Made From Scratch: The Best Mango & Passionfruit Curd

Have you ever wondered what you should do with leftover egg yolks (especially as a result of pavlova making this Australia Day long weekend?). An idea is to make a curd to put on your pavlova and you will have used up everything without any wastage. You can also make the most of the fantastic summer fruits in season. A little word of warning: this mango and passionfruit curd is so simple and so good you will probably want one jar to eat by itself and the other jar for your pavlova or pancakes.

"I think you should call me Atlas," says Nick reeling off a list of Greek god names. We were in a line for burgers one night and sometimes I think that my "brother" Nick says things out loud that most people just think about in their mind. While Nick fantasises about having another identity (the guy idolises Instagram playboy Dan Bilzerian - enough said) I have to admit that I think that my alter ego probably works at the Country Women's Association baking scones and fruit curds. Because I get immense joy from making these things from scratch although I have no backyard to speak of and don't pickle and jam out of necessity (more curiosity and greed).

You may or may not remember the other day I made an enormous Australia shaped pavlova that required eight egg whites. That meant that there were eight egg yolks leftover. I decided to make a curd with them. The key to this lies in the pavlova induced surfeit of egg yolks. Egg whites cook at a different temperature than yolks giving a curd stringy white slivers. We have so much fruit on hand because there is so much good fruit this summer so I raided the fruit bowl and took stock of what I had: 5 passionfruit, 1 mango, 1 rockmelon, 3 apples and 2 oranges and a bag of cherries. I knew the curd needed 1 cup of fruit but I wasn't sure how much 5 passionfruit would make. It turns out about 1/2 cup. So I made it, tasted it and it wasn't quite balanced enough. It was good but it wasn't eye rollingly good.

And then I added some pulverised mango. And you know what? It was one of the most delicious things ever. My eyes rolled in pleasure eating it straight from a spoon. Mango and passionfruit make incredible partners. If you have an abundance of yolks, I urge you to try this beauty!

So tell me Dear Reader, what would your alter ego be like? An actual person or a fantasy? What do you usually do with extra egg yolks?

Mango & Passionfruit Curd Made From Scratch

An Original Recipe by Lorraine Elliott/Not Quite Nigella

Preparation time: 5 minutes

Cooking time: 15 minutes

Makes approximately 3 cups of curd

• 5 egg yolks
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 125g/4ozs. butter, cut into cubes
• 1/2 cup passionfruit pulp (about 5 passionfruit)
• 1/2 cup mango pulp, processed (about 1 large mango)

Step 1 - Heat a heavy bottomed saucepan on medium heat (4 out of 10 where 10 is the hottest temperature). Place the yolks and sugar and stir until combined. Add the cubes of butter and allow to melt-do not overstir, just stir enough so that it doesn't stick to the bottom of the pan.

Step 2 - Add the passionfruit and mango pulp to the pan and allow to thicken stirring occasionally. It will take about 10-15 minutes to thicken and will thicken further upon cooling. Store in sterilised jars.