We confess that mangos are one tropical fruit we'll never be able to give up. No matter how tempting local pears, apples, and blackberries may be, the lure of the mango will always be right there with them. It's just such a delicious fruit — golden, sweet, and a little tart at the same time. The last time we had a bunch of them we stirred them into a simple panna cotta for a fresh, do-ahead, super-easy dessert.
The last time I made a panna cotta I went on and on about how easy this dessert is. Here's that recipe, which involves yogurt and blueberries. This one is no different in its ease, and this time around it is complemented by luscious chunks of mango. It's an easy, summery dessert, and so yummy. Gluten-free, too!
Mango Panna Cotta
serves 6 to 8
One 0.25-ounce package of powdered gelatin, about 3 teaspoons
1/4 cup cold water
2 cups cream
1/4 cup sugar
2 cups milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
Pinch salt
2 to 3 very ripe mangos
Sprinkle the powdered gelatin over the 1/4 cup of cold water in a medium bowl and set it aside to soften for about 5 minutes. In a small saucepan heat the cream and sugar to a light simmer then turn off the heat. Whisk to help the sugar dissolve completely in the liquid, then whisk in the gelatin mix, making sure to whisk out any lumps. Whisk in the milk, vanilla, and salt.
Peel and cut up the mango into small chunks. (See a video of Curtis Stone demonstrating how to cut a mango.)
Evenly divide about 2/3 of the mango chunks among 6 bowls or ramekins. Pour the panna cotta mixture over the mango. Put in the fridge to chill. When the panna cotta is getting firm (after about an hour) evenly distribute the rest of the mango on top of the panna cotta and dust lightly with nutmeg. Chill until completely firm and serve.
Related: Recipe: Rosewater Yogurt Panna Cotta with Blueberries
(Images: Faith Durand)
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I've always said that mango is the one fruit that I would actually sometimes choose over a "real" (i.e., sugar/butter/cream/flour-based) dessert. But even better when I don't have to choose. :)
Fabulous, I just bought a case of mangos!! Can't wait for them to ripen so I can try this :)
What's funny is just the day before I had the idea of making panna cotta with the ripe mango I had. I searched for recipes and found a wide ranging variation on proportions.
I ended up using about 1 3/4 C of heavy cream, about 1/4 C of whole milk, 1/4C of sugar and the pulp of one mango. I took about 1/4 of the cream and put it in a blender with the mango to create a thick smoothie of sorts. Meanwhile, I heated the rest of the cream, milk, and sugar in a saucepan to dissolve the sugar. I also soaked 2 gold gelatin sheets in cold water.
Then I passed the mango smoothie through a strainer and pressed it through to remove the fibers. I stirred it into the cream and sugar solution along with the gelatin. Guess what? It was not uniform. So I put it in the blender again and got it homogeneous. Then I poured it into small glass ramekins and put it in the fridge to set.
The next day - disaster. First the flavor was fine but the texture was all off. I did not use enough gelatin so it was barely set. And for some reason, in the fridge, the color turned from a light orange/yellow to this slightly off moss color. Weird huh?
I'd like to see a recipe for mango panna cotta where the panna cotta was actually flavored by the mango.