This vegan mango gelato is very intense and pure with clean texture and vivid color. If you’re wondering whether gelato is just a fancy name for ice cream, it is not. Gelato contains less fat, making it taste cooler, lighter, and arguably more refreshing than ice cream. Churned slower than ice cream (if at all), it is denser and has a more intense flavor. This mango gelato is not only vegan, but also raw, paleo, and refined sugar-free.
Have you ever wondered what the food you eat everyday can tell you about where you come from? Have you ever wondered why people from different parts of the world eat different types of food? There is more of a connection between food and culture than you may think.
As you might already know, I live in Canada but grew up in Europe. I have learnt how to make popular North American dishes simply because my husband loves them. But I still make a lot of traditional European dishes as well. (I often buy the ingredients I need when I’m in Europe and bring them with me to Canada).
What does this story have to do with gelato? Well, I just came back from Italy and was reminded how much I miss gelato. Creamy, cold and churned up into myriad flavors. If you’ve ever been to Italy or dreamed of travelling there, chances are you’ve heard of gelato. Before going to Italy for the first time many years ago, I had heard about the awesomeness of gelato. Everyone who had tasted it seemed possessed by the memory of its taste, telling me about its smooth creaminess and intense flavor. No one seemed to know whether it was ice cream, sorbet, or something else, but they knew it was heavenly. I ended up eating it almost every day while I was there, and I tried all the fruity flavors, which are my favorites.
This vegan mango gelato recipe is different from the authentic gelato in that there is no dairy or refined sugar. Yet, it’s just as delicious!
Tips for Making Vegan Mango Gelato
Ingredients
There is no single recipe for gelato, and like many culinary specialties in Italy, each region makes it slightly differently. My favorite type is fruit-based gelato, hence the vegan mango gelato recipe. The best gelati are made with the best ingredients so use seasonally fresh, perfectly ripe fruits.
Although gelato contains less fat than ice cream, you still need high-fat ingredients for the best results. Store-bought nut milks are generally too lean, and they lead to a weak, watery texture. I have had the most success with canned full-fat coconut milk. Not only does it work in terms of texture, but the tropical flavors of coconut and mango go together really well.
Go with any sweetener you like. Since I live in Canada, I almost always use maple syrup, but any sweetener will work.
Technique
If you’ve seen my berry ice cream and vanilla ice cream, you know that I always recommend using an ice cream machine. The good news is that you don’t necessarily need an ice cream machine to make this vegan mango gelato. Of course, if you do have an ice cream machine, use it! An ice cream maker freezes the gelato slowly while continually mixing it, creating a super-fine texture free of ice crystals or harder chunks. Some companies now offer specialty appliances labelled as gelato makers, but they are an overkill for homemade gelato.
If you don’t own an ice cream maker, you can still make gelato at home. The trick is to break up hard ice crystals that form as the gelato freezes. If you were making ice cream, you would need to break up the ice crystals every 30 minutes or so. Gelato isn’t supposed to be as creamy as ice cream though. So, you can get away with letting the whole mixture freeze and then beat it up and break up any frozen sections. I find that the easiest way to do that is to use a food processor.
Last but not least, here’s an important serving tip. Because home freezers are set to very low temperatures, make sure you always take your gelato out of the freezer 10-20 minutes before serving it. That will not only make it easier to serve – gelato’s lower fat content means it freezes rock hard – but also soften it to a consistency closer to what you would enjoy at a gelati bar.
Tools You’ll Need
1. Blender (Vitamix Pro 750) | 2. Food Processor (Breville Sous Chef) | 3. Knife Set (Set of 6, Utility, Stainless Steel) | 4. Cutting Board (24″ x 18″ Michigan Maple Block, Maple) | 5. Loaf Pan (Lodge, Cast Iron) | 6. Measuring Spoons (Set of 6, 1Easylife, Stainless Steel) | 7. Cookie Scoop (Solula, Stainless Steel)
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Mango Gelato
Ingredients
- 4 mangoes, peeled and pitted
- 1 (14-oz) can full-fat coconut milk *
- 1 Tbsp. maple syrup
Instructions
- Add mangoes, coconut milk and maple syrup to a blender. Blend until smooth.
- Pour the mixture into a freezer-safe, air-tight container. Freeze until completely frozen. (The time it will take to freeze the mixture will depend on how wide vs tall container you use. The wider the container, the shorter the freezing time).
