Here in the US, things labeled with the flavor of passion fruit very, very rarely actually taste like passion fruit. It tends to be used as a generalized term for anything remotely tropical. Fresh passion fruit has a very unique flavor, and when I lived in Brazil, it was very common to use the fresh fruit in every day cooking. It has a rather strange, pulpy center with big, crunchy black seeds. One of the most popular desserts there is Mousse de Maracuja, Passion Fruit Mousse. There are lots of ways to make it, but the majority of home cooks use a super easy recipe that only involves 3 ingredients, and results in something so completely decadent, it’s ridiculous.
Ingredient Notes
These ingredients shouldn’t be too hard to come by, but depending on where you live, you might have to look around for a couple of them!
- Passion fruit concentrate – Sometimes you can find this in the frozen juice aisle of the grocery store, but make sure you’re getting 100% passion fruit concentrate, not some sort of frozen tropical juice mix. You can also check the Latin foods aisle of the grocery store, where it is sometimes sold in bottles or cans. Again, make sure you’re getting concentrate, not juice. I buy mine from a Latin foods market, which is something just about every city should have. If all else fails, just order this from Amazon in a bottle.
- Sweetened Condensed Milk – I’m showing the Latin cans, but regular sweetened condensed milk that we use in the US is the exact same thing.
- Creme de Leite – In the US, creme de leite is sold as “Media Crema” or “Table Cream” and should be easily found in the Latin foods aisle of the grocery store. Again, if for some reason you can’t find it, you can buy it at a Latin foods market or on Amazon. But I’ve always been able to find it at my regular grocery store in the Latin Foods aisle. It’s kind of like canned cream; a mix between heavy cream and evaporated milk.
Instructions
- The actual process couldn’t get any easier. Just put the canned ingredients in your blender (and I always put in the sweetened condensed milk in last so it doesn’t get stuck on the bottom of the blender.)
- And then use either of those cans to measure out the passion fruit concentrate. Use at least one can, and up to 2. For me, 1 1/2 cans is the perfect amount. More is a little strong for some people, less is pretty mild.
- Then pour the mixture into serving dishes, or one big bowl, and chill it to set.
- That’s it. A few hours later and you have amazing, creamy, tropical, mousse. And it took you like, 45 seconds to make.
I’ve found you don’t have to have any connection to Brazil to love this. I served it recently at a dinner party and everyone raved and licked their bowls clean! That being said, anyone who has any connection to Brazil at ALL, will die of happiness with a single bite.
Serving Suggestions
Since this is rich and sweet, I suggest serving it in small dishes. You really don’t need a big ol’ bowl; a little goes a long way! It’s a fun dessert to have after a dinner of other Brazilian favorites like Black Bean Soup and Quick Brazilian Cheese Rolls: Pao de Queijo, or a summer barbecue with grilled chicken or steak topped with Brazilian Vinaigrette and a side of Lime-Cilantro Rice with Pineapple.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Can I make this ahead of time? Yep. This is a perfect make-ahead dessert! Get it out of the way the day before (Just cover each dish with plastic wrap and store in the fridge) and dessert will be ready when you are.
Easy Passion Fruit Mousse {Brazilian Mousse de Maracuja}
Ingredients
- 2 14- oz cans sweetened condensed milk
- 2 7.5 oz cans media crema/table cream {creme de leite} found in the Latin foods aisle*
- 1 1/2 cans use either of the previous cans to measure passion fruit concentrate**
Instructions
- Place all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth (make sure to scrape down sides and bottom of blender to make sure sweetened condensed milk doesn’t get stuck on the bottom). Pour into a bowl, or small individual serving dishes and chill for at least 4-6 hours, but preferably overnight.
Notes
- Brazilian “Creme de Leite” is sold as “Media Crema” or “Table Cream” in the US, and can generally easily be found in the Latin foods aisle of the grocery store, often near the Latin sweetened condensed milk. If for some reason you are unable to find it at your grocery store, a Latin foods store should have it, or you can order it on Amazon.
- You may be able to find 100% passion fruit concentrate in the frozen juice section of the grocery store, or in the Latin foods aisle. If you have a Latin market nearby, that’s where I usually find it. Otherwise, you may also order it on Amazon.
- Don’t be confused by the size listed for the cans, one is measured by weight, and the other by volume. the 2 cans are about the same size.
- Feel free to halve the recipe for a small batch.
Questions & Reviews
You have no idea how much I have been craving mousse de maracuja. Thank you so much!!! So making this.
Oh yes! I thought it was just me who pitched a fit about passion fruit. These grew wild in my grandmas yard and when we were little we would pop them in our mouths and be merry. Little did I know they were so hard to find out here.
Now this dish looks so divine! Two of my faves combined? I never thought things could get any better with condensed milk. I was so wrong. So very very wrong! Thanks for this brilliant idea for the summer 🙂
Oh, I can’t wait to try this!! We have “Brazil night” for dinner [thanks to your beans & rice, cheese rolls and Brazilian lemonade recipes!] at least once a month and often serve it when we have the missionaries for dinner. I’ve always been a little unsure what to serve for dessert but this will round out the meal nicely! Plus, my Brazil-mission-serving husband’s birthday is this week, so I’ll be searching for that passion fruit stuff! Thanks for the new Brazilian recipe!
We LOVE this stuff at our house! My husband was in Brazil and I was in Paraguay. We miss those delicious fresh fruits. I’ll definitely have to make it again soon.
“That being said, anyone who has any connection to Brazil at ALL, will die of happiness with a single bite.” Exactly!! This is my all time favorite dessert!! I am so excited to make it for my husbands birthday tomorrow, perfect timing:)
I was going to have some friends over to watch the World Cup Final on July 13th and I never put 2 and 2 together that your site has a bunch of awesome ideas for a Brazilian inspired feast! I was thinking I would try to do food inspired by the teams in the final match, but it will be so much easier (because I won’t know the final teams until the 9th) and much more fun (because who wants to make, say, German food in July?) to just go with the theme of the host country. Can’t believe I didn’t think of it before. Thanks for the inspiration!
What a fun idea! Brazilian is totally the way to go!
This looks wonderful! I am also obsessed with passion fruit, and this looks like a wonderful way to have it. Yesterday I noticed that Media Crema at the store, and thought, hmm, I wonder what you do with this? Well, now I know! Thanks for sharing this recipe–I look forward to trying it.
My hubby served a mission in Brazil and he LOVES Maracuja! One year for his birthday we actually ordered a box of the fruit from amazon (as in .com, not the place hahaha!) so he could make the juice. We used the evaporated cane juice from costco to sweeten it so it was close to the pressed cane sugar. His birthday is coming up so I know what he’s gettin for dessert!!! Thank you!
Ahh I’ve been wanting this recipe!! I have a new Brazilian friend and she invited us over for a traditional Brazilian feast a few weeks ago. This was the dessert and I loved it so much. I normally don’t even get excited about fruit desserts, but this one I would have again any night of the week. I’ll be searching for those ingredients soon 🙂
I’m so eager to try real passion fruit after this post. Never been to Brazil, but I’d love to visit someday. This mousse looks so easy to, like you said. Can’t wait to try =)