pomegranates and passion flower fruits

[Doc]

I posted this message to the Plants/Prop forum, but no one is responding. Perhaps a more general audience is needed.

Someone please tell me the correct way to "open" and eat a pomegranate.

Also, I have had passion flower vines growing in my pastures. One has produced quite a bit of fruit -- a green, oval, lemon-shaped fruit, that is soft to the touch.

Is it edible?

[Jen H]

I can tell you how I eat pomegranates. Take a paring knive and cut a shallow cross into the blossom end. Then start peeling from one of the corners, popping the seeds out into a bowl as you go. Eventually you'll be able to start breaking the sections apart - just keep popping the seeds out while you pull the membranes apart. Then you just pop the seeds into your mouth and munch!

As kids we used to take a pocket knife to start peeling the pomegranates. Then we'd go at them with hands and teeth getting juice everywhere. The method above is a bit more civilized.

I can't help you with the passion flower fruit. Sounds really neat, though!

[sancraft]

I did a quick search. Seems the yellow flesh of the fruit is quite sweet and edible.

The passion fruit is edible. We called them Maypops when I was growing up. This last summer I picked a bunch and my wife and I made some jelly out of them. Very good. It takes a bunch of them too.

[backachersfarm]

We have passion flowers on our prpperty too. I love the flowers, but the vines can become a problem. I'll have to try this next yr when the fruit comes on. Pawpaws are an entirely different fruit. they are a banana smelling sort of fruit with a lot of large seeds in them. We also have perssimons here, but with the way the fall weather has been coming on they rot before the frost can hit them and make them sweet....plus you have to beat the deer to them.

Sharon

[starwalker]

We have passion fruit and flowers in our fields. We also have Paw-Paw trees. Pomegranate's are a must around here at the holidays!

[culpeper]

I have been constantly amazed since I started on various forums, to discover that very few Americans eat, or even know about, passionfruit! Here in Australia, they are hugely popular, and many, many people grow them in their gardens for their fruit - NOT the flowers!

The fruits are edible, and totally delicious. I cannot imagine a fruit salad without one tossed into it, and how can you have a pavlova without passionfruit? I have many, many recipes for it - cakes, biscuits (cookies), desserts, pies etc.

The fruit begins green, and can take quite a while to ripen. Depending on the species, they may be purplish-black (the best), or yellow, or reddish when ripe. You know they're ripe when they come away from the vine with no tugging, or fall off by themselves. Don't wait until they are crinkly - when they're old, they're AWFUL!

To use passionfruit, cut it in half and scoop out the yellow flesh and seeds - do not scoop out the white shell-lining. You eat the seeds as well as the yellow flesh, which should be quite juicy. It has a tart-sweet flavour that is quite unique. I eat them straight (from a spoon to be polite, but when nobody is looking I just slurp!) when my vine is fruiting, and I freeze lots of it in ice-cube containers for future use. It's yummy served as is on ice cream, or added to icing for a cake, made into jam (the purple skins are used for jam), add some to a tomato jam for a spectacular flavour experience. I'm very partial to Passionfruit Butter (curd). Cooked and thickened slightly, it makes a very pleasant sauce to go with pork!

Passionfruit Butter
pulp of 12 passionfruit
4 eggs, beaten
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons butter

Stir all ingredients over low heat until thickened. Bottle.

Passionfruit Cheesecake
Crust:
1 1/2 cups sweet biscuit crumbs
6 tablespoons butter (not margarine)
1/4 cup sugar (or to taste)

Combine all ingredients and smooth into a springform cake pan allowing for not only the base but also the sides of the cake. Bake in oven for 10 minutes only and allow to cool.

Filling:
500g cream cheese
1/2 cup sugar
3 large eggs
1/4 cup plain flour
1 teaspoon lemon rind
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup cream
2 tablespoons passionfruit pulp

Blend the cream cheese and sugar until light and fluffy, then one by one add the egg yolks, beating after each addition. Mix in the flour, lemon rind, lemon juice and vanilla. Beat the egg whites until they form stiff peaks then fold them into the cheese mixture then whip the cream until stiff and fold into the mixture. Stir in the passionfruit and pour the mixture into the now cool crust. Bake in a preheated 150C oven for 45-55 minutes. Allow to cool, then refrigerate.

Passionfruit and Tomato Jam
500g cooking apples, peeled and chopped
pulp of 9 passionfruit
1kg ripe tomatoes, peeled and sliced
1.4kg sugar

Cook the tomatoes and apples gently in a saucepan until soft. Add warmed sugar, stir until dissolved. Boil rapidly for 30 minutes, then add passionfruit and boil until it gels when tested. Pour into warm jars and seal.

Passionfruit Biscuits
90g sifted icing sugar
4 passionfruit
1 cup cornflour
185g butter
1 1/2 cups self raising flour

Cream icing sugar and butter well, add passionfruit pulp, then flour and cornflour sifted together. Mix well, drop in teaspoons on a greased oven tray. Bake at 180C for 15 minutes. When cold, join together with a mixture of 90g icing sugar, 1 teaspoon butter and remaining passionfruit.

Passionfruit Slice
Base:
125g butter
1 egg
125g sugar
2 cups self raising flour

Cream butter and sugar until thick and pale. Add egg and beat well. Add sifted flour. Roll out 3mm thick. Divide mixture into 2 tins. Sprinkle with sugar. Bake at 180C for 25-30 minutes.

Filling:
90g butter
3 tablespoons icing sugar
1 passionfruit
1 teaspoon vanilla

Combine all ingredients. Spread over one half of the shortbread base, and top with the other half.