- Once frozen, cut the frozen mixture into cubes (so it's easier to blend). Add it into a food processor and blend until all the frozen pieces are broken down (it should have a consistency of soft serve).
- Transfer the mixture into a freezer-safe container and freeze until completely frozen, about 3-6 hours. Allow to thaw for 10-20 minutes before serving.
- Store any leftover gelato in an airtight container in the freezer for 1-2 weeks.
Good morning, I left a comment in Your Mango Gelato You Tube Video- Joseph E. Davis ( Roscoe ), on
9/24/2018.
Hi Joseph – I just responded to your comment on YouTube. I get notifications every time you leave a comment on any of my YouTube videos or here on my blog. Thank you for reaching out 😉
Hi can you use walnuts in bean ice cream?
Hi Jen – I am not sure I understand your question. Are you wanting to use walnuts in the mango gelato?
Hi! Can I use another milk(cows) or cream? What percentage of coconut milk?
Hi Abd – the brand that I used had 42 g fat in 1 cup, which equaled out to be 22%.
Hello, can i make this gelato with bananas or strawberries?
Hi Martina – I have tried the gelato with strawberries and it’s great. I have never made it with bananas, but I suspect that it will be fine (since you can make regular ice cream with bananas too). The only thing you might need to adjust is the sweetener (adding more or less depending on the fruit you use).
Bravo
Thank you! 🙂
GOOD JOP : EASY & ACCURATE _-_JUST HAVE A REST OF MY CHOCOLATE MAKE ; THEN WILL TRAY YOUR RECIPE WITH CHOCOLATE FIRST ; TILL MANGO SESON
Thank you so much, Mohamed! Hope you enjoy the recipe 🙂
Great
Healthy & Easy
Thanks
Thank you!
That was great
Do you have recipe for Keto ice cream
Thank you
Hi Basil – I don’t. However, you could try this recipe: https://nutritionrefined.com/vegan-vanilla-ice-cream/ (just swap the cashews for macadamia nuts and maple syrup for a liquid keto sweetener). I am hoping to post a keto ice cream recipe soon!
Thank you Petra for your prompt responding
Have a good one
Bassil
loving your videos/recipes. i just made this with a mango peach blend. just put it in the freezer so tomorrow we will indulge.can’t wait! i’m so fortunate to have access to lots of organic produce since i work in a grocery store. do you have a coffee version of vegan ice-cream that doesn’t use an ice-cream maker?
That’s so awesome that you have access to organic produce. Hope you enjoy the recipe 🙂 I have a recipe for no churn caramel swirl ice cream in my free raw dessert cookbook, but not a coffee version. Sorry 🙁
i followed the instructions to the T but mine came out too icy instead of being creamy. More sorbet than ice cream. i can’t seem to figure out what i did to have that result.
Hi Avanti – I am so sorry for the late reply! For some reason, your comment ended up in my spam folder and I didn’t discover it until now!!! The key to a creamier consistency is blending/processing the ice cream mixture for long enough to get a lot of air in. You want to break up the ice crystals as much as possible. The more air, the creamier the ice cream. It definitely is “icier” than ice cream from an ice cream machine, but it shouldn’t be icy. Ultimately, if you find it too icy, you can beat it up a few times as the gelato freezes. (As it starts to freeze near the edges, remove it from the freezer and stir it vigorously with a spatula, whisk, or a hand mixer (a hand mixer will give you best results). Really beat it up and break up any frozen sections. Return to freezer. Keep checking periodically and stirring (by hand or with the electric mixer) while the ice cream freezes until completely frozen.) Hope it helps 🙂
Hi Petra,
how can I make Ice cream out of liquid, like lemon juice or orange? because the mango has a very nice consistence already, what helps with the softness, but lemon? how?
thanks!
Hi Nani – you’re right. If you don’t have any base ingredient introducing creaminess, you will simply rely on cream (if you’re vegan coconut cream/full-fat coconut milk, cashews, macadamia nuts, etc). If you’re interested, you can check out my vanilla ice cream https://nutritionrefined.com/vegan-vanilla-ice-cream/ (where I used both canned full-fat coconut milk and cashews) or this berry ice cream https://nutritionrefined.com/vegan-berry-ice-cream/ (where I only used cashews). Let me know if you have any questions 🙂
Hey , you say any sweetened will work , can you suggest what sweetened other than maple syrup ? Honey ?
