Ramadan Kareem : Iftar 2016 : Mango Soufflé with Caramelised Ginger and Caramel

Ramadan Kareem!

My earlier batch of Mango Soufflé that I made and posted to celebrate G'Gina's Kitchenette crossing over a 100,000 page views was made slightly differently. The flavour was varied too in the second make. In fact I preferred the second one to the first.

I have always enjoyed making desserts for my loved ones and when someone asks to taste a dessert of mine, I tend to go all out and whip up a huge batch. Funnily enough, it turns out better than I ever imagined and more than the original recipe I created. So when it was mentioned how I had shared my first batch with a couple of my neighbour friends I was asked to make it again for a few more of my neighbour friends.

I made this recipe for my dear and sweet friends and neighbour Zaira Shaan, Shaan Rahman and their all too adorable son Rayaan Shaan (Rayu darlin'). Actually my chief taster was darling 5 year old Rayu who said he loves desserts and when I asked which one, he said yellow one with caramel. I asked if the yellow meant Mango as being Mango season it was all about mangoes for me! Zai prompted he meant cremé caramel.

Well since I had already promised Zai that I would be making her the Mango Soufflé, I stuck to the plan. But to please my main man Rayu, I had added a tweak and instead of cream, I used homemade caramel sauce with mango cubes and for the parents, caramelised ginger addition topped with fresh mango cubes.

There was a hint of chili in this batch as well which was a flavour enhancer but was not prominent as there were children involved in the tasting. The feedback was : Really good, Applause, etc. And I was happy! :)

I had more to give away. So when another good friend and neighbour Dr. Parvathy (Paru) heard Zai ask for the Mango Soufflé, she asked if I really liked soufflé (as she did not!), I decided she would be the one to taste it. She actually asked for just a taste but since it was served in individual bowls, I took her one with the hope to transform her! I guess she is transformed now. This I know as she offered her little boy just a tsp and gobbled down the rest. It was a 'clean bowl'! She added. 'Well! you don't really need me to comment now do you?' :)

I started my recipe creations with cakes and desserts. But somewhere along the line, when the number of tasters reduced, I went full onto the savoury side.

So I do want to go back to my roots and continue with the sweeter side of life. Let us see how far I will go in this plan. I will not of course be giving up on the savoury makes as there is far too many opportunities to build on existing there as well.

Anup and my Izzykins too loved this version of the Soufflé better than the first one.

You need:

For the Soufflé:

• 1 cup mango puree 
• 1/2 cup of powdered sugar or castor sugar
• 2 cups of cream
• 11/2 tbsp Gelatine (soaked in 11/2 tbsp of cold water)
• 3 eggs
• Few tbsp of warm water

For the caramel and caramelised ginger:

• 1/2 cup of granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup hot water
• 2" ginger, peeled

The Make:

Preparation time: 10 minutes, Setting time: preferable overnight or 8 hours | Serves 6 medium sized bowls

The Soufflé:

1. Whisk the eggs well .
2. Add castor sugar and cook in a double boiler until thickened. Set aside to cool.
3. Whisk the cream in a cold bowl with the Mango puree.
4. Add a few tablespoons (tbsp) of warm water to the soaked gelatin and stir to dissolve. Add the gelatine to the egg mixture.
5. Stir in the egg mixture into the cream mixture. Drizzle some of the homemade caramel around the inner walls of the individual bowls. Then pour the cream mixture into each of the bowls.
6. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours. 
7. Loosen the sides of the soufflé with the back of a teaspoon. Top with mango cubes, cream or in my case homemade caramel.

The Caramel and the Carmelised Ginger:
7. With the back of the knife, smash the ginger and then finely slice the ginger lengthwise.
8. Heat a pan and add the sugar to it on medium-high. Once the sugar melts and begins to turn into a golden brown, add the hot water and cover evenly. Once the caramel turns an amber colour, turn off the flame. The caramel colour will deepen once rested.
9. Set aside some caramel in a small bowl and add the ginger to it. Add the caramel in a bowl and allow it to cool. Aesthetically place the caramelized ginger on top of the inverted soufflé and drizzle with caramel as required.

Hope you enjoy making this for your loved ones as I did and hope your loved ones enjoyed it as much as mine did!