BREADFRUIT

You may have heard of breadfruit as the metaphorical source of the mutiny on the Bounty.  Today while walking through a breadfruit grove, we found one on the ground.  It was a bright green with a pebbly texture. Weighing approximately twelve pounds, it was at the time, only slightly sappy sticky. This would change.

             We inquired why we had never seen one for sale in the local stores, as they are clearly abundant in the area.  We can now only surmise it is because of its extreme stickiness.

Cutting it into quarters was a task, but nothing compared to the cleanup afterward. Like the pinesap back home of our local firs, I thought only a quality turpentine would cut the goo.

So Amy cut it up smaller and put the chunks, like winter squash, into a large pot to boil.

The breadfruit is a pasty starch, slightly sweet and thickly heavy, that when swallowed falls to the bottom of the stomach. We couldn’t help but think of what an ideal food this would be for the starving masses of the world, as the one we had chopped up would seem to feed at least three dozen at a pop.

            If we had a family of thirty to feed, this would be on the menu.  But even though it had more flavor than potatoes, we tossed the bulk of it, as it was too heavy and not worth the chore, and I came away agreeing: Fletcher had made the right choice.