream and scald. • Remove from heat and add warm liquid a little at a time to the yolk mixture until all has been added. • Add five-spice powder and pawpaw puree. • Pour into ovenproof brulee dishes and bake in a water bath at 275 degrees for 38 minutes or until firm. *Recipes from Integration Acres
A recent study by the London Science Museum found that more Brits would prefer to live without a flushing toilet than abandon Facebook. See, Americans aren’t as wacked on our priorities as the world thinks we are. We value a working toilet — or should I say a working loo. Letting it mellow might cut down your water bill, but it’s not a worthy trade for Facebook. What happens when the waste exceeds the high water mark? Besides, it’s just gross! Why in the world would someone compare having working pipes to having a Facebook? All I’m saying is be careful what you wish for. — Lindsay Friedman
ELEPHANTS NEVER TO FORGET
I knew I was deeply, irrevocably in love with elephants when I watched one of those 6-ton love lumps at the Cleveland Zoo bust out into a jog. He made it across his naturalized cave in seconds, his monstrous ears flapping in the wind, without missing a step or dropping a single piece of hay clenched between his luscious lips. I stopped dead in the middle of the street and was almost flattened by a golf cart taking a group of tourists to see the monkeys. When I realized an elephant can have enough inner conviction to convince his inconceivable heft to approach 5 miles an hour, well, let’s just say the moment we shared is one that elephant will never forget. — Rebecca McKinsey