When a close girlfriend (who happens to have a gorgeous blog about vintage treasures) asked me what a North Americanized girl can do to impress traditional Chinese in-laws, I was stumped.
After a brief pause, I replied, “offer to cut fruit after dinner”. My Asian dinner guests laughed, contemplated, and agreed
A shared plateful of fresh fruit is the essential way to end a meal in many Asian cultures. Alongside a pot of steeped tea, it is the cultural equivalent to the West’s coffee and pudding.
While my loyal readers know about my mango obsession by now, my truly utmost favourite fruit is called MANGOSTEEN.
Mangosteen is a tropical fruit that immediately triggers memories of my grandmother. After a long night of cooking up a storm for 30+, she quietly sat and peeled mangosteen for us. Once the tough, leathery shell is cracked or carefully sliced open, white petals of juicy, floral flesh emerge from its ruby red cover.
If you held a knife to my throat and forced me to describe its distinct, incomparable flavour, I would say it’s reminiscent of a delicate, tart lychee with the slightest tinge of pineapple and rose.
Mangosteens are difficult to come by in North America because they do not store or ship well. In the limited time they are available in Vancouver during the summer, they are quite pricey so imagine my surprise when I was presented with a bowlful of these precious jewels! My mind raced to create the perfect dessert to exhibit its glory.
… limited only to the contents of my fridge and pantry… and with only several minutes to whip it up on the whim.
So here it is, something that is:
sticky
tart
savory
creamy
velvety
fruity
coconutty
crunchy
and fantabulous altogether. That, my girl, is how you impress the in-laws.
Ingredients
Avocado Coconut Mousse
- 1 ripe avocado
- 1/2 can coconut milk
- 2 tbs. sweetened condensed milk
- 1 tsp. lime juice
Honeycomb Yogurt
- 2″ x 2″ piece of honeycomb, cut into little bits. (Substitute with 1.5 tbs of honey if unavailable.)
- 1 cup natural yogurt
Topping
- Flesh of as many mangosteens you can obtain. (nom on the segments with the pit. Be careful not to add those to the dessert!)
- Finely chopped almonds
Directions
Add all of the Avocado Coconut Mousse ingredients into a blender, blend until smooth, chill.
Mix the honeycomb with the yogurt, chill.
Layer the mousse and yogurt into sparkly glasses.
Top with mangosteen segments. Sprinkle with chopped almonds.
Serve to eagerly awaiting guests.
Serves 2
Mmmm sounds divine. I wish I could get descent mangosteens here
Thanks, Marc! A trip to Asia is in store, n’est-ce pas?
LOL. Awesome. I’m secretly taking notes.
Wow, so original! At least ot European eyes… Lovely pics!
I’d never heard of mangosteen, but it looks absolutely beautiful! Lovely recipe, too!
Wow! The pics are amazing Mel. I could lick my screen. Yum Yum Yum.
Sounds lovely! A really special dessert.
Lovely. I love the presentation of it. I haven’t been able to find some mangosteens in my area. Hopefullly I will. I’m sure there some around here somewhere. Yum!!
it’s our favorite fruit too…great creative use of it in a parfait
Beautiful! So unique but it sounds lovely.
I am totally impressed by the contents of your fridge, how quick you came up with that dessert on the fly, and how beautiful it is. Dang!
Lovely dessert…love the avocado mousse and how you present the parfait…and gal, you have very clean kitchen.
Angie’s Recipes
Mangosteen—I like everything about them (based on your description)…but since we can’t find them here, will try lychee as a substitute.
Very inventive dessert!
p.s.–I have those glasses- so versatile! I use them for drinks, soup, and dessert.
Lovely ! Delicious ! Thank you for sharing. Cheers !
Oh mangosteen! Avocado coconut mousse? That is just perfection!! I remember mum used to make avocado shake and now that Australia’s just coming out of winter and into warmer weather I think an avocado shake would be really really fantastic!
awesome presentation, I love all of those scrumptious photos. The dessert sounds like it is to die for, so yummy and creamy!
Beautiful, well done!
This looks absolutely gorgeous. Your presentation was great. Sounds wonderful, although I’ve never eaten a mangosteen. The closest I’ve ever come to one is Stash has a Mangosteen tea – my coworker drinks it – and I didn’t like the aroma. But the combo of flavors here sound much more delicate and alluring. Yum!
Super post, Need to mark it on Digg
Have a nice day
Hobosic
Hi Mel, I follow you on twitter and am amazed by the wide variety of food you do! Just curious, what’s your full time job?
P.S Nice photos!
Hi Les Marque, firstly, thank you for the kind compliment. I have a variety of jobs on the go. The most encompassing title would be “entrepreneur”. I’m primarily a business consultant. Thank you for the interest :) See you on twitter!
Wow! May I add that you are quite lucky to have the chance to pursuit yours interests (which I presume is largely food!). Not many people have the luxury to do so, whilst having to survive in a world whereby living costs are going up by the minute. I wonder when’s my turn to have this chance.
Hope to see more posts soon!
Honey, it’s no luxury. It’s a LOT of hard work, long hours, side-jobs, day jobs, all of that to maintain what I have. There is a heavy cost and a lot of sacrifices to pursue my interests :) thanks for the support! please do continue to check back <3
Avacado Coconut Mousse…those are close to being 3 of the best words in the food world! This dessert sounds and looks spectacular! Very creative. :)
Haven’t ever tried Mangosteen but Durian is something of a deity in my world. It’s the type of fruit that makes me think of tours to Brunei and Malaysia, and to try to find a place in South America where it might be grown locally so I could set up a farm. Mangosteen is on the list of must-try fruit.