Mango Mascarpone Tart

The problem with recipes is, I can never follow them, even if they're my own. You know the phrase "you never step in the same river twice"? That's what it's like eating and cooking in my kitchen...you never eat the same dish twice. Most of the time I don't mind...it's fun cooking with what you have, substituting on the fly, but when it turns out stellar, I'm unable to recreate it because I don't remember what I've done.

In the throes of mango season, and inspired by the mango recipe contest at the Moana, I set about making a mango mascarpone tart. But while I'm providing a recipe below, it's merely a launching point because honestly, I probably wouldn't make it the same way again. For one, it's an incredibly expensive recipe, with the mascarpone and Sauternes, and it's really not worth it when the mangoes are stellar in themselves. Also, the filling is a little bit loose with the added yogurt. So ideas for next time: skip the mascarpone and whisk the yogurt with egg and bake into the tart, and then top with mangoes; omit the Sauternes and macerate the mangoes in lime and ginger syrup.

Mango Mascarpone Tart

Sweet Tart Dough (from Alice Waters' Art of Simple Food)

1 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg yolk
1 1/4 cups flour

Cream together the butter, sugar, and salt. Add egg yolk and mix until incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Add flour and mix just until incorporated. Chill for 4 hours or overnight. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Roll out and press into an 8-inch tart pan with removable bottom. Chill tart shell in freezer for 15 minutes. Line tart shell with foil and fill with pie weights. Bake 20 minutes, then remove weights and bake another 20 minutes, or until shell is deep golden. Cool completely in pan before filling.

Filling

2 mangoes, peeled and diced (reserve mango pit with attached flesh)
1/2 cup Sauternes
8 ounces mascarpone
1 cup yogurt
1/4 cup confectioners sugar
1 teaspoon lime juice
1/2 teaspoon grated lime zest
Chiffonade of mint, for garnish

Squeeze flesh around mango pit to extract the juice and add Sauternes in a bowl. Add mangoes and macerate for 1/2 hour. Strain in a sieve set over a small saucepan, reserving mangoes. Reduce liquid until syrupy, about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, whisk together mascarpone, yogurt, sugar, lime juice and lime zest. Pour into cooled tart shell. Top with mangoes. Drizzle syrup all over tart and garnish with mint.