Your 3 new fave feijoa recipes!

A walk around the block in February can yield some tasty surprises rolled into gutters, peeping out from under eaves on the pavement, or hidden in plain site. We’re talking about delicious and nutritious feijoas!

Whether they’re bruised, bird pecked or managed to land unscathed, we Kiwis love this curious green-skinned fruit!

What’s the deal with feijoas?

But what do we actually know about feijoas? One of the girls in our Almond Breeze NZ team gave us a giggle when she was asked to describe them to a friend while on her OE in London, to which she said: “They’re beige, grainy and a little bit tart”, which caused her friend to look horrified!!

We found this description online, which to be honest doesn’t quite describe the delectable fruit we know and love:

Feijoas are part of the guava family and are also called the pineapple guava and guavasteen. They hail from the dry climates of South America, in particular Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina.

Like all our favourite fruits, feijoas are rich in protective and repairing antioxidant vitamin C, along with vitamin B, shown to help alleviate symptoms of stress, skin loving vitamin E, and blood clotting vitamin K. They are also packed with nourishing nutrients such as calcium for bone health and magnesium shown to aid in sleep and relaxation.

But best of all, they are a marvel included in sweet treats, so we found 3 tempting recipes that are guaranteed to be your new faves:

 

Gorgeous photo by Babiche Martens

1. Rice Pudding with Poached Feijoas

We absolutely love this Rice Pudding with Poached Feijoas recipe. Rice pudding is just as good piping hot as it is chilled overnight and eaten for an indulgent brekkie! Poaching feijoas ensures they stay plump and moreishly delicious.

INGREDIENTS
  • 1 ½ litres milk – our Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Breeze Almond Milk would suit this recipe perfectly!
  • ½ cup sugar or coconut sugar
  • 1 vanilla pod, split, seeds scraped
  • 1 lime, zest
  • 1 cup short grain rice, or Arboria rice
  • 30 g butter or butter alternative
  • ½ cup sugar
  • ¼ cup water
  • 8 feijoas, peeled
  • 2 star anise
METHOD
  1. In a saucepan, warm milk, sugar, vanilla pod, seeds, and lime zest for 5 minutes. Remove vanilla pod.
  2. In another saucepan melt butter and cook rice for 2 or 3 minutes, add milk mixture a cup at a time and stir frequently until rice is cooked, about 30 minutes.
  3. Dissolve sugar and water in a small pot, add star anise and feijoas and poach for 5-8 minutes.
    Serve rice warm and topped with warm feijoas.

Original recipe thanks to Angel Casley on nzherald.co.nz

2. Simple Spiced Feijoa Shortcake

Nothing beats a morning slice with coffee or tea and this Simple Spiced Feijoa Shortcake recipe is sure to be a crowd-pleaser – perfect for the kiddies or an office shout.

Or for a night time dessert, top it with lashings of cream, coconut yoghurt or ice cream and savour this seasonal sensation.

INGREDIENTS
  • 140 grams unsalted butter, cold and cubed
  • 150 grams white sugar (2/3 cup)
  • 300 grams plain flour (2 cups)
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • tsp baking powder
  • 1 large egg
  • 2-3 tbsp almond milk – our delicious Original Almond Breeze Almond Milk would be the ideal addition to this tasty slice

Feijoa Filling

  • 850g grams feijoas (about 12 medium or 20 small)
  • 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 tbsp cornflour
METHOD
  1. Preheat the oven to 180°C. Grease or line a 27cm rectangular slice tin.
  2. In a food processor, combine the butter, sugar, salt, flour and baking powder and pulse until it resembles coarse bread crumbs. Alternately use a pastry cutter or your fingers to cut/rub the butter into the flour.
  3. Lightly beat the egg and add it to the flour mixture. Stir or pulse it to combine it into a thick dough that clumps together (not sticky), along with as much of the milk as you need to make the dough.
  4. Scoop out the inners of the feijoas and place them in a bowl. Add in the cinnamon and cornflour and use a fork to mix this together and slightly squash the feijoas and break them up a bit.
  5. Take 2/3 of the dough mixture and press it into the slice tin. Use the back of a measuring cup to press it down until the bottom of the tin is covered.
  6. Layer over the feijoa filling.
  7. Take the remaining 1/3 of the dough and rip off pieces and flatten them slightly. Place the pieces irregularly over the feijoa filling. It is fine that it doesn’t cover all the filling.
  8. Bake for 25-28 minutes until the shortcake topping is golden brown. Leave to cool for at least 10 minutes before slicing.

Original recipe thanks to Home Grown Happiness

 

3. Caramelised Feijoa Pudding with Salted Macadamias

As we all know by now, life is full of surprises and we have to adapt to whatever comes our way. So we reckon comfort food like this Caramelised Feijoa Pudding with Salted Macadamias is the perfect way to buffer the shifting sands.

INGREDIENTS
Syrup
  • 50 g salted butter
  • 250 g coconut sugar
  • ½ cup maple syrup
  •  cup Manuka honey
  • 1 tsp vanilla essence
  • ¾ cup hot water
Pudding
  • 3 feijoa peeled & cut into 5mm rounds
  • 20 g salted butter
  •  cups plain or preferred flour
  • ¼ cup ground macadamias
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • ¼ tsp salt
  • 125 g unsalted butter softened
  • ½ cup raw caster sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 180 ml almond milk – bump up the tantalising vanilla flavours with our almondlicious Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Breeze Almond Milk!
  • 100 g salted macadamias
  • 2 tsp raw caster sugar
  • Fresh cream, coconut cream, yoghurt or ice cream to serve
  • OPTIONAL: Tamarillos to garnish
METHOD
Syrup
  1. Place all the ingredients into a small saucepan over medium heat. Sir to dissolve. Add the water and allow to gently simmer for 10 minutes. Turn off heat and set aside.
Pudding
  1. Grease and line 6 ramekins with greaseproof paper. Preheat oven to 180°C.
  2. Melt the butter in a large non-stick frying pan over medium heat. Add the slices of feijoa in a single layer and cook on both sides until lightly golden and soft. Remove from heat. Lay the feijoa slices into the bottom of each ramekin and add 1½ tablespoons of the syrup over the feijoas.
  3. Combine the flour, ground macadamias, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
  4. Beat the 125 unsalted butter and ½ cup caster sugar until light and creamy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add half of the flour mixture and half of the milk and combine using a wooden spoon. Add the remaining flour and milk and combine well to form a batter. Spoon the batter evenly into each ramekin, spreading to smooth the top. Bake for 30 minutes or until cooked through.
  5. Place the macadamias into a mortar and gently crumble with the pestle. Add the 2 teaspoons of caster sugar and mix well.
  6. If serving straight away, allow the cooked puddings to rest for 10 minutes before inverting onto plates. To serve, drizzle over the remaining syrup, scatter with the macadamia mixture and pour over the cream. Serve with fresh tamarillo or any fruit you desire.

     

     

    From our love of Almond Breeze almond milk to yours…

    P.S….

    Discover more almondlicious recipes by clicking here!