Way Down Yonder in the Paw Paw Patch

If you hear the word paw paw and immediately think it is some nonsensical fairy tale food or a child's name for a papaya, you are not alone.. but you are wrong. Many only know of paw paws from the old children's song, Way Down Yonder in the Paw Paw Patch.  Although unheard of by many, paw paws do exist and grow right down the street from me in good old Rochester, NY, which was how I ended up with some paw paws in my possession. When my neighbor left a bag of paw paws hanging on my doorstep, I was not quite sure what to do with them. With a quick Google search, I learned many interesting factoids about paw paws: they are native to North America; they are sometimes called the West Virginia banana; they are Ohio's native state fruit; and there are all sorts of Paw Paw festivals! I also found recipes for pies, breads, muffins, puddings and even wines using paw paws. Who knew?
So I set out to make a Paw Paw Pie
Paw paws start out green and turn yellow and then brown as they ripen. They are actually best when they outside looks like a brown rotten banana oddly enough.

Inside they have beautiful yellow flesh that tastes very sweet and similar to a banana. They also have little black seeds which can be a bugger to take out. But persist on, it is worth it!

Once you have peeled the paw paw and removed the seeds you are ready to make yourself a pie.
I used a graham cracker crust in mine but you can make a regular pastry crust as well.

In a saucepan, combine 3/4 cup of sugar, 1/4 cup of cornstarch, 3 egg yolks, 2 cups of milk and 1 cup of pureed paw paws. Cook slowly until thickened about 5-10 minutes. I added 1/2 cup of toasted coconut here to add a tropical flavor (this step is optional) Pour custard into your pie crust.
Take egg whites, 1/2 tsp of cream of tartar, 3 Tbl of sugar and beat into a meringue. When peaks form pour meringue on top of the paw paw custard. Bake at 350 for about 10 minutes or until peaks are browned.