Have you ever wondered if buying and cooking with whats in season is really all us food writers make it out to be, is the quality really that much better? All I will say is Mangoes. Buy a mango at the wrong time of the year and you might get okay flavour but without a doubt the texture will be unbelievably hit or miss, coarse or rough, fibrous or crunch. We can all agree that a bad mango is a terribly sad thing. But buy a mango in season is a truly special thing, sweet and fragrant and beautifully soft. 

When I first looked at my house I was intrigued by the mango shop I spotted on the way to viewing, it wasn’t open but I was excited for the idea. When mangoes were in season and the shop finally opened I started buying box after box of incredible Indian and Pakistani mangoes, Alphonso and Kesar being my two favourite varieties, and it was all I could do not to eat the whole box right there and then. Instead, I have been making desserts, ice creams, purees and all manner of applications to try and prolong the mango season. 

This recipe is a glorious homage to mango and a beautiful summer recipe. The ice cream base is fairly classic, rich with dairy and egg yolks, with just one addition, the perfumed fragrance of cardamom which pairs so naturally with mango. When you make any fruit swirl ice cream you have one problem, water. Too much water in the ripple and you end up with a hard icy swirl that wont scoop like the ice cream. To prevent this you can cook the fruit puree with sugar to reduce the water level and make a syrup with a strong enough concentration of sugar that it will stay scoopable after freezing. With mango I vary this method a little as adding too much doesn’t do, the already sweet, fruit any flavours. Instead of traditional white sugar (sucrose) I use liquid glucose which tastes less sweet and as an invert sugar also helps keep the puree soft without becoming too sweet. 

Mango and Cardamom Ice Cream

Cardamom Ice Cream
250ml double cream
500ml whole milk
125g caster sugar
50g skimmed milk powder
5 large egg yolks
2 tsp vanilla bean paste
2 tsp ground cardamom 

Mango Swirl
300g diced mango
3 tbsp liquid glucose
Juice of 1 lime

To make the ice cream add the milk, cream, half the sugar the cardamom and vanilla to a large saucepan. Place the pan over medium heat and bring to a simmer. Turn off the heat and pop the lid on the pan, setting aside for an hour so the vanilla and cardamom can do their thing and infuse the dairy.

Once the hour is up place pan back on the heat and bring back to a simmer. Meanwhile place the egg yolks, the remaining sugar and milk powder into a large bowl and whisk together until the yolks are pale. Whilst continuing to whisk slowly pour in the milk mixture. This whisking helps prevent the eggs from scrambling and the slow pour helps gently increase the temperature of the eggs. Pour the custard back into the pan and over low heat, cook stirring constantly with a heatproof spatula, scraping the bottom of the pan, until the custard reaches 75-80C. Pour the custard into a bowl, through a fine mesh strainer to remove any lumps, and place the bowl into a large bowl filled with ice. Stir the custard for a few minutes until cooled to room temperature then press a sheet of clingfilm onto the surface of the custard, to prevent a skin for forming, and chill for at least four hours but preferably over night. This chilling does two things, it allows the flavours to enhance further plus cooling the custard down means when churning the ice cream is formed quicker which improves the texture.

For the mango swirl puree the mango in a blender and pour into a jug, passing through a fine mesh sieve. Add the liquid glucose and stir together, measuring how much puree you start out with. Pour into a small saucepan and over medium heat bring to a simmer and cook, stirring constantly until the volume has reduced by about 1/4. Add the lime juice and then refrigerate until needed. 

When the custard is thoroughly chilled churn using an ice cream machine, referring to the manufacturers instructions. Scrape some of the finished ice cream into a sealable container, drizzle over some of the puree and repeat until all of the ice cream and mango swirl have been used. Freeze for at least 4 hours or until firm. Homemade ice cream is best within a couple weeks.

Tip: If you always find your homemade ice cream a little too hard you can also add 2 tbsp vodka to the custard before churning which will help it stay scoopable