With summer on the horizon and backyard mango trees dropping fruit faster than most people can eat, might as well trade in that surplus food for some fresh sourdough, right?
What began as a playful experiment turning into a a beloved community event each year, Zak the Baker is bringing back its famous Mango Trade, where locals can bring in a fresh batch of the fruit for a loaf of artisan bread.
How the Mango Trade works
Running for the entirety of June (a.k.a. peak mango season), visitors can bring in five mangos to receive a loaf. It’s basically a win-win situation— they get the overabundance of fruit you don’t want, and you get delicious baked goods!
Historically, the bakery set the exchange rate at six mangos for one loaf of bread, but the change was implemented to accommodate a “more challenging growing season,” they explained in an Instagram post.
“As reported by Jeff Wasielewski of UF/IFAS Extension Miami-Dade County: ‘The freeze/frost killed embryos of young fruit. The prolonged dry weather caused powdery mildew which burned off flowers and young fruit. The quick bout of cool weather and rain after the dry spell caused Alternaria, which caused fruit to turn black and die.’ In short: we’ve got fewer mangos this year,” the post reads.
“Bring us your mangos. We’ll trade you bread.”
To be accepted, mangos must be at least the size of a closed adult fist, and cannot be bruised, overripe or bitten by local wildlife. Keeping things fair, trades are also limited to one loaf per person per day, so that people don’t show up with 50 pounds of mangos at once.
What happens to the mangos?
The best part is none of the collected fruit goes to waste! The kitchen staff cleans and preserves the mango haul to use throughout the year, turning it into jam, cheesecake, danishe, aqua Fresca and many more offerings.
You can participate in the fourth annual Mango Trade now through June 30. Find Zak the Baker at 295 NW 26th St, Miami, FL 33127.
