Recipes: Make room for mango merriment!

And mangoes are back in season right now!

The South African harvesting season is from December to the end of April, so you’ll be able to find your favourite mangoes on the supermarket shelves right through the summer months.

Mangoes are everyone’s favourite exotic summer fruit, with over 1 000 varieties known worldwide.

Such is the love for its unique flavour that mangoes made their way seamlessly with the ancient explorers from Asia to the Middle East, Africa and the Americas. South Africa grows 15 mango varieties, mostly in the sub-tropical regions of Limpopo, Mpumalanga and KwaZulu-Natal.

And as a nation, we love them! Who can drive past a farm stall, hawker or street seller with a gorgeous mound of sunset orange mangoes?

Which, as a bonus, are high in vitamins A, C, biotin and the mineral potassium.

Tommy Atkins are the early season mangoes you just can’t wait to get your hands on.

That first juicy bite marks the real start of summer! These fruits are medium to large size in size with thickish orange-red skins.

The smaller Zill mangoes also make an early entrance. These are beautifully sweet with skins an artist’s palette of greenish-yellow and red. Peach and sabre come next – both fibrous (good for purées) and yellow with blushing red cheeks.

Then mid-season, from about February onwards, you’ll find Sensation – small and oval, firm and stringless, with a delightful green and purple colouring – and the famous yellow and red coloured Heidi mangoes, which are medium to large, heart-shaped fruit.

But don’t get hung up on the colour of a mango’s skin when it comes to gauging ripeness as there are a couple of varieties that appear mid-season, namely Kent and Keitt, that remain green or greenish-yellow when ripe and ready to eat!

What to do with your mango haul this year? Well, eating a cooling mango from the skin with its heady juice dripping down your arms is a must!

And we can’t think of a meal that mangoes don’t improve.

Blitz the fruit and freeze the pulp for the most sensational sorbet. Celebrate the festive season with a decadent vanilla cake dripping in mango curd or better yet, cool mango ice cream.

Even the cheese course cries out for mango, it may sound odd, but a warmed Christmas mince pie is pure bliss with slices of blue cheese and fresh mango.

Chicken and lamb love a mango braai basting and forgo the usual salad with charred cauliflower, roasted chickpea and mango salad – paradise in a bowl.

A spicy, herby mango salsa can’t be beaten for braais, burgers, wraps and chip dip.

For mango facts and recipes, visit mango.co.za, like them on Facebook SAMangoes and follow their Instagram page MangoesSA

Grilled cauliflower steaks, crispy chickpeas and mango salad
Serves 4
Preparation time: 40 minutes

Ingredients
· 1 cauliflower head, thickly sliced
· ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
· Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
· 1 tin chickpeas, drained and rinsed
· 1 mango, sliced
· 1 red chilli, seeded and sliced
· 60g shelled almonds, toasted
· ½ cup fresh mint leaves
· 1 lemon, quartered to serve

For the dressing
· ½ cup thick Greek-style yoghurt
· 1 garlic clove, crushed
· ½ red onion, minced
· 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped

Method:
1. Preheat the oven to 180°C and line a baking tray with baking paper.
2. Brush the cauliflower slices with a little olive oil and season well. Place on the prepared baking tray and bake until charred and cooked. Set aside to cool.
3. In the meantime, place the chickpeas on another lined baking tray and drizzle with a little olive oil and season well. Roast until crispy. Remove and set aside.
4. To make the dressing, mix all the ingredients well together.
5. To assemble the salad, place the cauliflower into a serving dish and top it with the rest of the salad ingredients. Drizzle with the dressing and serve.

Vanilla cake with mango curd
Makes 1 cake
Preparation time: 50 minutes

Ingredients

For the mango curd
· 1 large fresh mango, cubed
· ½ cup white sugar
· Juice of 1 lemon
· 3 large eggs
· 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, cubed

For the cake
· 250g unsalted butter, at room temperature
· 1 tablespoon vanilla essence
· 1 cup castor sugar
· 4 large eggs
· 3 cups self-raising flour
· ¾ cup milk

Method:
1. For the curd, place the mango in a food processor and process until smooth. Add the sugar and lemon juice and continue to process until completely smooth.
2. Whisk the puree and the eggs together and pour into a pot. Cook over medium heat, stirring continuously for a few minutes. Next, add the butter and cook until the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon. Pour the curd through a fine sieve into a mixing bowl and cover with plastic wrap pressing the plastic onto the curd to prevent a skin from forming. Cool the curd before refrigerating for about 2 hours or overnight.
3. In the meantime, prepare the cake, beat the butter with the vanilla until light and creamy, add the sugar and beat until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add half of the flour and half of the milk and stir to combine. Add the remaining flour and milk and beat lightly until the mixture is smooth. Divide between 2 x 17cm cake tins and bake until cooked for about 30 – 40 minutes. Remove and set aside to cool before inverting the cakes onto a cooling rack to cool completely before applying the curd.
4. To assemble the cake, spread with a little curd between the layers and sandwich together. Pour the remaining curd over the cake and decorate as desired.