citrus Archives - Sugar et al

Mandarin Lover’s Tart

18|09|2018

I am quite amused with myself as to how I am swinging between berries and citrus this spring. Are you a berry lover or a citrus fan? Either ways, this recipe is for everyone. I think mandarins are gorgeous fruits who somehow get overshadowed by the other citrus varieties in recipes. Ever since I discovered Gold Nugget Mandarins, which are 100% seedless and really, really sweet my inspiration to create with Mandarins have gone up by several notches. To show the versatility of the mandarin, I have used them in various ways- freshly sliced, chocolate dipped and bruleed in my presentation. I wanted to do a candied and a dehydrated version too but I was running short of time. Maybe, next time!

And of course, the tart has lots of mandarin zest as well. It is egg-less, creamy and delicious without a lot of effort.

Mandarin Lover’s Tart
Makes an 8 inch round tart

One 8-inch ready tart/pastry shell (or home made, recipe here )
400 ml thickened/heavy cream
150 ml full cream milk
3 tsp powdered gelatine
1 tbsp sugar (more if you like it sweeter)
50 g white chocolate chips
1 tbsp mandarin zest
1 drop orange food colour (optional)

For decoration
Extra mandarin slices (from 4 whole mandarins), for presentation
50 g dark chocolate
2 tbsp castor sugar
fresh basil leaves

Cook tart shell accordingly to instructions. Place the tart shell on to a baking tray. This will make it easier to move the shell in and out of the refrigerator. In a large, heavy bottomed saucepan place the cream, milk and gelatine. Leave aside for 5 minutes for gelatine to bloom. Over low heat, bring the mixture just to a boil (do not boil), stirring frequently until gelatine dissolves completely.

Add the sugar, white chocolate and mandarin zest. Leave aside for 10 minutes. Stir to check if the chocolate has melted and sugar has dissolved. Add food colour, if using. Cool the mixture to room temperature. Strain the cream mixture very gently either directly onto the tart shell or first into a jug, then on the tart shell. Place the baking tray with the tart shell into the fridge to set. Refrigerate for 3-4 hours or until the mixture has completely set.

When ready to serve, decorate with fresh, chocolate dipped (recipe below) and bruleed oranges. The tart is best served chilled.

Meanwhile, make the chocolate dipped mandarins. Line a baking tray with baking paper. Melt the dark chocolate in a small saucepan that is placed over a pan of simmering water. Dip half of each mandarin slice in the melted chocolate letting the excess fall back into the pan. Place in a single layer on the baking tray. Leave aside for 15-20 minutes or until set. Refrigerate until needed.

To make the bruleed mandarin slices, sprinkle castor sugar on the slices evenly. With a blow torch, caramelize the sugar to leave a thin, crunchy crust.

Mandarin and Hazelnut Cake

31|08|2018

One bowl Mandarin and Hazelnut cake. Easy to make, moist, nutty and delicious.

It is the last day of winter here in Australia! Am I sad? No way, I’m too excited for Spring. The roads near my house are a treat to the eyes with cherry and apple blossoms trees plus huge magnolia flowers in full bloom. The end of winter in Australia is also a great time for some beautiful citrus fruits like the giant Sumo Mandarins that could give the navel oranges serious competition by it’s sheer size. I love cooking with these mandarins because not only are they way easier to peel and very flavorful, they are 100% seedless. Slicing them through the middle horizontally, makes them look like bright little flowers. So an effortless fruit needed an equally effortless recipe to go with it.

If you’re a fan of Mandarins like me, feel free to add small and big chunks of flesh in the batter before pouring into the pan. And of course, you don’t have to stick to hazelnuts, use any nut of your choice. It tastes delicious with almonds and pistachios as well.

Mandarin and Hazelnut Cake
Makes an 8 inch round cake

125 g unsalted butter, roughly chopped
1 cup castor sugar
2 eggs, lightly whisked
2 cups self raising flour
2/3 cup hazelnut meal (ground hazelnuts)
1 tbsp finely grated mandarin zest
1/2 cup mandarin juice
3/4 cup milk
Orange marmalade, home made or store
2 large mandarins sliced horizontally, to serve

Preheat oven to 180 degrees C (160 degrees C for fan forced ovens). Grease the base and sides of an 8 inch round cake pan and line the base with baking paper. In a large saucepan, over low heat melt the butter. Remove from heat and leave aside for 10 minutes. Add the sugar and eggs and whisk till blended. Add the self raising flour, hazelnut meal, zest, juice and milk and mix to combine.

Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake for 55 minutes to an hour or until fully cooked (a skewer inserted into the middle should come out clean). Remove from oven. Leave aside for 5 minutes. Gently, turn onto a wire rack. Poke holes all over the top and spread with orange marmalade. When ready to serve, decorate with sliced mandarins. Best served warm with ice cream or whipped cream.

