Mango Ice Cream with Condensed Milk

Mango is undoubtedly the King of fruits, at least for me, and I bet several others would agree with me on this one! With a beautiful color, rich creamy pulp and unbeatable taste, mangoes hold a special place in every recipe. Though they are great to just consume by themselves, they do add a special touch to the food they are paired with, especially desserts. So here's a household favorite - rich creamy Mango Ice Cream, made without using an ice cream maker! And I add a hint of Cardamom to the recipe, which is a taste I developed after trying it for my Peach Melba with Vanilla Cardamom Ice Cream recipe. The Condensed milk is indeed the second star ingredient which lends the smooth texture to this ice cream.

Back when I was a young kid in India, helping my mom in the kitchen we did not have the convenience of fancy kitchen gadgets. It was hard to find a proper baking oven in most homes, as some of you might recollect, so having an Ice Cream Maker was definitely not treated as a valid expense!:) But that does not mean we did not get to enjoy creamy dense ice cream at home - it just meant you had to add in a few extra steps to develop that smooth velvety texture, and this Mango Ice Cream is proof that you don't always need gadgets to do things right!

Eggless Mango Ice Cream Recipe using Condensed Milk, and Flavored with Vanilla & Cardamom

Ingredients
Makes about 6 servings

1/2 litre full-fat milk
4-6 medium sized ripe mangoes
100 ml (small can) of sweetened condensed milk
additional sugar - add to taste
1/2 tsp vanilla essence
3/4 tsp ground cardamom powder

Method
Boil the milk till it becomes a little thick and creamy, about 12-15 mins, then remove from flame and add condensed milk to it.

Allow the milk to cool to room temperature. Meanwhile, de-seed the mangoes and blend the pulp in a mixer to make thick mango pulp. Do not add water or any other liquid.

Once the milk is cool, add the mango pulp to it and blend well. Check for taste and add more sugar, if needed. Now transfer the mixture to an ice cream pan; cover it with cling-wrap, then put an inverted baking dish over it, to prevent ice from forming on the top of the pan. Freeze the mixture for a couple hours.

Remove the mixture and transfer to a mixer again. Add the cardamom powder and vanilla essence, then blend well, using the Whisk/Froth setting on the Blender.

Again freeze it for an hour, then repeat the blending process again, one more time. This may sound strenuous, but it is what you need to do when you are not using the convenience of an Ice Cream maker! But don't worry, its totally worth it - the freezing/churning process will ensure that your ice cream becomes nice and creamy, and sets well to give you same texture as an ice-cream maker recipe.

Now put the ice cream pan in the freezer, again, covered with cling-wrap and freeze for another 3-4 hours, or until ready to serve.

When you want to serve it, remove the pan from the freezer and let it thaw for 5 minutes. Then take an ice cream scooper and dish out as many scoops as you like in a bowl. Garnish with some fresh fruit and mint leaves, more mango pieces if you like, and serve immediately. You can also use pistachios or other fresh fruit like berries as a topping.

I like my Mango Ice Cream plain, but adding a few raspberries makes the presentation look much better:)

Related Recipes
Eggless Anjir (Fig) Ice Cream
Vanilla Panna Cotta with Balsamic Strawberries
Easy Mango & Mascarpone Mousse

Peach Melba & Vanilla-Cardamom Ice Cream

Just give me a cup of soothing vanilla ice cream topped with fresh fruits and raspberry sauce once a day in summer and I promise to become your slave for the season! Or perhaps you'd like to share some of my delicious Peach Melba, a classic summer dessert that's easy to assemble and worthy to be served at a royal wedding. I have always been a fan of ice creams, and though I love tropical flavors more, there's a charm about vanilla ice cream that is hard to replicate, especially if you decide to serve it with some fruits or toppings. Peach Melba is one such brilliant French dessert that combines 2 best fruits of the summer season, peaches and raspberries, alongwith my vanilla cardamom ice-cream; it looks beautiful, tastes fantastic, and will totally earn you brownie-points at a summer party! Luscious, decadent, yet healthy, easy and flavorful at the same time, you can't ever refuse this classic summer dessert!

