The fruit is fleshy and soft, sweet, white in color, with a custard-like texture, which gives it its secondary name, custard apple. Some characterize the flavor as a blend of pineapple, mango and strawberry. Others describe it as tasting like commercial bubblegum. Similar in size to a grapefruit, it has large, glossy, dark seeds that are easily removed. The seeds are poisonous if crushed open; one should also avoid eating the skin. When ripe the skin is green and gives slightly to pressure, similar to the avocado. Ripe fruit may be kept in the refrigerator, but it is best to let immature cherimoyas ripen at room temperature. If the skin is brown, then it is good to eat and has ripened.

 

 

 

Cherimoya - This large tropical fruit tastes like a cross between a pineapple, mango, and strawberry. The flesh is cream-colored and has the texture of firm custard.

 

 

 

Cherimoya, cher uh MOY uh, is a small tree that bears an edible fruit. It grows wild in the tropical highlands of the Andes Mountains in South America, and it is cultivated in California and Florida. The oval leaves grow 3 to 6 inches (8 to 15 centimeters) long. The tree bears small, yellow flowers. The egg- or heart-shaped fruit has depressions on its surface and weighs 1 pound (0.5 kilogram) or more. Most cherimoyas contain a few black seeds. The creamy, soft, white pulp of the fruit is eaten fresh and in ice cream and marmalade.