Medlar Pie

Last month, at our raw foods potluck, I ate Durian for the firs time. It stunk to high heaven, but had the consistency of a creamy pudding or custard and had a mild, sweet taste. Last Sunday, we hosted a holiday raw foods potluck and party here at Le Roost Lorane. I thought it would be fun to introduce another food that most of us have never tasted. Medlar. It was the first time for all of us. Tastes a bit muddy and feels a bit gritty. You pop it open, suck out the fleshy part and spit out the cluster of small seeds inside. Since no one helped themselves to seconds, I made a medlar pie this afternoon with the rest, and for the remainder of the two cups I needed I added Leroux Creek organic apricot applesauce.

Don't know what to do with Medlar once you find it at the market? Join me and experiment. Make yourself a Medlar Pie:

Filling:

2 cups medlar pulp, skin and seeds removed* (I used 1 cup medlar** and 1 cup applesauce)

12 oz. (1/2 cup) evaporated milk

1/2 c. sugar

1/2 teaspoon ginger

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 eggs, beaten

*If you don't have a full 2 cups of medlar pulp, you can use unsweetened applesauce to make up the difference.

**I swished the innards out by hand; quite messy.

Place everything but the eggs in a saucepan and simmer over low heat until slightly thick. Don't let it boil, or the milk will curdle. If needed, run the mix through a food mill or sieve to remove seeds and lumps. Let it cool slightly, then whisk in the eggs. Pour into an unbaked pie shell (I use a gluten-free shell) and bake for 15 minutes at 425 degrees, then at 350 degrees until done (for me, it was 30 minutes more in a convention oven).

Yummers!