Aam panna is the quintessential summer drink that every north Indian swears by. Especially in the plains where there is abundance of raw mangoes during hot summer months, often fallen off the trees during hot afternoon winds, the raw mangoes are either boiled or roasted and then liquidized with roasted cumin, hint of hing (asafotida), kala namak and loads of mint. Every home has a different recipe for amm panna and we make it fresh or make an aam panna concentrate sometimes to last a week.
I had not been making any ice creams or sorbets for many years, no particular reason but I guess we had lost interest in home made ice creams. May be more because I am not into ice creams so much, give me fruit yogurt any day and I am good. Arvind likes ice creams more but not too crazy about them.
We siblings used to make a lot of ice pops and lollies using fruit juices, mango pulp and what not but then it was different all those years ago. I used to make a few kulfis using mango pulp or sometimes custard apple in the last few years but that's all I did with frozen desserts.
Last year I made a few instant granitas and sorbets and we both loved them. Real fruit granitas and sorbets are fun to have. We conveniently call them granita when the ice is crushed coarse and a sorbet when it is fine and powdery in the blender. Yes I make the sorbets in blender jar (mixie as called in India).
You can call it a sorbet slush if you want to drink it at a slow pace, just like I do. Summer coolers are survival drinks right now with temperatures soaring around 45 C.
Recipe of aam panna sorbet...
For this aam panna sorbet just boil raw mangoes in minimal water and save the pulp. The water can be added to soups or daals or can be made into a sharbat if you wish. The pulp is freezed in a plastic container or ice cubes for convenience.
If you freeze the boiled raw mango pulp in a container, just unmold it on the chopping board and slice like you would slice bread. It is not too hard as it is not pure water frozen to ice which becomes too hard.
Now tip in these slices or mango pulp frozen cubes (if frozen in ice tray) in the blender along with a large handful of mint leaves, some kala namak (black salt), little sugar and blend at high speed, till the pulp gets powdery in the blender. You can add a few ice cubes too if your raw mangoes were too sour.You can also add roasted cumin powder or sprinkle it over the sorbet once done.
Spoon out the sorbet into serving glasses and enjoy.
Recipe of litchi and lime sorbet...
Yes I made a yummy litchi and lime sorbet as well. Not once but around 5-6 times this season. More because I had managed to de-seed a lot of litchi one day and froze them all in 3 boxes. It is very easy to slice the frozen block once you un-mold it on the chopping board.
And then it goes in the blender right away. I added lime juice and lime zest sometimes and lime juice and fresh tender lime leaves some other times. I liked it more with the fresh tender lime leaves but you can always make it using lime juice and lime zest if you don't get lime leaves.
I think I must have made this litchi sorbet 4 times last week and we would sip on this sorbet slush slowly while watering the garden in the evening.
It is just so good that I might do the messy business of peeling and de-seeding litchi soon once again. It becomes one convenient and refreshing evening snack in the heat wave we are suffering right now.
You see you don't need any ice cream maker for sorbets if you don't aspire perfect rounded scoops of sorbet. You can mange that too if you freeze the blended sorbet once again and blend quickly just before serving. But home made goodness is more than the looks and you would love these sorbets for the real fruit in it.
Litchi sorbet is made without any added sugar.
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