Early last week I was looking at the long-range weather forecast and saw something – alarming. At first I thought I had inadvertently searched for Austin, TX as a force of habit. My heart sank as I realized that, no, I was definitely searching for Seattle and that high temperatures for the days ahead were predicted to be sickeningly north of 105F. We don’t have air conditioning. And we’re still working from home. This was going to be interesting.
I did not expect to find myself in this dilemma while living the northernmost major US city, but it seems climate change has assumed its place of certainty next to death and taxes. The last 3 days were the HOTTEST in Seattle’s history – hotter than any records set in many Southern cities (final verdict was 108F at SeaTac airport). It was pretty gnarly. We spent roughly 50% of the time splayed out on the floor of our un-airconditioned house, hugging ice packs until they melted, and binging Alone while fantasizing about being stranded in the Arctic wilderness. I’m fairly sure that at some point, Louise (our cat) asked me to please take off her fur coat – it’s also possible I hallucinated that interaction in a literal fever dream. At such extreme temperatures, eating was a chore – even ice cream seemed too heavy and unappealing. So I searched out recipes for frozen desserts that would be light and refreshing, and most importantly, require little to no labor over any type of heat source.
Enter the Italian spuma: a creamy, airy frozen meringue and fruit concoction. Because it is made without dairy, spuma doesn’t freeze solid, and the whipped lightness of the meringue steers it clearly out of the icy, gritty territory that sorbet can sometimes land in. Best of all, I’ve adapted the recipe so it can be made with extremely minimal heat involvement. I spotted some big, beautiful, juicy mangoes on our pre-heatwave grocery run and used them to make this very un-traditional, very delicious spuma di mango. It is sweet and light ,and creamy enough to feel indulgent while remaining ultra-refreshing.
To make the spuma, start by making a mango syrup. Instead of cooking down mangos on the stovetop, you can use the microwave! After straining and setting aside the mango puree to cool, you’ll make an egg-white meringue – this is the only part where you’ll need a brief moment over a double boiler on the stove to dissolve the sugar and heat the eggs to a safe temperature. (TIP: Use an electric kettle to boil the water before pouring into the pot to minimize the ambient heat from the stove). After whipping the meringue to stiff peaks, you’ll fold in the mango puree and freeze overnight. The next day, you’ll have a sweet, cool, tropical treat. Make sure to save some extra mango to serve with the spuma!
I hope the rest of your summer is blissfully uneventful and cooler than Seattle in June.
-Emily
Mango Spuma
Ingredients
- 3/4 lb (12 oz) fresh cubed ripe mango (about 2 large mangos – I used Haden)
- 4 egg whites, room temperature
- 1/2 cup white sugar, divided
Directions
- Place mango cubes in a microwave safe bowl with 1/4 cup sugar. Microwave in 30 second intervals, stirring between each interval, until mango starts to break down and sugar has mostly dissolved.
- Pour mango into a food processor and process until smooth. (Alternatively, mash well by hand).
- Press through a fine mesh strainer using a spatula and set aside to cool completely.
- Place egg whites and remaining sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer. Place over a pot with 1-inch gently simmering water. Whisk until sugar is dissolved and egg whites are warm to the touch, about 45 seconds.
- Put bowl back onto stand mixer and use the whisk attachment to whip the egg whites until stiff and shiny, about 2 minutes.
- Immediately fold in 3/4 of the strained mango puree until combined. Be VERY gentle to maintain the fluffiness of the meringue.
- Drizzle the remaining 1/4 puree on top and use a knife to make a swirl pattern.
- Freeze at least 8 hours or overnight.
- Serve with additional mango.
