The Mango Float Struggle

I tried to make mango float a few weeks ago and according to my Filipino coworkers I did it all wrong 😅 A mango float is a Filipino treat made up of layers of graham crackers, mangoes, and cream. The first time I made this float I followed this recipe which I guess is a non-traditional way of making it. It called for dicing the mangoes, using heavy cream, and crushing the graham crackers into crumbs. When I had to whip the condensed milk and cream together, the recipe said it would take approximately 4 minutes but for me it took almost 15 minutes and the cream wouldn’t stiffen so I had to add a bit more heavy cream and whip it more. After, I refrigerated it so it would hold its shape better but when it came time to eat it it had the consistency of goopy pudding. When I gave some to my coworkers they suggested that I use whole graham crackers instead of crumbs next time, slice the mangoes not dice them, and use the Filipino brand of Carnation or Nestlé cream. The taste was pretty yummy though aside from the slightly strong cream flavour. I kind of liked the pudding texture but I wanted to try the ‘proper’ way of making it and compare.

First Attempt of Mango Float

The next attempt of mango float was a huge fail in my opinion but apparently some people liked it better than the first. I tried to find the Carnation or Nestlé cream but I could not find it anywhere! Because of Covid I didn’t want to go to a million grocery stores just for cream so I only checked Walmart and my local Filipino store because I had to run an errand there anyway. I was surprised that I couldn’t find it at the Filipino store because they usually have it. The only thing I could find was the Angel Kremdensada canned cream. According to my coworker, that cream could work too so I got 2 cans just in case. The can said you could chill it before cooking with it so I put one can in the fridge and left one in the pantry. When it came time to make the float, I opened the can from the fridge and saw that its contents were solid! I thought maybe something was wrong but when I opened the room temperature can it was also solid. I was already feeling discouraged but I decided to keep going and just use it. Since the can cream was already sweetened I didn’t use condensed milk.

This was the recipe I used the second time around. I whipped the Kremdensada a little bit and then did the whole graham cracker, cream, and sliced mango layer. I got 6 mangoes but some were still under-ripe so I made my boyfriend eat them instead. The end result was an uglier float because there were less mangoes so there were gaps in between them. I also didn’t like the taste or texture of the cream so I definitely won’t make this version again.

Everybody in my household is sick of mangoes now so I’m banned from making the final version of mango float made with the correct cream for at least a few months 😅 My coworkers liked this version of the float as well but I want to try the final attempt with the cream and then we’ll see which one is my favourite. If I ever find the correct cream I’m going to buy lots of cans so I’ll have a little stash. I also didn’t take a picture of the because I may have forgot… whoops.

Has anybody ever made mango float? How did it turn out and what cream did you use? Let me know in the comments 😊