The Maracuyá is an imperfectly ovaled, freckled handful of smooth and sometimes cratered, thick rind. Inside, it´s intensely tangy, mildly sweet, full of crunchy, edible seeds tangled up in pulp oozing juice. It compares to nothing else in taste, texture, smell, or appearance.
There! I´ve described the undescribable, tamed the essence of all that is Passion Fruit into 1 mighty paragraph. Cream cheese does something similar with the Maracuyá; it takes the tang down just a notch and adds a comfy creamy element. They complement each other quite nicely and the result is, for lack of a better term, bad-ass! Move over, Strawberry Cheesecake!
Maracuyá at the farmer´s market.
The seeds are held in a litttle cocoon of protective skin, which is as delicate as the white
part of the orange or the casing around the pomegranite seeds.
For the filling
2 pounds of good cream cheese
1 large maracuyá
zest and juice from 1 lime, tangerine, or other citris
1/3 cup of cane sugar
1/4 cup of Maple syrup
a generous drizzle of vanilla extract
2 eggs
For the crust
3/4 stick of butter at room temperature
230 grams of graham crackers <--I used the ever ubiquitous galleta Maria, which
doesn´t really qualify as, or compare to, the graham cracker,
but it worked just the same>
For the Topping
1 large maracuyá
1 Tspo water
1 Tbsp corn starch
3 Tbsp sugar (depending on how tart and tangy the maracuyá is)
.Preparation.
While the oven is preheating at 350ºF, process the graham crackers until they´ve turned into fine crumbs. In a large bowl, rub the soft butter into the crumbs until it´s evenly incorporated. Get out the pan you´ll be using to bake the cheesecake and start building the crust along the bottom of the pan. Press firmly after each addition of buttery crumbliness, and try to get the crust as even and level as possible. Bake for about 10-12 minutes or until the crust is golden brown. Set aside.
In a large bowl with the mixer on high, mix the cream cheese, sugar, and maple syrup until fullly combined. Add the lime zest, lime juice, and the vanilla extract. Mix for 1 minute. Slice the Maracuyá in half and spoon the pulp into the bowl. Mix 2 minutes and then add one egg at a time, making sure that the first egg is well combined before you add the next one. Pour the mix into the pan with the golden crust. Prepare a water bath for the cheesecake by filling a large oven safe pan with water and placing the pan with the cheesecake inside it so that 3/4 of it is submerged in water. Bake at 350ºF for about an hour and a half. If the center is a little wobbly when you're ready to take it out, don´t worry! It should be. Let the cake cool while you prepare the topping.
In a sauce pan, combine the sugar, cornstarch, and tablespoon of water. Mix for about 2 minutes on medium heat. Add the pulp from the other Maracuyá (seeds and all!) and stir consistently until it reaches a thick syrup-like consistancy. Taste to make sure there´s enough sugar (it depends on how acidic the maracuyá is!). Slowly pour the syrup over the top of the cheesecake and spread evenly. Refrigerate overnight.
