Passionfruit Coconut Meringue Bars – a buttery, crumbly coconut shortbread base, tangy thick passionfruit curd and a fluffy coconut laced meringue topping. Jump to Recipe
The oldest of my younger brothers started university this past week, moving out to a hall of residence and leaving my parents with only half their children still at home. In a few all-too-short years, all four of us will be gone – a scary thought!
His experience of O-week (orientation week, held the week before teaching starts), sounded similar to mine – a jumble of meeting hundreds of new people, trying desperately to source clothing for dress-up themed parties, and late night after late night in a way that I hadn’t really experienced before. It wasn’t like I hadn’t stayed up – I just hadn’t done that on Sunday, then on Monday, then Tuesday, and again on Wednesday and Thursday, alongside packed days of activities and the intense energy drain of small talk. You do get very good at it – “Hi, I’m Claudia! Where are you from? What are you studying?….” and repeat, so many times that conversations blur into a haze of meaningless faces and names, forgotten until you meet a few weeks later in line for dinner and go over the whole thing again.
By the end, half the freshers (first years) were sick – viruses travel round a group of 300 closely confined students faster than anywhere else, so a cough and runny nose were common place.
I do remember being a bit homesick by the end of the week. Fatigue coupled with being in a new city (new country, even!) and not having familiar faces around created ideal circumstances for a “what am I doing here?! moment”. It didn’t help that we hadn’t started university yet, so we didn’t have much purpose, or specific things to do.
It didn’t last, luckily. Only a week or so later those feelings were completely forgotten, and I haven’t looked back – Melbourne has been an incredible place to study (and eat!) thus far, and I am 100% glad that I shifted. There are now MANY familiar faces! In no way does it feel like two years ago that I moved into my new dorm room, armed with a sense of apprehension and 3 bags of favourite belongings (there is zero chance they would fit into those same bags now…). Facebook pop-ups have been very persevering in their reminders however, constantly demanding I “celebrate my two years of friendship!” with many of the people I met and electronically ‘friended’ at that time.
BUT that isn’t the point of this post. These passionfruit coconut meringue bars are. A recipe slightly adapted from Little & Friday, it is extremely well-loved in our house and Dad’s favourite. Ever.
A crumbly, buttery coconut shortbread based is topped with a tangy, thick passionfruit curd and a layer of fluffy coconut-laced meringue. I have even less self-control than usual when it is around – a whole piece, then a sliver, and another sliver later, then half a piece, and another bit shoved in – because it is that addictive.
It isn’t hard – you have to bake it between each layer, but it doesn’t take long and none of the components are technically challenging. Fresh passionfruit delivers a flavour unrivalled by the bulk packet/bottled/tinned stuff (mainly because they have so much sugar added, I think), so try to find fresh fruit if at all possible. Passionfruit season is coming up in the next month, so make it (more than once, until passionfruit sources dry up for winter), and then dream of it for another year.
- 115 g butter
- 1 cup icing sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 egg
- 1 1/3 cups desiccated coconut
- 1 cup flour , sifted
- 1 x 400g tin sweetened condensed milk
- 150 ml lemon juice
- 125 ml passionfruit pulp (1/2 cup, usually 7-8 passionfruit)
- 5 egg yolks , lightly beaten
- 5 egg whites
- 1/3 cup caster sugar
- 1 1/3 cup coconut thread
- pinch of salt
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla essence
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Grease and line a 20x20 cm square baking tin. Preheat the oven to 170°. Cream the butter and icing sugar with a stand mixer or electric beater until pale and fluffy. Beat in the vanilla and egg. Fold in the coconut and sifted flour .Press evenly into the base of the tin and bake for 10-12 minutes. Remove from the oven.
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Meanwhile, whisk together the ingredients for the filling. Pour over the top of the base and bake for 12-15 minutes or until set to touch. Remove from the oven.
