By Request

By Betty Shimabukuro

Wednesday, January 6, 1999

"A Taste of Hawaii" by Jean-Marie Josselin
Lilikoi makes a refreshing sorbet that is beautifully
complimented by berries and wafer type cookies.

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Passion for lilikoi

Inez Contrades writes from San Pedro, Calif., seeking a recipe for passion fruit jam or jelly. "I have a passion fruit vine and I can't find a recipe," she says.

So today we devote some space to the passion fruit, or lilikoi, which is good for a lot more than just jelly.

The tropical fruit is a native of Brazil. It grows in California, Florida, Australia, New Zealand, South and Central America, parts of Africa, New Guinea, Taiwan and India -- as well as Hawaii.

In "Uncommon Fruits and Vegetables: A Commonsense Guide," Elizabeth Schneider says the fruit has an "astonishingly intense" flavor that does not weaken when processed into juice, frozen or mixed with other ingredients. "You have to try it to understand."

The purple or yellow fruit is not pretty -- Schnei-der describes it as looking like "a partly deflated rubber ball left in the rain, then dried." The interior is pearly, the pulp dull yellow.

The Hawaiian name, lilikoi, refers to the district of Lilikoi in East Maui, where the first seeds were planted back in 1880, carried here from Australia. This is according to "Fruits of Hawaii," by Carey D. Miller, Katherine Bazore and Mary Bartow.

The fruit will not be in season for a few more months, but in Hawaii, frozen and canned concentrates are always available. The recipes here all start with juice. Try frozen concentrate as a substitute, but you may have to adjust the water and sugar.

Passion Fruit Juice

"Fruits of Hawaii," University of
Hawaii Press (out of print)

12 lemon-sized yellow passion fruit

Cut fruit in half and remove pulp with a spoon. Place pulp in two thicknesses of cheesecloth and squeeze out juice. Should make 1-1/3 cups.

Passion Fruit Jelly

"Fruits of Hawaii"

3 cups passion fruit juice
1 cup water
7-1/2 cups sugar
1 bottle liquid pectin

Combine juice, water and sugar in a large saucepan. Stir well. Bring to a boil over high heat, stirring constantly. Immediately add pectin and bring to a full, rolling boil. Boil rapidly 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat, skin and pour into sterilized jars.

This makes a soft jelly which becomes firmer after several weeks. Makes 10-12 6-ounce jars.

Lilikoi Bars

"Favorite Island Cookery Book IV," Honpa
Hongwangi Hawaii Betsuin, 1985

Crust:
1 cup flour
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1/2 cup butter
Dash salt

Filling:
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon grated lemon rind
2 eggs
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 tablespoons flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
3 tablespoons lilikoi juice

Topping:
2 tablespoons butter
3/4 cup sifted powdered sugar
2 tablespoons lilikoi juice

Mix crust ingredients and press into the bottom of a 9-by-9-inch pan. Bake 15 minutes at 350 degrees. Cool.

Make filling: Mix sugar and lemon rind, let stand 5 minutes. Mix remaining ingredients and add the sugar mixture; pour over cooled crust. Bake 20 minutes at 350 degrees. Cool.

Mix topping ingredients until smooth and spread over cooled bars.

Lilikoi Sorbet

"A Taste of Hawaii," Jean-Marie Josselin,
(Stewart, Tabori & Chang), 1992

2 cups water
1 cup sugar
1 cup lilikoi juice

Bring half the water and all of the sugar to a boil until it forms a syrup. Let cool.

Combine juice and remaining water with the syrup, mixing well. Place in an ice-cream maker and process according to manufacturers directions. Store in freezer. Serves 4-6.

Nutritional information unavailable.

Send queries along with name and phone number to:
By Request, Honolulu Star-Bulletin Food Section,
P.O. Box 3080, Honolulu 96802.
Or send e-mail to features@starbulletin.com

Asterisk (*) after nutritional analyses in the Body & Soul section indicates calculations by Joannie Dobbs of Exploring New Concepts, a nutritional consulting firm.