Though summer is dominated by berries, peaches and plums come pretty close at the second spot! Luckily for me, I love them both, so when my cousin gave me a batch of peaches and plums, picked fresh from her garden, I was thrilled, as it meant more desserts and tasty treats. I prefer nectarines for their juicy texture, but peaches work great when they are poached or grilled. So while I still have a few saved up for our 4th July bbq event, using them to make this Peach Melba was indeed a wonderful decision! Off this goes to Mike who's collecting Frozen Treats! And it also goes to Andrea's Grow your Own event, to celebrate the home-grown peaches!

Ingredients

Cardamom Ice Cream
2 cups milk
1 cup sugar
2 cups cool-whip (or heavy whipping cream)
2 tsp vanilla essence
2 tsp cardamom powder

For the Peaches
1 cup water
1 cup sugar
1 tbsp lemon juice
3 peaches
1/2 tsp vanilla essence

Raspberry Sauce
2 cups raspberries
1/4 cup confectioners' sugar
1 rbsp lemon juice
toasted almonds or fresh raspberries - for garnish

Method

Vanilla-Cardamom Ice Cream
Combine all the ingredients and stir briskly for about two minutes until sugar is dissolved. Then pour into a 1-gallon ice cream freezer can and freeze according to manufacturer's directions. If you don't have an ice-cream-maker, cover the mixture and freeze it for 4 hours; then remove and churn again on "whip" setting in a blender to make it smooth and creamy. Again freeze it for 4 more hours, then repeat the churning process. Finally, set it in the freezer for 8-10 hours till it is entirely set and frozen. This is a time-consuming procedure, but works well to get the machine-like smooth & creamy texture!

Poaching the Peaches
Cut the peaches into 4 quarters per peach. Put the water, sugar, lemon juice, and vanilla essence into a wide saucepan and heat gently to dissolve the sugar. Bring the pan to the boil and let it bubble away for about 5 minutes, then turn the heat down to a fast simmer.

Cut the peaches in half, and if the stones come out easily then remove them, if not then you can get them out later. Poach the peach halves in the sugar syrup for about 2 to 3 minutes on each side depending till they become soft, but not mushy. They should still hold their shape and weight. Remove them and keep for later. When sufficiently cool, peel off the skin.

Raspberry Sauce/Coulis
To make the raspberry sauce, blend the raspberries, confectioners' sugar, and lemon juice in a blender or a food processor to form a smooth thick sauce. Sieve to remove the pits and pour the puree into a jug. If you use frozen berries, make sure you thaw them well, then soak them in water for 10-15 mins before making the puree.

Assembling the Peach Melba
To assemble the dessert, take a wide dessert bowl or a glass. Place 2 peach slices on one side, and add 1-2 scoops of ice cream. Spoon the raspberry sauce over each. You can garnish with some toasted almonds or a sprig of mint if you like. I used some more fresh raspberries just to make it more colorful!

Enjoy your delicious Peach Melba with Vanilla-Cardomom Ice Cream and you'll be able to beat the summer heat!!

Related Recipes:
Panna-Cotta with Balsamic Strawberries
Mango-Mascarpone Mousse(Mango Kulfi)
Raspberry Swiss Roll Cake
Mixed-Berry & White Chocolate Pudding

Eggless Anjeer (Fig) Ice Cream

Anjeer or Fig Ice Cream has been my childhood favorite and recently, when I relished some home-made anjeer ice cream at a friend's place, I knew I had to try making this at home. She was gracious to share her recipe with me, and it turns out that it is not at all difficult to make this rich and creamy dessert at home! If fresh figs are not available, don't worry; dry figs work fine as well!! So here's a recipe for Anjeer(Fig)Ice Cream that will have you licking the bowl and asking for more!!

Ingredients
2 cups fresh figs (10-12 pieces) the dried figs can be used if you don't find the fresh ones
1 cup whole milk
3 cups heavy whipping cream
4 tbsp honey
1/4 cup sugar (or adjust to taste)
2 eggs (optional - you can use 2 tbsp cornflour and 3 tbsp condensed milk instead of eggs)
2 tbsp sherry (optional)
1 tbsp vanilla essence
chopped nuts - for garnish

Method
Peel the fresh figs and cut them into halves. If you are using dried figs, soak them in water for at least 2-3 hours to allow them to plump up. Now take a saucepan, add the figs and sugar to it and saute the figs for some time till they become swollen and soft. Mash with a spoon or spatula to form small pieces.

