Mango Seekarane - a sweet fit for a king

I know the title is kind of cheesy, in case you didn't know where that came from, mango is called the king of fruits :-))

I am back to blogging about mangoes, this time the ripe fruit :-).  When the ripe mango season starts and the green ones kinda fades away after its due share of glory, in addition to eating varieties of ripe mangoes, this is what we did with them. Nammamma makes this delightful mango seekarane and it was my Anna's favorite with rice rotis (recipe coming up next). Don't get fooled by the short ingredients list on this one, it is mighty on its taste.  In addition to eating this with rice rotis, idlis or doses you can slurp spoonfuls of it just like that from a cup. The pleasant smell of cardamom and the ripe mango makes this dessert drool worthy.

My favorite kind of ripe mango was called Raspoori, as the name indicates it is full of juice and the flesh of the ripe fruit is pulpy without being stringy. Nammamma used this for the seekarane. The ripe fruit is sweet with a very faint hint of tartness so the taste is not bland and  it is easy to hand peel the outer skin.

I haven't seen Raspoori in a while now and make do with the ripe mangoes I get here. While you can cut and enjoy these mangoes, I am a little bit more choosy when it comes to using them in seekarane. I found some good fleshy variety of mangoes recently and preserved them for a week until they ripened completely and made seekarane today along with rice rotis for a Sunday brunch.

What do you need for Mango Seekarane? 
Makes 4-5 cups (depending on the size of your mangoes)
2 ripe mangoes
1/2 cup cold milk
2 Tblsp sugar (adjust based on sweetness from Mangoes)
1 Tsp freshly powdered cardamom

How do you make Mango Seekarane? 

• Wash and peel the outer skin of mangoes.
• Take the mangoes to a mixing bowl and squeeze the pulp into the bowl along with the juice. 

• Work the mangoes to get all the pulp out until you reach the seed inside, discard the seed.
• Add milk, sugar and cardamom powder, mix it well. 
• Cover the bowl with a cling wrap tightly and refrigerate for 45mins to an hour before serving. 
• Enjoy the cool seekarane with rotis or idlis or dosas. 

Notes: 

• You want to choose mangoes that are ripe and have lot of pulp, and do not mash the pulp too much with your hands. 
• If you cannot squeeze the pulp out with hands, cut the mangoes into pieces and pulse them in a blender taking care not to mash it up completely.
• Be generous on cardamom and use freshly powdered cardamom for maximum flavor.
• Try using coconut milk in place of plain milk for a variation.