Paw Paw Paradise

When J volunteered to bring drinks, I was expecting a few bottles of vino. I really thought that he might bring some special wine from Africa, or a particular wine that goes well with rich stews. So when he asked if I had a blender, and martini glasses, I was pleasantly surprised! I thought it was great that even the drink was specially concocted for the occasion.

Paw paws are more commonly known to us as papayas. The first time I heard of the word paw paw was from Stella and I thought it was a hilarious sounding name. I was never much of a fan of papayas when I younger, and would only venture having some if they were ice cold. Over the years, I've grown to love them (as I've grown to love other things like bittergourd and lady's fingers/okra). And while J made this pretty thick, there shouldn't be a problem thinning it out with a little more ice or milk. Heck, you might as well go all the way and indulge yourself with more rum.

It is essentially a cold papaya milkshake - adapted for adults. I know that my mum would make me drink this everyday (sans alcohol) if she could help it. She somehow thinks that papaya milkshakes are good for the ahem... slightly under-endowed. Erm... I don't see a difference, but then again I've only had it once.

You really should use papaya for this drink, but mangos will provide a good substitute if papayas are not available.

Ingredients

1 ripe papaya, peeled, cut into small chunks and pureed in blender
1/2 cup milk

1 cup dark rum

1 cup ice

2 tbspn sugar

Method

Blend all ingredients together until smooth

Pour into 4-ounce glasses

Garnish with 1 strawberry each