Amrakhand (Mango Shrikhand) : Yogurt based dessert

Sweet, golden yellow, juicy fruits are back in season again. Did you guess. Yes, I'm talking about the King of the fruits, Mangoes. Mango season is here again. This is when I get jealous of those living in India. I miss the Indian Mangoes along with other summer fruits like tadgola (Munjalu) and Sapota. The irony is, these are my most favorite fruits of all :-(. 

During Summers people in different regions of India relish Mangoes in different ways and this is one such recipe.Shrikand is a Maharastrian dessert made with thickened Yogurt. Amrakhand is a variation of Shrikand where it's mixed with pureed mango. This is as healthy as a Dessert can get. Well almost :-). Yogurt and fruit, what's bad about it. Nothing, except sugar ;-). 

I do not like the Mangoes in US as they don't even come close in taste to Indian mangoes. But when I was in Costco today I couldn't resist buying Ataulfo Mangoes. When I wanted to make Amrakhand, i cut open one ripened mango and tasted, it was sweet. So I changed my initial plan of using canned Mango pulp and used fresh Mango. The only caveat was, the final color wasn't great but taste was awesome. I would definitely be making more with fresh Mangoes again n again. But if you don't have sweet Mangoes handy, use canned Mango pulp from Indian store. 

Amrakhand can be served with Puri or as it is for dessert. If you are looking for more Mango recipes, try my Mango lassi, Mango mousse, Mango mousse cake, Mango Strawberry smoothie. 

To make Shrikand you need thickened yogurt (Hung curd). You can use home made Yogurt or store bought. Even though I make Home made yogurt on daily basis, today I do not have enough of it on hand. So I used store bought as I could not wait to make it. An advantage with store bought is, you can remove water quickly so the time to make Amrakhand is cut down substantially. 

Servings:

Two (2)

Total Time:

4 hrs with Store bought Yogurt

8 hrs or more with Home made Yogurt

Ingredients:

• 1 cup Yogurt  (It gave 1/3 cup hung curd)
• 1 mango or 1/3 rd cup Canned Mango pulp
• 2 Cardamom crushed
• 1.5-2 tbsp Sugar
• Chopped Dry fruits optionally
• 4-5 tbsp Mango pulp optionally but recommended 

Amrakhand Step wise Recipe

1. Take 1 cup Yogurt in a clean Cloth. Twist  and tie the clotth. leave for 2 hrs to remove whey. I have used store bought Yogurt as it thick and would take less time to remove whey. You can also use home made yogurt. In this case leave longer  like about 4-5 hrs. The resulting Yogurt should be thick. You can Leave longer if the consistency is not achieved. You can also leave it over night in refrigerator.
2. I tied Yogurt in a cloth and kept it in a strainer and kept weight on it. The strainer was then placed on top of a bowl . I Kept it in the refrigerator so it might not turn sour.
3. Or You can hang it to the kitchen tap and let it drain. 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
4. After the Yogurt turns thicker, like shown in picture, take it in a mixing bowl. I have got 1/3rd cup of Hung curd.
   
5. Chop a mango and puree in the blender along with 1.5-2 tbsp sugar. I have used 1 Ataulfo Mango which was sweet. When I chopped it was about 1/2 cup.If you do not have Mangoes use Canned Mango pulp.Use about 1/3 rd cup of Pulp or adjust.
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
6. Now to the blender add the thick Yogurt and blend till smooth.
7. Add crushed Cardmom powder. 
8. Refrigerate the Amrakhand. 
9. Serve chilled. I have topped it with 2 tbsp of chilled Mango pulp to enhance the flavor and it was good.
   
10. You can also top it with Chopped Dry fruits .

Tips:

• You can make the recipe with your favorite fruits. 
• Multiply recipe to make more.
• You can add more or less sugar as per your liking.