Jackfruit Custard With Passionfruit Sauce

Chilled custard with chopped jackfruit, layers of puff pastry and passionfruit sauce--what's not to like?

Yesterday's United Colors Of Jello was actually based on a reader's suggestion to make a jelly of the headgear worn by local Bajau horsemen but I was in such a hurry and couldn't wait and the jelly turned out as a big fat muted blob. Luckily, I had made an extra jelly using the leftover Jello and cream and that became the post for yesterday!

Some readers asked where the ideas for the Jelliriffic! Challengeare from. When I confirmed joining the Challenge, I made a list of the jellies I wanted to make based on the desserts I've always wanted to make and the desserts that I love. Many times, the jellies were inspired by the flora around me. I deliberately stopped reading food magazines and cookbooks so that my jellies will be original. Last week, my dear friend NC lugged back Rose Levy Beranbaum's Heavenly Cakes for me from New York and I haven't yet peeked at the book but am very tempted to. Delayed gratification is sweet. I'm so looking forward to curling up on my sofa next week with this book which I've wanted for a long time, and all those food magazines that I buy but never seem to have time to read. Next week I'll do that, and I hope it rains in the afternoons like it's been doing since the Challenge started. If so, I'll be sipping coffee and eating a piece of quiche or something. Not jelly.

I was at the once-a-week tamu (meet! ing plac e/market) in Donggongon last Thursday and there were so many local produce, some from the jungles and some from the back yards of the villagers. I came home with these goodies:

We've eaten most of what I bought except for the tamarillos and the jackfruit. While cleaning my fridge out this morning (what a lot of expired rubbish!), I found a small tub of frozen passionfruit pulp that my friend Yo had given me last year (or the year before?), organic home-grown stuff from her back yard. I usually just make a drink out of passionfruit but I also was reminded of the vanilla slices I ate in small towns Australia. Why not make a Malaysian custard with the jackfruit?

Anyway, the custard turned out fabulous (do people still use this word) except for the passionfruit sauce which was too sweet and next time I make this, I'll use crushed biscuits instead of puff pastry because in our weather, the pastry becomes chewy instead of crisp. I am so relieved to eat a custard for a change because frankly, I've had too many jellies. I'm thinking hard about what to make for the remainder of the Challenge. I just hope I don't end up stuffing rice into the moulds (against my initial resolve against doing that, that's just what I'll be doing next!).




Mix egg yolks with custard powde! r and su gar.


Pour egg yolk mixture into the coconut milk and cream mixture.

Cook, stirring, until smooth and thick (but this was too thick so I thinned it with extra milk).


Mix the jackfruit into the custard.

Cut the pastry to fit the mould.

Pack the custard and pastry firmly into the mould.

Jackfruit Custard With Passionfruit Sauce (for 2 cones)
The custard:
1/2 cup fresh thick coconut milk + extra
1/2 cup cream
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp butter
3 tbsp Bird's Custard powder
2 egg yolks, beaten lightly
2 tbsp caster sugar (or to taste but remember the sauce is very sweet)

The biscuit layer:
5 to 6 Marie biscuits or McVitie's Digestive biscuits or Graham crackers, crushed*
3 tbsp melted butter
* or puff pastry baked for 10 to 15 minutes until crisp

Passionfruit sauce:
1 tbsp passionfruit pulp
3 to 5 tbsp icing sugar
--just mix until you get the consistency you like.
Jackfruit:
4 jackfruit, desseded and chopped
extra jackfruit, sliced, to serve

1. Put the vanilla, cream and milk in a small pot. Remove from heat when just about to boil. Let it cool.
2. Mix the cornflour, sugar and about 2 tbsp milk in a small bowl and then mix in the beaten egg yolks.
3. Add the yolk mixture to the cream coconut milk mixture (can be warm) and boil over a very low fire, stirring all the time. When the custard begins to thicken, taste it to see if it has a floury taste. If so, it is undercooked so add more milk and continue to cook, stirring all the time. If the custard gets too thick, add more milk, stirring until you get a smooth, thick but not too thick custard.
4. Mix the chopped jackfruit with the custard.
5. Line two Nick Munro moulds with baking or greaseproof paper. Put a tbsp of the custard into the mould. Top that with the pastry (cut to size) or with a spoonful of crushed biscuits, pressing down firmly to level. Repeat until the mould is full, ending with a layer of pastry/buiscuit. Cover and chill at elast 2 hours.
Serve with the passionfruit sauce and sliced jackfruit.