Passionfruit Jam
12 passionfruit
3 cups cold water
juice of 1 lemon
625g sugar

Remove pulp from passionfruit. Put half the shells into a bowl, pour over 2 1/2 cups of the water and leave overnight. Next day bring to the boil, then cook gently for about 35 minutes or until the insides of the shells are tender. Scoop out this inside pulp with a teaspoon and chop. Discard the thin paper skin that remains. Put this chopped pulp into a pan with the fruit pulp and seeds, add remaining water and bring to the boil. Add lemon juice and warmed sugar, stir until sugar has dissolved, then boil rapidly until jam sets when tested. Let cool for a few minutes and turn into warm sterilised jars and seal. [This jam has a reddish colour to it, and requires the purple-skinned fruit. I don't know how it would go with other coloured-skins.]

Passionfruit Tart
1 sheet pastry
16 small or 6-8 large passionfruit
4 eggs
18g sugar
150ml cream
60g icing sugar

Process the passionfruit pulp in a blender for 5 seconds, and strain the liquid. Break the eggs into a bowl and add the sugar. Whisk well, then add the passionfruit juice and cream. Strain the mixture and refrigerate for several hours up to 36 hours. Preheat oven to 180C. Roll out the pastry to 5mm thickness and butter a 23cm flan tin with at least 2cm sides. Line the tin with pastry, rolling a lip over the side. Bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown. Cool. Pour the passionfruit mixture into the cooled pastry case. Bake at 170C for 30 minutes or until the mixture is set when shaken. If the mixture was rested overnight it should not dome on top. Leave the tart to cool at least 2 hours before removing from tin. Dust with icing sugar just before serving,

[Mid Tn Mama]

I'm sold! Tell us how to grow them. Can you start them from seed or starts?

Culpeper I didn't know you were from Australia? I noticed you were nice enough to convert the recipes for us conversion-challenged folks!
PS. What's a pavlova?

[culpeper]

A pavlova is a dessert made with meringue, named after the famous ballet dancer in her honour. Very popular here in Australia. Some pix here:

http://images.google.com.au/images?q...=Search+Images

Pavlova
whites of 4 eggs
1 tablespoon sugar
7/8 cup castor sugar
1 teaspoon vinegar
pinch salt
1 teaspoon cornflour
1/2 teaspoon vanilla essence

Place egg whites in a deep bowl and add the 1 tablespoon sugar and salt. Mix 1 tablespoon of the castor sugar with the cornflour and vanilla - this is folded in at the last. Beat the egg whites until very stiff, then gradually beat in the castor sugar. In cold weather place the bowl over lukewarm water - it speeds up the beating. When mixture is very thick and fluffy, fold in the vinegar. Then add the cornflour, sugar and vanilla, stir to blend. Bake in a paper-lined 23cm sandwich pan or on a paper-lined sponge tray, building up the sides higher than the middle, before baking. Or pile it high in the centre then slice off the top and fill for serving. Sprinkle with blanched and slivered almonds for a special garnish. Bake in slow oven about 1/4 hours. If using an electric or wood fuel stove the oven door can be left slightly ajar for the last half hour of cooking time so that any excess moisture will dry out - this is not necessary in a gas oven. Cool on a rack away from draughts, or leave in oven with door open. Before serving, spread centre with whipped cream or ice cream and top with crushed and sweetened fruit such as strawberries or passionfruit.

Now to growing passionfruit. Every nursery in my part of the world will have passionfruit plants of various kinds on sale. Improved varieties are usually grafted onto wild root stock. As I said, they are hugely popular here!

Best propagated by grafting due to highly variable production from seedling stock. Seed may be sown in spring. Seeds need a temperature of about 35-40C to germinate, and should be planted at a depth of 5mm. Germination of seed is slow and uncertain, beginning after about 20 days and continuing sporadically and incompletely for several more weeks, and sometimes up to a year. Germination rates may be improved in seeds are kept refrigerated for a few weeks before sowing. (Store the seeds in peat moss in the fridge over winter.) Another method is to sow the seeds about 1cm deep in good, moist potting mix in a fire-proofed wooden container. Place the container on a pile of dry pine needles or other tinder, and light the tinder. The fire should burn out within a few minutes. Keep the container warm and watered. The seeds usually emerge through the ashes in about 10 days. Alternatively, pour lukewarm water over the seeds and leave to soak for 24 hours before planting immediately they have swelled and before they can dry out. Give the seed container an occasional soaking. Can be propagated by cuttings of 15cm taken from a mature plant in autumn. Also propagated by layering. Remove leaves from a small section of stem in late summer and cover with soil. Water well. Keep layered until spring before severing the rooted section from the mother plant. Grow in fertile, well-drained sandy, slightly acidic soil in sun or partial shade. Will tolerate fairly poor soils, but good drainage is essential. Will need support and is best grown over a trellis, fence or pergola. Space plants about 4 metres apart. Prune early to one major stem and sideshoots following the trellis. Cut back by about one-third after fruit has been harvested. In spring or early summer, select one-year-old laterals and cut them back to two buds. Fruit and flowers will only appear on new growth the following season. Optimum temperature for pollination of flowers is 20-35C. Extended periods of overcast weather may cause flowers to drop before pollination has occurred. Plants need a minimum of 6 hours direct sunlight per day. Prolonged periods with temperature above 30C will reduce fruit production. Plants must have a plentiful supply of water to produce good fruit. Will not tolerate frost. Most vines begin flowering at 2 years old. The normal life-span of a vine is 3 years, but some will produce fruit for many more years. Plant is vulnerable to fungus and virus problems so clean secateurs with methylated spirits to prevent spreading disease.