BACK TO THOSE LINCOLN SCHOOL DAYS AND THE TUNES THAT STUCK
What catchy songs did you learn in your grammar school classrooms? When my hairdresser Alan posted on Facebook that he made paw paw ice cream, his friend commented to ask about it. That sent me on a frenzy to the internet to learn about paw paws. https://wvbirder.wordpress.com/2019/10/22/pickin-up-pawpaws-put-em-in-my-pocket-by-jan-runyan/
Alan replied to his friend that he makes the ice cream from the paw paws on Paw Paw Trees he cultivates at his country home. The whole thing was so funny to me because my brother Al, a contemporary age to my hairdresser, occasionally to this day mentions singing the jingle, which includes, “Pickin' up paw paws, put 'em in your pocket”* that his class sang at our neighborhood grammar school.
For me, from the earliest grades at Lincoln School (now the Dr. Charles C. Polk Elementary School in Roselle, New Jersey), it’s the tune of Frère Jacques in French and Brother John in English that sticks out. There were other songs as well, especially in music class when we sang My Country, 'Tis of Thee, also known as "America" and Home on the Range, but I suppose the fact that we sang in French and English in our regular class was the most exciting.
My eldest brother graduated high school in 1959. He says that he only recalls maybe holiday songs that he just moved his lips to or chose not to sing as he was not a good singer. He said they did sing some Hebrew songs after class at Hebrew school, but I asked if there was one in particular he remembered and he replied, “no.”
My brother Stuart remembers an upper-class student coming into his 2nd or 3rd-grade class to sing I've Got the Whole World In My Hands by Matthew A.C. Cohen.
While my brothers and I studied at Lincoln School in Roselle, New Jersey, my husband Arnee was at nearby Lincoln School in Elizabeth, New Jersey. In the "Ching Chang Chinaman" Rhyme from 1897, Arnee remembers the words as, “Ching Liu Chinaman, tried to fly a kite, flied it once or twice but couldn’t fly it right,” which he insists would be banned in every school in the country today. He remembers to this day that in the earliest grades he was directed to sing those racist words, with the teacher leading the class.
Getting back to paw paws, they are a fruit and according to my hairdresser, they make great ice cream. A quick Google search showed, “Pawpaw is the super-yummy native fruit most people have never heard of.” We definitely heard of them but didn’t know what paw paws were.
The search additionally showed, “It is the largest fruit native to North America and grows abundantly in midwestern forests. It’s the only fruit in its family that grows in our temperate climate. The rest, like the custard apple, are tropical. And the best, most delicious way to enjoy pawpaw is Pawpaw Ice Cream.”
With that, I scouted a recipe and additional information online: Pawpaw Ice Cream - Bakers Brigade -bakersbrigade.com.
http://www.bakersbrigade.com › recipe › pawpaw-ice-...
8-10 Pawpaws skins and seeds removed to yield 2 cups of pulp
3/4 cup sugar
2 cups heavy whipping cream
2 cups Whole milk
INSTRUCTIONS
In the bowl of a food processor, blend the pawpaw pulp and sugar until smooth. Whisk in the milk and cream. Cover and refrigerate for at least two hours, up to overnight.
Turn on your ice cream maker and pour the chilled mixture into the frozen freezer bowl and mix for 20 minutes until thickened. The ice cream will still be soft and creamy. Place in a sealable container and return to freezer for at least 2 hours, or until it is firm enough to serve.
Oct 4, 2017 — “The pawpaw tastes like a mash-up of banana, mango and cantaloupe. It's custard-like texture is a natural match for ice cream.”
I recommend that Al try some. Maybe I’ll even take a taste. First, I should clarify and decide if it’s paw paw, paw-paw, or pawpaw.
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*Complete lyrics to The Paw Paw Patch:
Where, oh, where is sweet little Nellie?
Where, oh, where is sweet little Nellie?
Where, oh, where is sweet little Nellie?
Way down yonder in the paw paw patch
Come on, boys and let's go find her
Come on, boys and let's go find her
Come on, boys and let's go find her
Way down yonder in the paw paw patch
Pickin' up paw paws, put 'em in your pocket
Pickin' up paw paws, put 'em in your pocket
Pickin' up paw paws, put 'em in your pocket
Way down yonder in the paw paw patch
Paw paw ice cream