Enzed Exotics, a company that exports beautiful Kiwano melons from New Zealand, offers some great informational resources, linked in their three thumbnails to the right:

• "A Beginner's Guide to Kiwano"  

• nutritional information

• a wide variety of sweet and savory recipes

 

Mokapana can be eaten any time after the skin starts turning from

green to orange, and are sweetest when completely orange.  At room temperature they are very long-lasting, so you can enjoy their funky good looks for weeks before eating.  You want to handle them with care to avoid being poked by the thorns, or you can rub the pointy ends off. Other than the thorn tips, the fruit is wholly edible and good for you, but most folks mainly eat the pulp and seeds.

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Our first mokapana harvest is just coming in, so we've barely started exploring this exotic fruit.  We love the light, fresh flavor.  It's a beautiful garnish for drinks and desserts, and is fun to eat just out of the shell or scooped into a bowl.  You can slice the fruit, section it, or cut it in half and use the shell as a bowl for ice cream or yogurt topped with the jelly. Our favorite so far has been panna cotta served on a bed of mokapana pulp, topped with an orange blossom.  Sorry we didn't get a picture of that!

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We look forward to trying mokapana smoothies, and

some of the savory recipes from Enzed Exotics.

Mokapana and chile... yum...

 

We love this fun, showy, and totally satisfying fruit!