Passion Fruit Tart with White Chocolate, Grapefruit & Fresh Basil
You know the feeling you get during those first few warm spring days? Your warm weather clothes start emerging from the closet, the hum of bees begins, fresh pollen and petals flow in the air from that burst of blooms from the cherry blossoms. Everything is alive and often comes with familiar smells, sounds and cravings for things that are fresh, bright, and just a little indulgent.
Yesterday, I took Oliver out for a walk just as golden hour was settling in. The sun was dipping low, slipping slowly behind the tree line of the farthest rolling hills beyond our house. The orange light just lingers and clings to everything. Every blade of grass in the meadow, every dandelion puff, and every wildflower simply glowing as you look through their translucent leaves.
Oliver was a few steps ahead of me, as always… confident, curious, completely in his element, and totally ignoring me. But with each step he took, tiny butterflies and insects lifted softly from the grass around him. Their wings caught the sunlight in flashes of warm gold, floating lazily in the air in slow motion. It was quiet and peaceful, and almost felt fake.
Moments like that are so easy to miss as we often rush past or reach for a phone instead of just… being there.
I didn’t have a camera with me, and honestly, I’m glad. Some things are better kept exactly as they are: fleeting, unrecorded, fully felt.
Lately, I’ve been thinking more about that balance. Between the pull of working to build something meaningful and wanting to simply exist inside of it. The truth is, building a business (or in my case, rebuilding) today often feels inseparable from showing up online. Sharing, posting, documenting is all simply part of the rhythm now. Which I totally understand; I believe in it, even.
At the same time… I feel a desire to hold parts of my life just for myself.
Beau Ciolino is one half of brand and blog, Probably This. He’s a writer, photographer, and storyteller known for capturing the beauty of everyday life and creating a home with an effortless, nostalgic lens.
Beau from Probably This, sent out a newsletter recently titled “A Life Less Documented,” and it resonated with me and many others. He talks about the routine of sharing things online, how natural it once felt, and how the urge to share as frequently has somewhat faded. Not out of sadness or struggle, but simply because he’s living.
I’ve felt it too, that strange and almost invisible pressure to prove that life is happening by capturing it.
Between garden projects, home renovations, dinners with friends, spontaneous travel through the kind of European landscapes that still catch me off guard… there are days where I don’t want or feel the need to frame the moment. I just want to enjoy it.
I realize this doesn’t work in my favor when talking things like '“post consistency” or “algorithms” or “social media growth”; but when I do share, maybe people can still sense something more imporant... a life that feels full even when no one is watching.
If anything, stepping back a little has made everything feel richer and more intentional while I reevaluate what The Bauernhaus will become, moving forward.
Over the past year, I’ve deleted dozens of posts that felt forced or phony, or were posted just for the sake of posting - under the guise of "building a brand”. Moving to Europe and starting over has offered a fresh start, more than I’d expected.
So where do I often find myself during these times of reflection? In the kitchen, duh.
Today we’re making something tart (pun intended) and subtly sweet.
If you know me, you know I have a weakness for custards. Pots de crème, crème brûlée, lemon curd, silky puddings, I don’t discriminate. There’s something about the smooth and delicate texture that feels both comforting and a little luxurious.
For anyone unfamiliar, passion fruit is a small, round tropical fruit with a tough, purplish shell that hides a golden, jelly-like pulp filled with edible seeds. It’s native to South America, particularly in places like Brazil, Paraguay, and Argentina. It’s, by far, my favourite fruit of all time.
Growing up, fresh passion fruit was nearly impossible to find in the U.S., which is ironic, considering where they come from. Sometimes you’d find it… half rotted, overpriced, and never quite worth it. I’d watch episodes of The Great British Bake Off, seeing contestants casually scoop out these fruits nearly every week… all the way in the UK… and I’d sit there, equal parts inspired and mildly offended.
Now, living here in Germany, they’re everywhere. So I’m making up for lost time.
Passion Fruit Custard Tart
For the Filling
Ingredients
Pulp of 2 passion fruits **
60 ml passion fruit juice (1/4 cup) **
2 eggs
80 g sugar (1/3 cup)
60 g butter (1/4 cup)
Pinch of salt
**Note: Straining passionfruit is optional as the seeds are completely edible. If you can’t find passion fruit juice, just substitute two additional passion fruits
Directions
In a bowl, whisk eggs, sugar and salt until combined
Stir in passion fruit pulp and juice
Cook in a sauce pan on very low heat (or set your bowl over a pot of simmering water)
Stir consistently until it thickens and coats the back of a spoon
Remove from heat
Stir in butter until smooth and glossy
Pour filling into cooled crust
Smooth it out the top and chill at for at least 2 hours until set for the cleanest cuts
Add toppings of choice, if desired
For the Crust
Ingredients
120 g soft butter (1/2 cup)
50 g sugar (1/4 cup)
180 g flour (1 1/2 cups)
Pinch of salt
Directions
Cream butter and sugar until smooth
Add flour and salt
Mix until it forms a soft, slightly crumbly dough
Press the dough directly into your tart pan
Use your fingers or the back of a spoon to even it out
Keep it slightly thinner on the base, a bit thicker on the edges
Chill for 20 minutes
Bake at 170–175°C for 20 minutes or until lightly golden at the edges
Let cool