Sure, honey will work too. Or you can also use liquid monk fruit sweetener, coconut syrup, etc.
Hi, I’m very exited to try this recepie. Would I be able to use liquid Stevia instead of Maple syrup or honey?
Yes!
How much mango in grams?
Hi Noviara – my 4 mangoes weighed ~ 1000 g.
Hi! Can i replace the 1000g of mango with another fruit? Would the proportion be the same?
Thank you!
Hi Cindy – technically yes! Just know that some fruits contain more water than others, which could make the gelato icier.
could you make it with mango puree and how much of the other things should I put in if I use half a gallon of mango puree
Yes, mango puree (as long as it’s 100%) should work as a substitute. If you’re using half a gallon, I would double the rest of the ingredients.
Hi Petra, is it okay if I change maple syrup to white sugar? It’s a little bit hard to find maple syrup in here. Or maybe you have another suggestion for me? Thanks. Love from Indonesia:)
Hi Afifi – I have never tried it with white sugar, but I think it would work just fine. You can pretty much use any sweetener you like – liquid (e.g. coconut nectar) or powdered (coconut sugar, cane sugar, etc.).
If I am using fresh coconut milk (I live in India where coconuts are easily available), how much would I need to use? And full fat coconut milk would be coconut milk without adding water?
Hi Rem – you could use fresh coconut milk. However, I am not sure what the ratio of coconut meat to water would be. Full-fat coconut milk is thick and creamy, so don’t use too much water. The more fat you use, the less icy the gelato will be.
I have a bunch of frozen mango cubes that I would like to use for this recipe. About how many cups of mango would you say I should use?
Hi Esther – 1 mango generally yields about one cup of fruit. So, I would probably use 4 cups.
hi
i am about to do this recipe for a dinner party (distanced ha ha) with mangos from my market here in Mexico. One questions what size was your glass baking dish so I can judge the amount of product should
be in the dish. Also your mangos were rather large- here they are smaller so should i double the mangos?
Hi Aline – it really doesn’t matter. The important thing to keep in mind is that the taller (and narrower) the container, the longer it will take for the mixture to freeze. My mangoes were about 1000 grams in total, so you want to aim at that weight. Please, let me know if you have any questions 🙂
I have a Cuisinart Ice 100 compressor ice cream maker that I used to make this recipe. For the mangos, I purchased four large Haitian mangos. Also added a bit more maple syrup and a pinch of salt and blended before in a high speed blender and chilled before freezing. Excellent texture and flavor.
Thank you so much for taking the time to share your feedback and rating on my blog, Joanne!❤️ So happy you enjoyed the recipe!
Hi this was amazing! I will definitely make again. If I wanted to make again this time with a ice cream maker how would I go about doing this if it’s possible to do?
Hi Stacie – so happy you enjoyed the recipe! If you have an ice cream maker, you can just pour the liquid mixture in there, and you should be good to go. If you go through the comments, one or two people commented that they do make this recipe in an ice cream maker with great results 🙂
How could I substitute mangoes with raspberries? Was hoping to make this raspberry gelato.
Hi Kareem – I have made mango-raspberry gelato a few times (using 1 cup of raspberries, 3 cups of mango, 1 cup of full-fat coconut milk, and coconut sugar as a sweetener – I use quite a bit of coconut sugar, I think it’s usually ~ 3/4 cup, because the raspberries tend to be really tart), and it always turns out well. However, I have never tried making just raspberry gelato, so I would have to guess the amount of ingredients. Please, let me know how it goes if you give it a try.
Hi I’m wondering if I can use honey instead of maple syrup
Hi Lachlan – yes, that should work just fine.
Hi Petra,
This recipe seems awesome.
I am planning on using Goya Coconut Milk (full fat) which has 9g of fat per 1/4 cup ( 36g per cup). Will that make a difference to this gelato as the one you used had 15g per 1/3 cup (approx. 45g per cup). Don’t want to have an issue with the consistency as I will be making it last minute. If it will not make a difference, I will use the milk I have. If not, I will buy one with more fat.
Thanks for your assistance.
thanks
Mel
Hi Mel – it should be fine with the Goya milk. The gelato might be slightly icier if the coconut milk contains less fat content, but you could compensate for that by adding a little bit of coconut oil.