Go Mango!

Ann's on the go again this Saturday… Any time now Alphonso mangoes will start appearing on fruit and veg stalls. They are far and away the most delicious mangoes I have ever tasted, juicy, sweet, fragrant – and bear no comparison whatsoever with the tasteless stringy mangoes stocked by most supermarkets. I think the Kent variety is especially one to avoid. Each year there are dire predictions that bad weather in India has delayed the Alphonso mango harvest and this year is no exception. But any time now ...Buy them in boxes – you will easily manage to eat 6 mangoes in a week, and it’s much more economical than buying the odd one. These mangoes are named after Alfonso de Alberquerque, 16th Century Portuguese nobleman and admiral who was the second governor of  Portuguese India. He apparently took them with him on trips around Goa. The Alphonso has only a short season, so get ready to make the most of it. And in the unlikely event that you get tired of eating them fresh, they make a delicious ice cream, mixed with condensed milk.  Take the flesh off 5 mangoes, add the juice of a lime, 5 tbsp evaporated milk, 7 fl. oz of condensed milk, and puree the lot on a food processor, or by hand. Freeze. Eat. For more foodie titbits join Ann's food walk this Saturday, April 14. Pie Crust to Upper Crust starts at Embankment tube at 10.45 am.