Calories in passionfruit
The calorie content of a passion fruit is 110 calories in 118 gms, or approximately 1/2 cup serving.
This fruit contains 28 grams of carbohydrates which includes 13 grams of sugars.
Because it is customary to eat the seeds, it has 1 gram of fat in that serving size, although no cholesterol.
On the plus side, it offers 12 grams of fiber, 3 grams of protein, 30% Daily Value of Vitamin A, 60% of Vitamin C, and a small amount of iron in that serving size.
Mold on outside skin of passion fruit
The outside skin of these fruits can look very old, wrinkled, and even have slight areas with mold, yet are still safe to eat after careful washing.
In fact, with the purple variety (also called granadilla), the skin should have wrinkles and dimples.
Nevertheless, the ripe fruit should be firm on the outside with the inside flesh either purple, yellow, or red according to the variety.
Serving ideas
The purple varieties are usually eaten fresh. Cut it in half, scoop out and eat the inside flesh with the crunchy seeds.
The yellow ones may be primarily used for juices and jams.
The pulp can be used for dessert toppings, pies, custards or puddings, cakes, cheesecakes, as jams with the seeds, or pressed for juices, syrups, liquors, and other flavorings.
Widely cultivated
This fruit (Passiflora edulis) grows on vines throughout all areas of the world in warm, subtropical climates, as far north as San Francisco, California, and as far south as southern Brazil and Australia.
Most areas of the world grow the smaller purple cultivar, but some areas, like Venezuela and Hawaii, grow a larger yellow version which may become as large as a grapefruit.
Purple cultivars include Black Knight, Edgehill, Frederick, Kahuna, Muico, Nelly Kelly, Ouropretano, Paul Ecke, Peroba, Pintado, Purple Giant,and Red Rover. The yellow ones include Guassu, Golden Giant, Hawaiiana, Kapoho, Mirim, Noel's Special, Redondo, Sevcik, University Round, Waimanalo, Yee, and Brazilian Golden.
Home gardens
If you love this fruit and live in a frost-free area, you might try growing it in your home garden.
The vine can grow up to 20 feet a year, but only lives about 5 years.
Just remember it is very thirsty and needs fertilizing when fruiting.
You can prune it back after harvest. Most of these vines are susceptible to nematodes and some plant viruses.
This plant was named after the passion of the Christ by Spanish Catholic missionaries.
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