I chose to do a starfruit for the fruit modeling assignment. I started it similarly to the pepper by using the bulge tool to get the indentations, then slowly worked the rest using the bulge, pinch, and smooth tools. For the texture I used the bulge tool through a stamp.
One problem: I didn't look at a picture of a starfruit beforehand, I just did it by memory. A real starfruit has 5 points, mine has 4...
This is a model I did the first week of class, using the generic bust as a start. I used the bulge and smooth tools mainly to get the shape, then painted all the color and the hair on. For the hair I used a stencil to paint through to make it more realistic.