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Monday, 7 January 2013

Thirst Quenchers : Post #1 - Passionfruit Cooler





The hot weather is back!  Time to switch from "winter-warming" soups and stews to chilled drinks and cooling soups. 



Coolers are a great choice on hot days like these.  For the next few posts, I will be sharing a few ideas to make refreshing coolers to counter the heat.  Here's one of my all time favourite - Passionfruit cooler.





Passionfruit, sometimes called granadila or markisa in Indonesia, is one of my favourite fruits.  I didn't know that it can be grown in tropical climate until several months ago, when we drove past a fruit farm on our way to a seaside resort and saw rows upon rows of vines with an abundant overhang of passionfruit.  Hubby stopped the car by the roadside so I could snap a few quick photos. 


See the passionfruit vines at the top, propped up by green wires. 
The gnarly short "trees" below are dragonfruit plants.



Abundance of passionfruit


Close-up of the fruit

We love to eat the pulp straight from the fruit, and my son has also learned to enjoy it.  It is rich in beta carotene, lycopene, potassium, vitamin C and is known to be beneficial for people with high blood pressure. 

Following is a bit of trivia I learned from wikipedia about passionfruit.

"..it is named by missionaries because the parts of the flower seemed reminiscent of the torture (the Passion) of Christ prior to his crucifixion: 
 

  • The three stigmas reflect the three nails in Jesus's hands and feet.
  • The threads of the passion flower resemble the Crown of Thorns.
  • The vine's tendrils are likened to the whips.
  • The five anthers represented the five wounds.
  • The ten petals and sepals regarded to resemble the Apostles (excluding Judas and Peter).
  • The purple petals representing the purple robe used to mock Jesus' claim to kingship (Mt. 27:28)"
 

Blue Passion Flower - showing most elements of the Christian symbolism.
Source: Wikipedia


I couldn't stop buying when I saw them at the supermarket
(oh no, not another "bananas" episode! ;P) 

Eat the pulp straight if the passionfruit is fully ripened - it is really nice



Pure gloopy goodness



Passionfruit Cooler

  • 1/2 cup of dry ginger ale (I use Schwepps Dry Ginger Ale)
  • 1/2 cup of ice cream soda
  • 1 sprig of mint leaves
  • 2 tbspn of passion fruit pulp
  • Lots of ice


1.  Mix the dry ginger ale, ice cream soda, passion fruit pulp and ice cubes in a glass cup.




2.  Add the sprig of mint leaves and bruise it slightly with a spoon to release the fragrant oils into the drink.

3.  Top with loads of ice and serve immediately.

Absolutely refreshing!




35 comments:

  1. Esther, what a lovely and refreshing drink! Many years ago I used to live in the government quarters back in KT and there was a passionfruit vine in the garden. At that time, me and my brothers were too young to appreciate this fruit. But what I remember is that I love the flowers because they are beautiful :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi PH,yes the flowers are very unique arent they. The sourish taste of the passionfruit used to give me goosebumps, but now i love it !

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  2. Hi Esther, it sure is hot weather here too....and having a cool refreshing fruity smoothie to quemch away the thirst. Thanks for showing the passionfruit tree...as I never seen the growing plants and fruits together. Beautiful.

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    Replies
    1. HI, Mel, the first time i saw the plant and flower, i was like wow...so THAT's how they look like. We cityfolks need to get re-acquainted with nature haha

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  3. Hi Esther! I'm sure this is a yummy drink? What about adding some liqour? :)

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    Replies
    1. Hahaha the sommerlier speaks! What alcohol would be suitable? Rum or vodka?

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  4. Wow, a perfect refreshing drink for this hot weather. First time I saw passionfruit flower, so special and beautiful. Like your sharing on passionfruit pix.

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    Replies
    1. Yea, i thought some trivia would be interesting :)

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  5. Hi Esther, very refreshing drink..... perfect for our super hot weather. Beautiful click!
    I love passion fruits too.

    Have a nice day ahead.

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  6. What a gorgeous drink! Unfortunately around here, we need hot chocolate! This would be lovely when our heat returns!!!

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  7. Hi Esther,
    It's nice to see more of Mr. Sunny isn't it? A very refreshing drink, love it. Nice to know a different concoction, my mum makes it with some Sunquick with addition of some asamboi with the fruits she gets from friends back in my kampung. She make them into popsicles too, those old fashioned ones in plastic bags ;)

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    Replies
    1. Hi Adeline, come to think of it, yes the fruit farm also make passionfruit popsicles using the fruit juice and sour plum powder - we bought a few and it was absolutely yummy :)

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  8. Hi Esther,

    Happy 2013! This will be perfect for our current hot hot Aussie summer!'

    Zoe

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    Replies
    1. Zoe, i think it would be! Can you get pomelos in Melbourne? i don't remember ever seeing one during my days in Oz.

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    2. Oopssy! What was i thinking? Pomelos indeed!! Hahaha that would be my next post :p

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  9. Wow Esther, you bought so many passionfruit. Was it cheap? Cos usually they sell for about RM4 each at those high end supermarkets. I planted one.. but I think it'll be a few years before it fruits.

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    Replies
    1. Hi Yen, Rm4 each??!! That's daylight robbery :P The farm was selling them for RM8 per packet - there's about 12 in them, and these are top grade ones - thinner shell and full of pulp. I've bought them in Carrefour and Jusco before - about RM10 per kilo.

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  10. Hi Esther, I posted a comment but unsure whether it went through. Will check it out tomorrow.

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    Replies
    1. Hi Kimmy, no earlier comments from your side on this post.

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  11. Hi Esther, in December I visited a farm and they grew passionfruit. We had passionfruit juice while staying there for 3 days and I even bought a bottle of pulp. Now I can try your drink.

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    Replies
    1. How nice! Was the farm in Singapore? I would love to have a short stay in a fruit farm and just eat fruits fruit fruits :)

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  12. Hi Esther, when I was a child, my Pa used to get the Indonesian markisa syrup from the Indonesian vessels that docked at the Penang channel. A bottle costs about RM1-2/- only. But then I never know that markisa is actually passion fruit. I like this fruit very much. Lately, I baked another souffle cake using passion fruit and choc chips. Will it be alright if I link this beautiful post of yours to my cake post?

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    Replies
    1. Nice childhood memories of passionfruit :) pls feel free to link your post to this, it would be nice - passionfruit juice and passionfruit souffle :)

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  13. i've never seen a passionfruit tree here. Nowadays i find that there are quite widely available compared to previous years. oh gosh, looking at that bunch of passion fruits are activating my saliva glands!!

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    Replies
    1. Yea, passionfruit is more widely available nowadays, which is great!

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  14. My husband goes crazy when we go to Taiwan and enjoys passion fruits. We don't really have it here so this drink sounds very nice!

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    Replies
    1. Oh, you can't find passionfruit in the States, Nami?

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  15. first time seeing passionfruit flower, look so beautiful..i have a small plant and i dont know how long i have to wait to get the fruits, hehehe..this drink simply cool and refreshing, love it!

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  16. Both you and Yen are growing the plant, see whose tree will sprout fruits first!

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  17. I prefer mine strained. I usually blend them up. The crushed seeds give it a zing.

    ReplyDelete

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