Capturing the luscious magic of mangoes is a versatile challenge which no inventive cook can possibly ignore. And — with the always eagerly awaited mango season now in full swing — here are a few mouth-watering suggestions to set the ball rolling.

Freshly baked pies always go down well. Quick and simple to make, these ‘variations on a theme’ are definitely something to write home about!

Herbed mango and berry pie

Perfect eaten on their own, mangoes are also delicious in desserts

Ingredients

(serves 6) For the pastry 250 gm plain white flour 125 gm unsalted butter / margarine 1 tsp baking powder 2 tsp vanilla essence 1 tbsp finely chopped, fresh lemon balm

Cold water

A little milk and brown sugar to use as glaze

A little chopped lemon balm for pastry garnish

For the filling

2 medium sized mangoes, peeled, stoned and cubed A handful — or two — fresh / frozen / tinned blueberries

Brown sugar to taste

Method

Sieve the flour and baking powder in a mixing bowl; cut the butter / margarine into small pieces and rub into the flour until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Mix in the finely chopped lemon balm. Add vanilla essence and enough cold water to mix until firm dough is formed.

Cut the dough in half. Roll out one piece of dough on a lightly floured board / surface until it is large enough to cover, and slightly hang over the edge of, a medium sized, oven proof dinner plate.

Arrange the mango cubes on top of this, sprinkle with blueberries, lemon balm and a little brown sugar. The weight of the filling pulls the pastry inwards; after arranging the filling, trim any excess pastry from around the edges of the plate. Slightly dampen the pastry edges, all around the outer circumference, with a touch of cold water.

Roll out the remaining pastry in the same way, ensuring that it is large enough to go over the filling and the edges of the plate. When rolled out, gently fold it in half and make six to nine, approximately two-inch long, cuts in the fold — these are to allow steam to escape — before laying it over the filling, trimming any excess and then sealing the upper and lower pastry rounds together by ‘squidging’ the edges between your thumb and forefinger.

Excess pastry pieces can be rolled out, cut into leaves or other shapes, and arranged on top of the pie. Glaze the top, using a pastry brush, with a little cold milk, sprinkle with a little more brown sugar and chopped lemon balm.

Bake in a medium to hot oven for approximately 20-30 minutes by which time the pastry will be cooked through and lightly browned.

Serve hot or cold with custard, cream or ice cream.

Alternative fillings

You can use various alternatives, such as mango and raspberry, mango and strawberry, mango and blackberry, mango and grape, mango and pineapple, mango and plum, mango and peach, mango and apricot.

Alternative herbs

Select a herb which complements the selected fruit. Mint, for example, goes well with all of the aforementioned fillings while thyme adds an unexpected surprise to mango and strawberry, mango and raspberry and mango and blackberry pies. Other fresh herbs to experiment with include the following: aniseed, sweet basil, sweet cicely, borage and chamomile.

Spices

If you don’t have fresh herbs at hand, you can play around with hints of the popular spices of cinnamon and nutmeg instead.

Published in Dawn, Sunday Magazine, June 19th, 2016