Easy, Flavorful, Mango Ice Cream - No Ice-Cream Maker Necessary!

Few foods are as perfect for enjoying over the summer as ice cream – the more flavor packed and creamy, the better! This instructable will show you how to prepare an amazing, flavorful, ice cream using fruits of your choice, with the added convenience of not requiring an ice cream maker (Hooray!) Although we’ve used mangoes for this instructable, you can substitute with or add other fruits as well – for best results, the fruit used should have a strong, pleasant flavor, but not too much fiber (e.g. apples) or too high a water content (e.g. watermelon).

Lets begin!

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Step 1: Ingredients/Materials

A list of the ingredients and materials that I've experimented is included below - the good thing is that both are rather flexible; for example,if you don't have mangoes, you could easily use papayas or plums instead, whipping cream could be replaced with heavy cream, and so on - experimentation is also part of the fun :)

Ingredients (This recipe makes approx. 1.5 - 2 quarts)·

• ½ quart whipping cream (can also use heavy cream, although this changes the product slightly)

• · 1 tin condensed milk (typically the sweetened version – if not available, additional sugar can be added later

• 3-4 large mangoes, or 4-5 medium mangoes (other fruits can be substituted here – just remember to experiment reasonably, and use similar amounts if you’re unsure of how things might turn out)

• Spices (I used cinnamon, coconut essence, and vanilla – feel free to experiment here as well)

Materials

• Two large mixing bowls (>1 quart each)
• Strainer
• Knife
• Whisk/blender or food processor
• Measuring cup
• Small pot
• Large spoon
• Hotplate or stove
• Freezer (almost obviously :) )
• Plastic kitchen wrap

Step 2: Preparing (smooth) Mango Puree

Peel and dice or section the mangoes, removing as much flesh from the seed as possible. Depending on the mango, you can leave the outer skin on – I removed them for this batch. As noted earlier, the flavor of the fruits used (which can depend on the type of mango or other fruit, ripeness, and season) modifies the final outcome. I actually like this, as this the outcome is a truly “seasonal” ice cream.

Once peeled, use a blender or food processor to puree the mango, removing all lumps if possible. Depending on the fruits used, this puree may have significant amounts of fibres, so straining it is advised. Before proceeding, ensure the whipping cream is cold – place in the fridge or freezer if necessary.

If using other fruits,the process is essentially the same - some,such as papaya, may not require straining; experiment and see what works.

Step 3: Reducing the Mango Puree, for Stronger Flavor (and Reduced Water Content)

At this point, the puree can actually be used immediately;

however, the high water content of most fruits causes too many ice crystals to form in the resulting ice cream, which leads to a less smooth/creamy, harder freezing product. The excess water can be removed by heating the puree gently.

Pour the puree into a measuring cup – you should have about 2 cups or so. Place this into a small pot, and heat gently with stirring – again, try to break up any lumps that might begin forming. Once the volume has decreased by about half (the images show the change in volume between the mango flesh, puree, and reduced mango puree), turn off the heat and allow to cool – once cool, stir in the spices/flavourings (if used), mixing well.

Caution: heating too strongly may destroy the natural flavor in the puree; heat carefully - this step is entirely optional.

Step 4: Prepare Whipping/Heavy Cream; Bring Everything Together

Once you have the cooled puree, mix it with the entire tin of condensed milk in one of the large mixing bowls (if you didn’t do step 2, you can add any additional flavoring agents here) and place to one side.

Pour the chilled whipping cream from the first step into the other bowl, and whisk until it shows signs of becoming stiff. If (like myself) you don’t have a whisk or electric mixer, you can use a blender, especially to start the beating process, and complete it with a fork. Ensure to whisk well – this incorporates air into the mixture, keeping it from being too heavy, and adding to the smooth texture.

Remember to keep the whipping cream cool throughout this process, especially if it's warm where you are!

Once the whipping cream is ready, begin to combine it with the mango-condensed milk mixture above. Different sources advise various methods of doing this – either mixing some of the cream with the mango – milk mixture and then folding this into the remaining cream (see pictures), or adding the mixture to the entire portion of cream slowly and with stirring – each has its advantages, but either can work.

Ensure however to fold/stir the mixture carefully, removing all lumps! Lumps and unmixed ingredients can quickly spoil the outcome of an otherwise tasty batch :)

Step 5: Freeze, Serve, and Enjoy!

Once the mixture is thoroughly combined, smooth out the surface, and cover with a layer of plastic wrap (optional, but helps prevent small ice crystals from forming on the surface of the ice cream).

Freeze for ~6hours, or overnight. Once ready, serve and enjoy!

As mentioned in the introduction, many other combinations are possible – I’ve used mangoes, passionfruit, and coconut (cream and essence)….and several other options are possible as well.

Thanks for reading this instructable – have fun and enjoy your summer!

If you enjoyed this instructable, please consider voting for it in the “Beat the Heat” Challenge, by clicking the orange icon at upper right. Thank you!