Sweet! Champagne Mangoes Return to Alemany
We were thrilled. Scratch that: We were ecstatic to find California-grown champagne mangoes at the Alemany Farmers' Market last weekend. Andrea of Family Farm Foods grows these sweet mangoes at her farm in Palmdale, northeast of Los Angeles. It's a pretty long road trip to San Francisco, but we're so glad she made the journey Saturday morning.
Jun Belen Champagne mangoes (right), pictured with specimens of the common Kent variety.
Champagne mangoes are the closest to Philippine mangoes that we've seen here in California. Americans refer to them as Manila mangoes, honey mangoes, or Ataulfo mangoes (named after their Mexican grower). They're large, oblong, and vaguely kidney-esque, turning a deep yellow-orange as they ripen. The golden flesh is soft, almost buttery, and very, very sweet. In contrast, the mangoes grown in Mexico and sold in most produce stores in the city (usually Kent mangoes) are rounder, with a reddish-green color that turns reddish-orange as they ripen.
Currently priced at $2.50 each, champagne mangoes may be a tad more expensive than their Mexican counterparts, but we made an amazing mango-rhubarb pie yesterday. We must say they were so worth it.
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