Blood Orange Polenta Cake

17|08|2017

So many ways of making a citrus cake! Because the citrus flavour is deliciously predominant in a recipe it is used in, it is interesting how you can play around the textures by using different ingredients. I’ve already told you how much I love nuts and oranges together. This time I’ve added in some polenta for a nice bite in the cake. The texture is quite similar to coconut cake and you get a nuttiness without using too much almond meal. Nut meals are expensive so this is a cost effective option.

Blood Oranges just taste sensational with mascarpone cheese so I decided to top the cake with whipped Mascarpone which is pretty easy to make. A drizzle of blood orange syrup bursting with tangy-sweet flavour takes the cake to a new level. And finally, fresh blood oranges gives the cake a pop of colour.

Can you believe it, it’s just 4 months until Christmas? The reality is hitting hard now that my work has gone up by 3 folds. I’m working on Holiday recipes for my clients and it feels festive already!
Stay tuned, I’ll be posting the Baked Ricotta Cake this Saturday. I know many of you are waiting but this one just had to go first as the Blood Orange season will end soon. See you soon!

Blood Orange Polenta Cake
Makes a 7 inch round cake

180 g unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup castor sugar
2 tbsp finely zested blood oranges
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 eggs
1 cup polenta
1 cup self raising flour
100 g almond meal
3/4 cup blood orange juice

Mascarpone Frosting
110 g mascarpone cheese
1/2 cup whipping cream
2 tbsp icing sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla essence

Blood Orange Syrup
1 cup fresh blood orange juice
3/4 cup castor sugar

Preheat oven to 170 degrees C. Grease the base and sides of a 7 inch round pan and line the base with baking paper.

Beat the butter, sugar, orange zest and vanilla extract together until smooth and creamy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.
Place polenta, flour and almond meal in a bowl. Add the polenta mixture to the butter mixture alternating with the blood orange juice.

Pour into the prepared pan. Smooth the top with the back of a spoon. Bake for 50-60 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean. Remove from oven, Set aside for 1o minutes. Turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely. Once cooled, spread mascarpone frosting, drizzle with orange syrup and top with sliced blood oranges and fresh mint.

To make the Mascarpone frosting : Beat mascarpone cheese,whipping cream, icing sugar and vanilla together in a bowl until smooth and fluffy. Refrigerate until needed.

To make the Blood Orange Syrup : Place the orange juice and sugar in a small saucepan and bring to a boil over low heat. Simmer for 5-7 minutes until the syrup thickens. Please note that the syrup will thicken further upon cooling.

Orange Creme Caramel

21|04|2014

Peeking through my cold frosted window every morning, hoping to get a glimpse of the sun, I am coming to embrace the changes of the season. The sun is late in rising and so are we. Perhaps that is a convenient way for me to interpret the changes that come about with cold weather. Sleep is so dear and so welcome. Or is it Citrus that makes it obvious. Citrus fruits are everywhere and the only excuse for not using them in a recipe is probably eating them as they are. Maybe not lemon and lime. My new way of enjoying them are squeezing the juice into tea. But Oranges..there are more dishes to try on my wish list than I could fit into one season.

Crème Caramel, a dessert that I can associate with my growing up years. When tortes, tarts or for that matter even mousse was not that popular where I lived. It was served in smaller individual portions and I liked it that way. But today, convenience takes precedence over anything else and a single round pan works great for me. It has the charm of a after-dinner centrepiece much like a cake without a lot of effort.

There are many flavour variations of this dessert out there and a few different recipes too. I have tried out a few and I find that a combination of eggs and egg yolks yields a fabulous texture. Smooth, creamy but enough to hold shape and can be easily sliced into portions.

Orange Crème Caramel (adapted with variation from Coles recipes)
Serves 6

3/4 cup castor sugar (for the caramel)
1/4 cup water
1 cup milk
300 ml heavy or thickened cream
2 tsp orange zest
1/4 cup castor sugar (for the custard)
3 eggs
3 egg yolks
1 orange, sliced into small wedges
1/2 cup strawberries, hulled and sliced

Preheat oven to 160 degrees C. Place sugar in a medium saucepan with 1/4 cup water. Stir over low heat, without boiling, until sugar has dissolved. Increase heat slightly and bring to the boil. Cook, without stirring, for about 7 mins, or until mixture is a deep golden-caramel colour. Use a wet pastry brush to brush away any crystals from the side of the pan.

Stand a 19 cm round cake tin in a baking dish, and pour the caramel over the base of the cake tin (take care as the tin will get hot). Set aside to cool completely.

Combine milk, cream and orange zest in a saucepan. Bring to the boil, then immediately turn off the heat. Stand for 5 mins.

Whisk extra sugar, eggs and yolks until combined. Pour milk mixture onto egg mixture, stirring constantly. Strain the custard into cake tin over the caramel. Pour hot water around the tin to come halfway up the sides. Bake for 50 mins to an hour, or until set. Cool completely, then refrigerate overnight. Turn out onto a serving plate and cut into wedges. Serve with fresh oranges and strawberries