Passion Fruit

An oval-shaped, purplish-brown fruit that grows on a woddy vine, which climbs and clings to other forest plants in order to grow upward. The vine produces large white flowers and a fruit known as passion fruit. The fruit is ripe when it is soft and wrinkled on the outside and on the inside becomes golden colored with a watery and jelly-like textured flesh. Sweet yet somewhat tart in flavor, the flesh and seeds are edible but are generally used as a flavoring in beverages, ice cream, sorbets, jams, sauces, marinades, and fruit salads. Passion fruit nectar is a common beverage available in many food stores.

To prepare, slice one end of the fruit and remove the pulp with a spoon. The outer skin can then be discarded. Select fruit that are deep purple in color, firm and somewhat heavy for their size. When storing, keep ripe fruit refrigerated for 4 to 6 days. In addition to being referred to as passion fruit or passion flower, this plant is also known as: apricot vine, carkifelek, caharkhi felek, granadilla, maypop, maracoc, maracuja, saa't gulu, ward assa'ah, and zahril aalaam.