Maavina Hannu Seekarne or Aamras

The best thing about summer??? MANGOES. My sweet dreams are made of eating a ripe juicy mango dripping juice all over my hands. I never saw any other reason for the month of May to appear on the Calendar. I mean, May is the HOTTEST month of the year. In school, it marked the end of one month of summer vacations. The only saving grace for the month of May was the mangoes it brought with it.

Every Indian household I know uses mangoes to make either their favorite milkshake, or lassi, or dessert or pickle. There are so many dishes that you can make with Mangoes - both raw and ripe. I've made a few in the past:

Mavinkayee Chitranna or Mango Rice - Flavored rice made with grated raw mangoes and leftover rice.

Hagalkai Mavinkayee Gojju or Bittergourd & Raw Mango Curry - Bitter sweet sour and spicy curry made with bitter gourd and raw mangoes

Sweet and Sour Mango Curry or Saasav or Pashingiri - Mango curry made with ripe mangoes and fresh coconut famous along the Konkan coast of India.

Aam Panna or Sweet and Spicy Raw Mango Cooler - A sweet and spicy beverage made using raw mangoes

Mango Cheesecake - Cheesecake made using fresh mangoes, paneer and agar agar.

Raw Mango Gojju - South Indian raw mango curry and coconut curry

Corn and Raw Mango Salsa - A Simple Salsa made with boiled sweet corn and raw mango.

Don't you just want to grab that bowl of luscious Seekarne and eat it right now?

Maavina hannu Seekane or Aamras is probably the easiest delicacy you can make with Mangoes. All you need are ripe fresh JUICY mangoes. India is the birthplace of Mango and every state has it's own favorite. Alphonso, Kesar, Dasheri, Badami, Mankurad (Being a Goan, I had to list this one), Raspuri etc.There are so many more varieties, I don't even know all the names. 

Maavinahannu Seekarne or Aamras was my Mom's favorite Mango dish, she made it every summer, without fail. I made this today as a dedication to her. 

Maavinahannu Seekarne can be made in two ways, either by finely chopping the mangoes, like my mom made it or squeezing the mango to get a fine puree, the way my grandmother made it. The only difference in the 2 methods, is the way the mango pulp is treated - chopped or pureed. It is typically flavored with cardamom and almost always has a little milk added to it.

Traditionally, the Maharastrians eat their aamras with deep fried puris and here in Karnataka, it is eaten with chapati - the pan fried wholewheat flatbread. But you can eat it just like that as a dessert. Seekarne tastes best chilled for an hour or two in the fridge. But you can eat it at room temperature as well.

Maavina Hannu Seekarne or Aamras

Maavina Hannu Seekarne or Aamras is a simple traditional dessert made with mango pulp and milk and flavored with cardamom.

Recipe Type:  Dessert/ Drink
Cuisine:         Indian
Prep Time:     15 minutes
Yield:             2-3 bowls

Ingredients:

2 ripe Mangoes
1/2 cup of Milk
1 tsp Cardamom Powder
1-2 tsp Jaggery Powder or Sugar

Method:

Peel the mangoes and chop the mango cheeks finely. Alternatively, instead of chopping it, you can just puree the mango.
Add cardamom powder and milk. Mix well.
Taste and check if you want it sweeter, then add jaggery or sugar.