This is getting positively frightening. I think I'm turning into Martha Stewart.
Not only am I in the running to win a recipe contest, but I spent the morning with the significant other making mango chutney and mango jam. If you don't believe me, take a look at the picture on this blog. That's me, peeling one of the zillion mangoes that went into both concoctions.
But first, the back story. Benard and I both worked Sunday afternoon from 12 to 5 at Fairchild Garden's Annual Mango Festival. He drives a six passenger shuttle around the Garden,from the Festival area to the parking lots. I volunteered this year to work in the "Tasting Room", mainly because it was indoors and the temperature outdoors on Sunday was in the 90's. I figured my job would be to stand around and be charming as guests, who paid $1 each for the opportunity, filed quietly by and tasted the six different types of cut up mango on the long tasting tables by delicately sticking a toothpick into one of the cut up cubes.
I should live so long. It was literally mayhem, with hundreds of hot, hungry visitors, spearing the fast disappearing fruit as I ran back and forth to the kitchen where a crew of "cutters" were peeling and chopping like mad men. In between refill runs, I gently suggested that people "please don't double dip with your toothpick. . .take a new one, we have plenty," to no avail. I also was kept busy explaining what country each of the mango varieties came from since each visitor was carrying a ballot to vote on their 1st, 2nd and 3rd choice. By 5 o'clock both Benard and I were so exhausted that we barely made it back home, carrying bagsful of gorgeous left over mangoes.
Monday we were still recuperating, but the mangoes were ripening regardless of our state of mind, so Tuesday morning was designated cooking time. I scoured Google for recipes, made a list of what we needed to buy, and we were good to go.
Wearing my "Cat" apron, a gift from my friend Faith that was actually meant to wear when I'm painting, I was in charge of peeling and cutting, a major part of anything mango. In all honesty, Benard had to show me how to peel one, but I got the hang of it very quickly and did an excellent job if I say so myself.
I won't bore you with the details, but I don't mind telling you that the chutney is delish and the jam is absolutely out of this world. The latter recipe on Google came from some guy in India which was very appropriate since I saved the Mallika mango from India for the jam. It is the best mango I ever tasted and was far and away the favorite in the balloting.
I guess I can add mango culture to my repetoire of oddities picked up at Fairchild. (Perhaps you remember that I am also the Queen of Carnivorous Plants at the Annual Ramble.) Ask me anything mango. . there's the Step from Pakistan, the Champagne from Mexico, the Potopouri from India and the Keitt from right down the street in Homestead.
If you're really nice to me, I might even give you one of my recipes.
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