Passionfruit is easily one of my favorite ingredients of all time. My dad has fond memories of eating a ton of them in Taiwan, mostly because they grow quite frequently there. For me, it is a reminder of my heritage and I just love the sweet-tart flavor of the pulp coupled with the crunch of the seeds.

Typically, I make passionfruit gelato using fresh pulp, however, I have done that way too many times, and on top of that, I had way too much passionfruit lying around when a family friend who owns an orchard dropped a couple boxes of them off for us. So I had to get creative.

Rather than making gelato, I figured that I could go at it and make a passionfruit souffle. I could make a custard-base using the seeds and egg yolks, while I can whip up egg whites and fold those into the base. I figured for an accompaniment to the souffle, I would make a mint-passionfruit sauce, reducing the pulp down with sugar and a touch of mint extract, just to give it a refreshing note.

For the custard base:
2 egg yolks
3 passionfruit
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
a pinch of salt

In a pot, cook down the passionfruit pulp. Whip sugar and salt with egg yolks. Temper and continue whipping over medium-high heat for 3 minutes. Refrigerate until completely chilled down.

For the souffle:
3 egg whites
1/3 cup granulated sugar + more for the ramekins
custard base*
unsalted butter

Whip egg whites and sugar together until they form stiff peaks. Line two ramekins with butter and sugar. Fold the egg whites into the passionfruit custard base. Pour into the two ramekins and bake at 375 degrees F for 15 minutes.

For the sauce:
3 passionfruits
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
a pinch of salt
1/4 teaspoon mint extract or oil

Reduce passionfruit pulp with sugar and salt. Once the mixture is an amber color, take off heat, add in the mint oil, and pour into serving containers.