Mango Mania

We recently took a trip to the British Virgin Islands where we were expecting an embarrassment of mangoes. We were surprised that it was a pretty arid climate and it took the whole week for our $4 a piece mangoes to ripen and we hardly saw any ripe fruit anywhere - maybe it was the wrong time of year?

Anyway, once we returned it was clearly "mango season" in Michigan (not that they are grown here.. because they so aren't...) and all the stores had piles of mangoes for 0.75 cents or $1.00 and I may have gone overboard. I definitely bought 4 one day, maybe another half dozen the next, and then I just flat out bought a case of mangoes a day or two later.

Needless to say, I am now sick of mangoes. But - it was a fun experience and let me share with you everything we made and enjoyed with this spicy, sweet and slippery fruit.

Besides just eating mangoes plain as an evening sweet snack, the first thing I made was a mango lassi. That's a classic and I already posted a great recipe which features a secret ingredient I love to add in a lassi - cardamon. Check out the recipe here. Well I guess it is not secret and I definitely saw it on some other website, but cardamon really makes a great difference.

 

Next I thought I needed to make some kind of dessert - I decided on a mango berry crumble. This was quite tasty. I threw in a few raspberries that I had laying around which added a nice counterpart and rose color to the otherwise mushy sweet mango layer. I used better-for-bread flour for the topping so it was not exactly as I was expecting but still good and we ate it all. I just made a strawberry rhubarb pie and the topping to that was faaaaaaar better. I can't find the recipe but you aren't missing on anything anyway, the topping was just "OK."

Lastly and my very favorite mango recipe - I made two loaves of Dorie Greenspan's fresh mango bread. This used up my last 3 or 4 mangoes and I had a feeling I'd love it so I made two parallel batches at once. I even brought some into work and gave some bread away to our friends. I have to say this might be better than even the best zucchini bread or banana bread, it was awesome! I'd definitely make this again or even try different fruits in here. The bread mixture itself is very moist and I love the amount of spices and the crispy caramelized top that you get. Dorie's loaf pans must be much bigger than mine, I had some overflow but luckily she had recommended a pan underneath. I was happy to just eat what overflowed though, so it was a bonus. Next time I'd fill my pan up to 3/4 the way and pour the rest into cupcake pans. Or I almost like the crispy top the best so maybe I could spread it out and make one giant crispy top. Is that even possible? If so, that would be awesome. I'm DEFINITELY making this recipe again. I'm almost un-sick of mangoes just thinking of it... so probably sooner than later! I think this is a nice gift bread, if you want to bake something nice for new parents or a neighbor, it's a different spin on a quick bread but I can't imagine anyone not liking it. It's so much more flavorful and interesting and moist than zucchini bread.. which I love also. I will have to try more Dorie recipes!

Fresh Mango Bread

By Dorie Greenspan as seen on The Tummy Train blog, here. 

From Dorie Greenspan’s Baking: From My Home To Yours, page 45
Makes one 8 1/2 x 4 1/2-inch loaf



3 large eggs

3/4 cup flavorless oil, such as canola or safflower oil

2 1/2 cups (13.5 ounces) all-purpose flour

1 cup sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 packed cup light brown sugar

2 cups diced mango (from 1 large or 2 1/2 medium peeled and pitted mangoes)

3/4 cup moist, plump golden raisins

Grated zest of 1/2 a lime



1. Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Butter an 8 1/2 x 4 1/2-inch loaf pan, dust the inside with flour and tap out the excess, making sure every part of the pan is covered. Put the pan on an insulated baking sheet or on two regular baking sheets stacked one on top of the other. (This extra insulation will keep the bottom of the bread from over-baking).

2. Begin by dicing the mangoes. Set aside.

3. Whisk the eggs and oil together.

4. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, spices and salt. Rub the brown sugar between your palms into the bowl, breaking up any lumps, then stir it in.


5. Pour the wet ingredients over the dry, switch to a sturdy rubber spatula or wooden spoon and mix until blended—the batter will be very thick (really more like a dough than a batter) and not easily mixed, but persevere, it will soon come together.

6. Stir in the mango, raisins and zest. Scrape the batter into the pan and smooth the top with a rubber spatula.


7. Bake the bread for 1 1/2 hours, or until it is golden brown and a thin knife inserted into the center comes out clean. (If the bread looks as if it’s getting too brown as it bakes, cover it loosely with a foil tent). Transfer the pan to a rack and cool 5 minutes before running a knife around the sides of the pan and unmolding. Invert and cool to room temperature right side up on the rack.




Serving: As good as this bread is freshly baked, Dorie feels it is even better the next day.** One day spent wrapped in plastic seems to intensify the fruit and spice flavors. Of course, if you can’t wait, don’t. Just cut the loaf into thick slices and serve with tea, hot or iced, or coffee.



Storing: Wrapped in plastic, the cake will keep for about 4 days at room temperature.