Passionfruit melting moments

Passionfruit melting moments

When passionfruit are in season, I rejoice – I love their sweet tartness, and the beautiful vibrant orange pulp encasing the crunchy little jewels inside. I love the way the uglier and wrinklier they get, the more delicious they are. And I especially love the fact the vines themselves are so whimsical; I’ve just planted one, and watching the curly little tendrils creep around the place makes me happy. Passionfruit is a perfect filling in these silky, buttery biscuits that require very little effort to whip up. This recipe makes 16 biscuits once filled – you can halve the recipe if you prefer less, but I wouldn’t advise it.

Ingredients

250g butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup icing sugar
1 tsp vanilla paste or extract
1 1/2 cups plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
2/3 cup cornflour
Zest of 1 lemon
Icing sugar, for dusting

Extra cornflour, for dusting the fork

Icing
2 cups icing sugar
25g butter
Pulp and seeds from 5-6 passionfruit

Method

Preheat the oven to 160c (140c fan bake if that’s all you have), and line a large baking tray with baking paper.

Beat/cream the butter and icing sugar until well combined. Beat in the vanilla.

Sift the flour, baking powder and cornflour into another bowl and whisk to mix well, then add to the creamed mixture with the lemon zest and mix to form a crumbly dough.

Roll into walnut-sized balls and place 5cm apart on the prepared tray. Press each one down lightly with a fork dipped in the extra cornflour.

Bake in the oven for 10-12 minutes – they shouldn’t colour really, only very slightly if at all. Let cool completely on the tray.

Filling
Beat the icing sugar and butter together, beat in the passionfruit. If it’s too runny, add more icing sugar. If it’s too thick, add more passionfruit pulp. Spoon the icing on a biscuit half and press another half on top. Dust with icing sugar and keep in an airtight container in a cool place (even the fridge).