A Passionate Fruit?

Passion Fruit

Ahh . . . the passion fruit! Invasive in native Hawaiian ecosystems, passionfruit is called lilikoi. The fruit’s outside appearance is very much like a guava, but the inside is very different.

The skin of the hard-shelled, baseball-sized lilikoi is yellow when ripe. Inside you’ll find a tart, orange pulp used to make syrups, butters, jellies, glazes, sauces, juice, and shave ice flavoring.

Passion Fruit Flower

The lilikoi vine is perennial, grows fast, and climbs, which makes it a bit of a pest in certain areas. But the most striking thing about the plant is the flower. They grow all over the vine and can be up to three inches wide. I’ve never seen one, but hear they are beautiful. Something maybe you could be passionate about?

Although the seeds are edible, usually only the mature fruit’s pulp and juice are used.

Lilikoi can be found on all of the major Hawaiian islands, but is native to South America.

Join me all month for more fun with fruit! Visit my past August posts and continue all month to read about Hawaiian fruit.

Mahalo for visiting!

Cheryl

www.cheryllinnmartin.com

cheryllinnmartin@yahoo.com