My partner and I have a long-running debate about passionfruit seeds. While I happily crunch into them as part of the experience, he is horrified at this notion and swallows his. So I was curious to know what passionfruit grower Will Everest had to say on the matter.
‘The seeds are really nutritious, like nuts’, he informs me. Of course, you crunch them, he goes on to say, to my intense satisfaction, in the same way you do watermelon seeds.
Will had arrived at the market that morning with his truck, which was a third filled with passionfruit. It’s the fruit’s time to shine, and at Everest Farm, back of Murwillumbah, and in the same farming family for five generations, they’ve had a great season. Brother Matt, Will tells me, is ‘starting to really get into the passionfruit. We seem to have the right land for them.’
Native to Brazil, the fruit is botanically a type of berry which flourishes in the tropics and sub-tropics; most of Australia’s passionfruit is grown in either Far North Queensland or Northern NSW. A vigorous woody vine, it can spread up to 10 square meters and serve as a beautiful cover for walls or fences, a garden adornment in its own right.
The pulp itself freezes well (ice-cube trays are a good idea), but I’ll be making passionfruit curd frozen yoghurt this summer. Whisk together 155g of caster sugar and four egg yolks until smooth, then in a medium saucepan over low heat, stir through 125g of chilled, chopped butter and ¾ of a cup of fresh passionfruit pulp. Keep stirring for 10-15 minutes, or until the mixture thickens, then chill in the refrigerator. Once chilled, swirl it through 500g of thick Greek-style yoghurt in ripples, transfer to a container and freeze overnight. Half an hour before serving, place in the fridge to soften.
Everest Farms are at New Brighton Farmers Market every Tuesday from 8am to 11am and at Mullumbimby Farmers Market every Friday from 7am to 11am.
For four decades The Echo has printed the stories some people loved, some people hated, and some pretended not to read. If you want us to keep telling the truth, the real truth, not the sugar-coated version. We’ll need your support to keep the presses rolling. 
