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The Sweetest Thing

January 15th, 2009

In my book, Philippine mangoes are unrivaled. Fragrant, sweet and succulent, they are the closest thing to nirvana—when ripe, that is. I do not know if there’s any truth in this but according to this site, the Philippine mango was listed in the 1995 Guinness Book of World Records as the world’s sweetest mango. I could not agree more!

I found this cookie recipe that originally used fresh peaches. Being the mango devotee that I am and since fresh peaches are almost non-existent in the Philippines, I altered the recipe and made a few adjustments in the procedure. Boy, was I delighted with the scrumptious results! The buttery shortbread crust and crumb topping go so well with the moist, flavorful mangoes. Sorry peaches, but you are out!

The last time I made these (which was last New Year’s eve), I realized I left out the nuts and cinnamon in the crumb topping just as I slid the pan in the oven. I got the pan out again and just sprinkled the nuts-cinnamon combo on top. The bars baked just fine and still tasted heavenly.

Mango Crumb Bars – yield, 24 pieces

3/4 c granulated sugar
1 1/2 c all-purpose flour
1/4 c firmly packed brown sugar
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 c unsalted butter, chilled, cut into 24 pieces
2 ripe mangoes, pitted and thinly sliced
1/2 tbsp ground cinnamon
1/2 c chopped walnuts (or other nuts you prefer)

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
2. Line a 9-inch square baking pan with foil, then coat with butter.
3. Mix flour, white and dark brown sugars, baking powder, and salt. Scatter the butter over the flour mixture and mix until crumbly.
4. Dump 2 1/2 cups into the bottom of the prepared pan and press it evenly over the bottom. Arrange mango slices over the base.
5. Transfer the remaining 1 1/2 cups of the sugar and flour mixture to a small bowl. Mix in the cinnamon and walnuts with a fork. Sprinkle the mixture evenly over the mangoes.
6. Bake for 30-35 minutes, until the top is golden brown and a tester inserted in the center comes out clean.
7. Cool completely in the pan on a wire rack, about 1 hour. Then refrigerate for at least one (1) hour. Cut into 24 bars.

Enjoy!

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Philippine Mango Factoids:

1. Mango ranks third as the most important fruit in the Philippines in terms of volume of production and area after banana and pineapple.
2. The Philippines is the sixth largest exporter of fresh mangoes after Mexico, India, Brazil, Netherlands and Peru.
3. Pangasinan produces more mangoes than any other Philippine provinces but most mango exports come from the Guimaras Islands.

source: Dept. of Agriculture, Philippines

Entry Filed under: Articles,Cookies,Fruit,Recipes