Mousse de Maracujá
(Passion Fruit Mousse)

mousse.jpg (80811 bytes)

There are a lot of different ways of making passion fruit mousse, including the recipe that uses the fresh fruit. Well, the fruit is not readily available in the U.S., so I started making it with frozen passion fruit pulp from Venezuela which I can find in Latino markets. It's very good and I also use it for batida de maracujá. Take it out of the freezer and let it thaw before you use it. Or you can buy passion fruit juice ("suco de maracujá") from Brazil.

1 can sweetened condensed milk

same measure of passion fruit juice

3 egg whites

1 envelope of unflavored gelatin

Blend condensed milk and passion fruit juice. Dissolve gelatin in a cup of water (sprinkle it on water, stir and let it stand for a minute). Beat egg whites until stiff and fold into mixture. Add gelatin. Wet a ring mold and pour the mousse into it. Refrigerate for 6 hours. Unmold and serve with a crème anglaise. Here's the Brazilian version of it. It's a perfect combination of colors and flavors because the mousse will be on the tart side.

Creme de leite  

2 cups of milk

4 egg yolks (the three left from the mousse plus one)

1 cup of sugar

6 whole cloves

Dissolve sugar well in milk. Beat egg yolks slightly with a whisk - or in a pinch with a fork - and add to milk and sugar mixture. Strain the mixture and cook over low heat stirring constantly with a wooden spoon until it starts to simmer. DO NOT let it boil, it will curdle on you! Refrigerate. To serve, put a slice of mousse on a plate and spoon the creme de leite on top. Use the cloves to decorate the plates. Make sure your guests don't eat them! Great summer dessert.

Maria's Cookbook