Liliko'i (Passion Fruit) Curd on Mango Bread--Farmer's Market Exotic Fruits

My next exotic fruit is the passion fruit, called liliko'i here in Hawaii. This fruit is grown on all islands and is plentiful, especially in the fall and winter. Although most of the ones I see are yellow, they can also be a reddish purple color and grow on a hearty vine. Liliko'i has a tart, citrus flavor and smells like a bit of heaven. You can just cut them open and eat the flesh and seeds (it is a bit tart without some sugar) but you more often find the juice in sauces, drinks, dressings, desserts, etc. It is high in vitamin C, vitamin A, potassium and fiber.


I get liliko'i occasionally in my CSA box but I bought five at the market in order to make some delicious sounding Passion Fruit Curd from The Hawai'i Farmer's Market Cookbook (a great little cookbook from the Hawaii Farm Bureau Federation that explains the different local foods available, how to chose, cook and store them as well as has several recipes for each item).


Passion Fruit Curd
Elisabeth Iwata, Neiman Marcus
Hawaii Farmer's Market Cookbook
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8 whole eggs
8 egg yolks
2 cups granulated sugar
1 cup passion fruit juice*
1/2 lb unsalted butter, cut into 16 pieces
1/2 tsp lime zest
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Using a whip, combine the eggs, yolks, sugar and juice in a large bowl.


Set the bowel over a pot of simmering water and gradually reduce the mixture to a thick custard, stirring frequently. Blend in the chunks of butter, piece by piece.


Strain the custard through a fine mesh sieve. Stir in the lime zest. Cover with plastic wrap to prevent a skin from forming and chill well. Use the curd as a base for a meringue or cream pie, or as a condiment for scones.
Yields about 1 quart.


*To extract juice, pass the pulp and seeds through a sieve or several layers of cheesecloth. Refrigerated, juice will keep for about a week; frozen up to six months.
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Notes / Results: Since I bought five liliko'i, I had just under half a cup of the juice. I added a bit of local Meyer lemon juice to the passion fruit juice and then halved the recipe. The curd was surprisingly easy to make--just some stirring, and it smelled so good! The texture and flavor were perfect and I think I might have to make this curd again for some holiday gifts. I also love how it looks serving it in the hollowed out liliko'i shell. This recipe is a keeper and has inspired to me to try other curds.

I had a big ripe mango in my CSA box and found a recipe for Mango Bread in the same cookbook so I decided to make some to spread with the liliko'i curd.


Mango Bread
Kaua'i Farm Bureau
Hawai'i Farmer's Market Cookbook
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1 1/2 cups butter
2 1/2 cups sugar
6 eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
4 cups sifted all purpose flour
1 tsp salt
4 tsp baking soda
3 tsp cinnamon
4 cups diced mango
1 cup chopped nuts (optional)
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour five medium or four large loaf pans. Cream butter, add sugar gradually and beat until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time and continue to beat. Add vanilla. Sift dry ingredients into egg mixture, alternating with the mango. Add nuts (if using) and blend well.


Divide among pans; bake in medium pans 40-45 minutes, large pans one hour. Remove from the oven and cool.
Makes 4-5 loaves.


Notes / Results: Since I only had the one large mango, giving me two cups of the flesh, I halved this recipe as well. Still NOT A BAKER! My big loaf sunk in the middle but my mini loaves were just fine. The bread is simple and very moist from all the big chunks of mango with a good flavor. I would make it again (mini loaves only). It was good on its own but excellent with the liliko'i curd spread on it.