Mo’ fabulous mango tarts

It’s Angie’s Fiesta Friday, and Saturday is the Mardi Gras parade – a time of unicorns and sequins and more colour than you can poke a rainbow at. A bank here has decked out some ATMs to become GAYTMs, including this Village People wannabe:

(Speaking of ATMs, just read about a bitcoin ATM in Singapore. Them crazy kids in Singapore.)

I was on my way to Angie’s fiesta with a platter of mango tartlets. Wanting to be mo’ fabulous, the mango tartlets tried this:

I managed to convince them that, while they looked great, giving party goers a hairy mouthful is not the way to foodie stardom.

So they went back to being plain ol’ mango tarts. And I’m wearing the mo instead (kinda itchy…want to sneeze…how do guys do this??)

So mo’ve over people (geddit??), the fabulous tartlets are in town.

As you’ve probably guessed, this is a spin-off of the savoury plum tarts I posted about earlier this week. After I took the plum tart photos, I saw a few mangoes that were filling the room with their heady tropical scent. Ever since I had a mango-misu (tiramisu, but with mangoes) I’ve always had a soft spot for the mango-mascarpone combination.

So I got to work. A crumble of macadamia nuts completed the simple set up, with the crunchy, buttery macadamias perfectly setting off the pure tropical decadence of a perfectly ripened mango.

Savoury plum tart and mango tart made a blissful, though possibly not-for-everyday, lunch.

Later that evening, I made another version of the mango tart, this time with mango slices mixed with a dash of fiery hot sauce and lime juice. Wowza. It was gone so quickly, I didn’t even think to take a photo.

I’m off to mingle with the Fiesta-festivallers. Last week’s rumours about Johnny and a chamois loincloth turned out to be just that, a rumour. Maybe he will surprise us this week. Besides I just saw Sadia’s chocolate lava cake across the room….

Simplest Mango Tart

(“so simple it’s barely a recipe” SG original)

Ingredients

One sheet of puff pastry (all-butter puff pastry if you can get it)
1 mango
4-5 tbsp mascarpone cheese
small handful macadamia nuts (about 8)

Optional: dash of hot sauce, half a lime, sliced into wedges

Method

1. For puff pastry: Preheat oven to 160C / 320F. Cut frozen puff pastry sheet into shape. I’ve done this by cutting the sheet into four pieces (one for each dinner guest – great for entrees) or cutting shapes using cookie cutters – perfect for canapes.

2. For the mangoes: Slice off the mango cheeks, and peel off the skin (I did this by slicing off the skin with a sharp knife. You can peel off the skin by hand, but results may be less neat, if presentation is important). Slice the mango cheeks into thin slices. Optional: mix – gently – with a dash of hot sauce and a squeeze of lime.

3. For the macadamias: coarsely grind the macadamias in a food processor, or pound in a mortar and pestle until you get crumbly bits.

4. To assemble: spread the mascarpone cheese in a thin thickish layer over the tart shell. Place a layer of mango slices over the mascarpone. Sprinkle over ground or crushed macadamia nuts. Serve at once for maximum freshness.

Tagged: fabulous tartlets, Fiesta Friday, GAYTMs, macadamia nuts, mango, mango tarts, mascarpone, mo, Novice Gardener, puff pastry