Mangos!

Look at those beautiful mangos! Now, what to do with them? Peel and pit, dice and juice, cool and freeze, and turn them into deliciousness! Thank you, dear friend.

Mango Lemonade

Make a simple syrup by bringing one cup water and one cup sugar to a boil, then letting it cool to room temperature. Combine 2 cups mango puree, 1 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice, 1 cup water and 1 cup ice. (Using a blender makes this step easier and also crushes the ice.) Mix in the syrup as necessary to reach your desired sweetness. (Most people would want to use all of it; I found that half was enough.) Serve over additional ice cubes.

Fruit Salad - Along with mangos, we used some of the bananas from her tree in addition to fruit from the grocery store.

Fruit Smoothies - Just blend together milk and fruit to reach your desired consistency; add some yogurt if desired.

Mango Pie - I used my grandmother's Peach Pie recipe using mangos instead of peaches.

Mango Ice Cream

Combine 1 1/2 cups mango puree with 3/4 cup milk and 3/4 cup cream. Add a pinch of salt (and sugar if desired). Chill, then process in ice cream maker. 

Note: This particular combination is an experiment. I didn't add sugar because I wanted to see if it would be sweet enough without it. We'll see. I also cut down on the cream to milk ratio, hoping to make it a "bit" more healthy. I felt the original recipe left too much "cream" mouth feel. (Is there a better word to describe that feeling?) While looking for a mango ice cream recipe, I came across something about emulsifiers and stabilizers. Maybe I should research that more.

Crispy Mahi with Mango Relish - We had to try something that wasn't filled with sugar! Although since mangos are naturally that way, this dish was still quite sweet. Dip mahi filets in an egg wash, then seasoned panko crumbs; bake for about 20 minutes at 425 degrees. Serve topped with a relish made of chopped mangos, cucumbers, red pepper, onion, and avocado, then drizzled with lime juice and honey, and seasoned with a bit of salt and cayenne pepper. Note that I also considered making this recipe which was "blackened" mahi (just sprinkle with jerk seasoning while pan frying) and a mango salsa (which basically substituted tomatoes for the cucumber in the first recipe).

We also brought home about 5 pounds of bananas from our friends' yard. Those we just added to the fruit salad and stuck in the freezer for smoothies in the future. The sapodilla also went into the fruit salad and a delicious smoothie (vanilla yogurt, mango puree, bananas and sapodilla with a sprinkle of blueberries).

The mini avocados, on the other hand, were delicious in the relish for the fish, and also added to a BLT.