Kendall Farms | Feijoa

The History of Feijoa

The feijoa (feijoa sellowiana) was first collected in the wilds of southern Brazil by a German explorer Freidrich Sellow. It was a favourite fruit of the local Indians. In 1815 it was introduced to Europe by French botanist and horticulturist, Dr Edouard Andre, in 1890. It was named after Brazilian botanist, Joam da Silva Feijo. Feijoas were introduced into New Zealand in the 1920`s and today it is a major industry both domestically and export resulting in NZ being the major international supplier of the sought after fruit. New Zealand's ideal climate produced large fruit, and few pest enabled feijoa's to be grown organically (chemical sprays therefore are not applied to New Zealand fruit, making NZ feijoa's some of the most natural fruit available). The New Zealand season runs from late March to June as it does in Australia. In some countries it is called pineapple guava, although it is not from the same family as the guava.

The Kendall Farms Range

In Australian the conditions and the warmth has resulted in huge new industry opening up as planters create huge plantations to satisfy world demand. Because of the relatively short shelf life store keepers need to be careful to replace older feijoas regularly to ensure high quality. For this reason it is not often stocked in fruit shops making it quite expensive, rare and difficult to track down. The best answer?...grow your own feijoa fruit!

Cultivation Notes

To protect the fruit from sunburn and other adverse effects of high temperature, choose a plant site away from hot, reflected sun. The feijoa can tolerate partial shade and slight exposure to salt spray. They also make an excellent foundation planting, either singly or as an informal hedge. Feijoas will grow in a wide variety of soils. The best harvests, however, come from plants growing in well-drained soil with a pH between 5.5 and 7.0-which is about normal. Foundation plantings of feijoas in summer dry California have survived for several years without supplemental water. Lack of water, however, will cause the fruit to drop. For quality harvests, water deeply on a regular basis, especially during flowering and fruit periods, and mulch the soil around the plants to protect the shallow roots. Feijoas grow slowly and require only light fertilization but do benefit from TREET.

Health Benefits

Feijoas have about 35 calories per 3 1/2-ounce serving and are rich in antioxidants. The skin itself has has lots of vitamins and minerals, the pulp has a benefit to non insulin dependent diabetics, and the jelly has the same anti cancer benefits as tomatoes and blueberries.

Interesting Facts

It is a large egg shaped fruit (about the size of an egg) with a shiny green skin (similar to avocado) with a taste and aroma of strawberry, lemon and passionfruit. The tiny edible seeds are embedded in a jellylike centre. The spectacular purple, pink and white flowers have delicious petals that make superb ingredients in sweets and drinks.

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FEIJOA & GINGER MUFFINS

Ingredients

1-1/2 cups flour

1 cup wholemeal flour

2 tsp ground ginger

1 cup milk

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 cup raw sugar

1 cup milk

1/4 cup butter

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 beaten egg

1 cup chopped feijoas

Method

Preheat oven to 180 degrees C, prepare pans. Mix together the flour, ginger, baking powder & soda & sugar. Rub in the butter until it resembles fine breadcrumbs. Combine the liquid ingredients, add the dry mix and feijoas until just combined. Spoon into pans & bake for 15 mins. A small slice of crystallised ginger may be placed on top of each muffin before baking if desired.

Makes 12.

FEIJOA JAM

Ingredients

1 kg feijoas, peeled and sliced

1/2 C water

Juice and zest of 1 lemon

4 Cups white sugar, warmed

Method

Place the fruit in a jam pan or large, wide saucepan and add water, lemon juice and zest. Bring to a boil over medium heat and cook until fruit is soft, about 15 minutes. Add warmed sugar and stir until dissolved. Bring jam to rapid boil and boil without stirring until mixture reaches setting point, about 20 minutes. Pour jam into warmed, sterilized jars, cool and seal. Makes 6 to 7 cups

FEIJOA GRATIN

Ingredients

500gms scooped feijoas

3 eggs

1½ tbs ground almonds

A few drops of vanilla essence

200 mls cream

1/3 cup of castor sugar

Method

Preheat oven to 180°C. Arrange feijoas in a shallow gratin dish. Whisk eggs, ground almonds, vanilla, cream and 2 tablespoons castor sugar. Pour over feijoas and sprinkle with remaining sugar. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes until almost set. Then turn the oven to grill and quickly brown top. Allow to cool.