This is hands down, one of the best recipes with passion fruit. These Passion Fruit Chocolate Bars are sweet, tart and oh-so-chocolaty — they’re rich, creamy and oh-so dreamy! Add a heart to the top and serve them for Valentine’s Day!
Valentine’s Day is all about chocolate and passion, right? Hence the Passion Fruit Chocolate Bars!
I’m sure we can definitely agree on at least the chocolate! Though, I encourage you to try this awesome, delicious combination — it’s the perfect time to pull out recipes with passion fruit!
This dessert can be made into these bars, as a pie or tart. You decide, depending on the presentation you’re going for. Any which way, it’ll taste the same — which is absolutely divine!
The bottom layer is a crust made with crisp double chocolate chip cookies. You can use any crisp dark chocolate cookie you’d like.
Next is a layer of passion fruit curd, which is out of this world.
It was all I could do not to eat all of it before it made its way into this dessert. And once you know how to make the curd, you can also use it for other recipes with passion fruit.
The Passion Fruit Chocolate Bars are incredibly smooth and rich, sweet and tart. They’re just lovely.
Here’s a photographic guide on How to Cut, Eat and Juice Passion Fruit.
Chocolate ganache balances the sweet-tart flavor of the passion fruit perfectly. You can use semisweet or bittersweet chocolate — the choice is yours.
And since it’s Valentine’s Day — well, who wouldn’t love a little more chocolate, in the form of a heart, no less?
I know, me too!
Enjoy, and I hope you’ll share these scrumptious Passion Fruit Chocolate Bars with friends — spread the love!
More recipes with passion fruit . . .
- Passion Fruit Mousse
- Passion Fruit Ginger Cheesecake Bars
- Passion Fruit Raspberry Cake from Lorraine Elliott
And a big thank you to Melissa’s Produce for the beautiful passion fruits for recipe testing.
*Please note that only 20 minutes of the prep time is active. The remaining 2 hours is the refrigeration time the dessert needs to set.
- 10 ounces crisp dark chocolate cookies
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup passion fruit juice (from about 8 to 10 passion fruits) see notes
- 4 large eggs
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1 cup semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- coarse sea salt for sprinkling
- 16 chocolate Dove hearts if desired
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Line a square (8 X 8-inch) baking pan with parchment paper. (Use a large piece that will cover the sides and cut slits in each corner so that it will lay flat.). Set aside.
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Add the cookies to a food processor fitted with the blade attachment and pulse until smooth. Mix with the melted butter and then very firmly, press it into the prepared pan. Set aside.
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In a heat proof bowl, combine the butter with the sugar and mix until blended. Then add the passion fruit juice, eggs and egg yolk. Use a whisk to blend until it’s as smooth as possible. (It will likely have little lumps from the butter. That’s okay!)
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Place the bowl over a pot it fits snugly into, with a couple of inches of water in it. (Be sure the bottom of the bowl doesn’t touch the water.) Turn the heat to medium and whisking often, cook until the mixture is thick — it should coat the back of a spoon when it’s ready, about 15 minutes. Let it cool to room temperature and then pour it evenly over the crust. Refrigerate until it’s set, about 1 hour.
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Add the chocolate to a medium-sized mixing bowl and set aside. Add the cream and vanilla to a small saucepan and scald. When it’s ready, it should be very hot, but not boiling, and tiny bubbles will appear along the edges of the surface. Pour this over the chocolate and let it sit for about 4 minutes. Then mix until thick and smooth. Let this cool completely at room temperature.
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Once the layer of curd has solidified and the ganache is cool, evenly pour it on top and refrigerate until the ganache is set, at least 1 hour.
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Sprinkle with the salt and if desired add 16 chocolate Dove hearts. Slice the dessert into bars, using the hearts as a guide. (The layer of curd will be a bit softer than the ganache, making slicing a bit tricky — to solve this issue, place it in the freezer for about 10 minutes before slicing and serving.)
David says
February 14, 2017 at 5:37 pmIt is hard to find passion fruit in Tucson. You probably aren’t surprised. Every once in a while, and I hate mixing it with anything as it is so rare. But I trust you, so why not chocolate? Happy Valentine’s Day!
valentina says
February 14, 2017 at 9:59 pmWhile I do love this combination with chocolate, I couldn’t help but think, I should’ve first done a post on just the passion fruit curd — it’s so lovely on it’s own! I must still do it. 🙂
Lisa Bryan says
February 15, 2017 at 11:41 amI’m such a fan of passion fruit and we were lucky enough to have our own vines of it growing up! This dessert looks delicious!
valentina says
February 15, 2017 at 11:52 amLucky indeed! I can only imagine how delicious the scent was from those vines. 🙂
Sarah @ Champagne Tastes says
February 15, 2017 at 11:49 amI’ve never really worked with passionfruit because they’re basically impossible to get here! But this sounds sooo yummy!
valentina says
February 15, 2017 at 11:52 amI hope you can get your hands on some one day! 🙂
Emily says
February 15, 2017 at 12:01 pmPassion fruit is one of my favorite flavors ever but I have to admit I’ve never tried it with chocolate before- sounds and looks amazing!
valentina says
February 15, 2017 at 4:22 pmThanks, Emily! I love the two together. 🙂
Beth says
February 15, 2017 at 12:06 pmWhat a fantastic idea! So very original! I love it!
valentina says
February 15, 2017 at 4:22 pmThank you! 🙂
Brandi Crawford says
February 15, 2017 at 12:14 pmWhat an awesome combination! I may have to try this. Beautiful photos.
valentina says
February 15, 2017 at 4:22 pmThanks so much, Brandi!
Pretty says
February 15, 2017 at 12:39 pmChocolate and passion fruit, winning combination for me. Will have to try this recipe!
valentina says
February 15, 2017 at 4:22 pmThanks! 🙂 Hope you enjoy!
Kelsey says
February 20, 2017 at 9:02 amThe passionfruit curd was delicious, but unfortunately the ganache didn’t set for me at all. The whole thing just turned out to be (yummy) mush. Any tips for getting the ganache a little thicker? I thought I followed everything precisely, but it was my first time making ganache so maybe I messed something up along the way.
valentina says
February 21, 2017 at 8:21 pmHi Kelsey. First of all, I’m sorry it didn’t turn out exactly right, and thank you for sharing your experience. Let’s see . . . my first guess is that it needed more time to set up in the refrigerator. Normally with a thin layer, an hour should be enough, but try doubling that next time. These measurements should work, but it will always be a bit thicker if you add more chocolate — you can try that also. I am glad it still tasted good! LMK if you try it again and how it goes. 🙂
sippitysup says
February 20, 2017 at 5:19 pmThis is a wonderful addition to your impressive collection od passionfruit recipes. I sense (dare I say?) a passion. GREG
valentina says
February 21, 2017 at 8:07 pmLove your comment! I am indeed quite passionate about passion fruit! 😉 XOXO
Cathy | She Paused 4 Thought says
February 21, 2017 at 7:05 pmI love passion fruit and want to make the curd. Sounds delightful! I need to visit all of your other passion fruit recipes. 🙂
valentina says
February 21, 2017 at 8:06 pmThanks so much, Cathy! I’m loving passion fruit — the mousse is my favorite!
Heather says
October 24, 2017 at 9:50 amThis looks and sounds delicious! Can’t wait to test it out.
valentina says
October 24, 2017 at 10:44 pmGreat! I hope you love it!