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Meanwhile, beat the egg whites to soft peaks, gradually adding the castor sugar as you go. Fold in the coconut thread, salt and vanilla essence. Gently spread over the top of the passionfruit layer. Bake for 10 minutes.
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Remove from the oven and place in the fridge for at least 3-4 hours to cool completely
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Cut with a sharp knife into squares.
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Keep in the fridge in an airtight container.
What a perfect combination of flavours and I love your idea of a meringue bar.
Thanks Rebecca! Coconut goes so well with lemon and passionfruit, completely agree – both quite tropical and fresh!
YUM. I love the contrast between tangy passionfruit and sweet coconut.. meringue too. I definitely wish i had one of these bars right now, they look seriously good.
Thanks so much Thalia! <3
Damn girl. Your recipes + photography is the bomb!
Can’t wait for passionfruit season to go gang busters!
YES cannot wait until they really hit the market, passionfruit are my fave – I always have a jar of passionfruit curd on the go when they are around! Thanks so much Erin x
Congratulations to your brother! I’m sure he will have a wonderful time at his university–I’m graduating high school this year and I’m really excited too!
Anyways, these lemon bars look amazing, and they probably will taste even better!
Thanks so much Cassie! Good luck for your final year of school and university – it is such a fun year! 🙂
I adore passionfruit Claudia, these look heavenly! I think I would end up eating far too many of those bite size pieces! x
Thanks Louise! I definitely eat WAY more than is healthy when I have them around haha. They showcase the passionfruit flavour so well though! x
This post is amazing, Rebeca. Love the photos, love the recipe. I will make this for my husband, passion fruit is his favorite fruit!BTW, thanks again for stopping by my blog, I love meeting talented co-bloggers 🙂
Thank you! Passionfruit is the BOMB, I totally agree – use it in every form when it is available. No worries at all, your eggplant recipe looked insanely good! 🙂
I’m sitting in front of the screen eating my breakfast of yoghurt, raspberries with tart passionfruit spooned on top. Now I’m thinking I’ll have to buy another bag of these fantastic fruits to make these bars! They look like dangerouly good.
that sounds like a fantastic breakfast! Yogurt and fruit is my go-to as well, but passionfruit and raspberries just takes it to the next level! Sounds like a good plan to me. Thanks Di! x
Oh I have fond memories of orientation and college! I wish I could turn back time and do it all over again! Love these bars, Claudia! Not only are they gorgeous, but the flavors sound amazing!!! Passionfruit and coconut PLUS a meringue topping?! Sign me up! Too much deliciousness for me to NOT make these immediately! Cheers, friend!
I know right?! Need a time-turner a la Hermione haha! Thanks so much Cheyanne, would love to know what you think if you give them a go x
Wow these look incredible! I am absolutely loving your photography and the dessert looks to die for 🙂
Thanks Sarah! x
They’re beauuuutiful! And my brother is at that age now too, and it’s both awesome and bittersweet seeing the siblings grow up 🙂
So true – can’t wait to see what everyone ends up doing but simultaneously don’t want us to leave childhood behind! Thanks Allie x
The meringue is absolutely beautiful Claudia!!! I think these are absolutely perfect for the warm weather that’s starting to happen over here in Indiana. And your parents are right behind mine, they just became empty nesters last year and they LOVE IT! Remind your parents to plan for vacation once all their kids leave haha.
Hope you’re doing well dear!!
Thanks so much Erica! I’m sure my parents will love it once they get used to it (and I KNOW they will take lots of holidays!) – which will be sad because they won’t take us anymore hahaha! Hope your week is going well x
Everything about this looks so incredible! The coconut shortbread with the passionfruit curd and coconut meringue…I can understand why this is your dad’s favorite! Wonderful, Claudia, and congrats to your brother!!
Thank you so much! I still can’t get over how good passionfruit curd is – would use it in everything if I could. But maybe the limited season is part of the appeal – maybe I wouldn’t be so keen if it was available all year round. Hope your week is going well! x