Now warm the whole milk a little (DO NOT BOIL, only warm) and set aside. Allow it to cool to room temperature. Beat the eggs, then add in the warm milk and whisk again. Finally add the whipping cream, honey, vanilla essence, sherry and the fig pieces. If you are making the eggless recipe, beat the condensed milk, add in the warm whole milk, cornflour and sugar and add the remaining ingredients as above. Set in a bowl and freeze it for a little more than an hour.

Remove from freezer, then beat it again using an electric beater or a spatula. Whisk until it becomes smooth and creamy, and no ice crust is formed. Now set it to freeze again immediately and leave so for 6-8 hours, or until the ice cream is set. You can also cover the container with a cloth to prevent forming ice crystals on the top of the ice cream.

Remove 2 mins before ready to serve, scoop out the ice cream into individual bowls, garnish with chopped nuts and serve with fresh figs!! This goes well with vanilla cakes too.

Tip: Honey and sherry add a unique flavour to the ice cream, so try not to omit them unless you can't find the ingredients. Also, warming the milk and allowing it to cool to room temperature helps reducing ice crust and makes the ice cream creamier, so don't skip that step!

This eggless anjeer (fig) ice cream is a delight to see and eat! This basic ice cream recipe can be followed to make your own variations by choosing different fruits and nut combinations

Similar Recipes:
Thai Fried Ice Cream
Banana Bread and Cream Cheese Dessert
Peach Melba with Cardamom Ice Cream

Fried Ice Cream

Ice Creams have always been man's best friend! I can't imagine a world without this beautiful dessert...Everything started with a simple Vanilla Ice cream, and as the years went by, this little beauty transformed into different flavors and colors, spreading its charm upon family gatherings, peaceful evenings or large extravagant parties!! One such variation that I came across was "Fried Ice Cream". I tried it for the first time in an asian restaurant. I was baffled by the name and the concept, and just out of curiosity, we ordered this dessert. But we were very pleasantly surprised with what we saw - simple vanilla ice cream ball deep fried into a golden brown color, and the first bite itself was like a trip to heaven!! Hot and crispy on the outside, and soft and gooey on the inside, indulge into this creative dessert variety that is sure to win your hearts!!

This recipe is adapted from Emeril's recipe on his Food Network show. A perfect way to use plain leftover ice cream, huh?!

Ingredients
1 quart vanilla or coconut ice cream - 3-4 scoops
1 cup crushed frosted cornflakes (Kellogs or other)
1 cup sweetened coconut flakes (if you like nuts, use walnuts or choco-chip cookies)
2 large eggs
2 tbsp sugar
Vegetable oil, for frying
Hot chocolate sauce or strawberry sauce
Whipped cream (optional)

Method
With an ice cream scoop, form 4 large balls of ice cream. Place on a dish and freeze for at least 2 hours. I tried going safe and actually froze it for 5 hours:)

Grind the cornflakes first so they are converted into a fine powder. Do the same with any other ingredients you are using, like walnuts or cookies.In a bowl, combine the cornflake crumbs with the coconut and walnuts (or cookies). Spread the mixture in a shallow dish. Now dip the ice cream balls in the crumb mixture, roll around so each ball is evenly coated with the mixture and freeze again for 30 minutes.

In a bowl, beat the eggs and sugar. Dip the coated ice cream balls into the eggs, then gently roll in the crumb mixture again, coating completely. In this case, the more you coat, the better it will be. No part of ice cream should be left uncoated!:)Freeze for another 1-2 hours, or until you are ready to serve.

Heat the oil in a large pot and wait till it is really hot (around 375 degrees). One at a time, lower the balls into the oil and fry until golden brown, about 10-15 seconds only. Do not fry more else the balls will crumble and the ice cream will melt!! Just long enough that the cornflake covering gets cooked.

Remove from the oil, drain on a piece of paper and place immediately in a dessert bowl. Drizzle with chocolate sauce and whipped cream and dazzle your guests with your Fried Coconut Ice Cream!! Remember, you should deep fry the balls immediately before serving only. Do not fry and keep!

Tip: If you want to make this eggless, try using maida (refined flour) with a little water and use this batter instead of egg yolks for fried ice cream. You can use any ice cream flavor that you like, but vanilla, coconut, butter pecan or chocolate would be the best suggestions. Also, try not skipping the coconut shavings in the mixture as this adds a nice crispy flavor to the dessert.

Similar Recipes:
Fried Banana with Ice Cream
Delicious Anjeer(Fig) Ice cream