RCP and Recipe Challenge: Flakey Blood Orange Tart

Making mine right now.

rwj

Go, Robert! Go, Robert! Go, Go, Go!

And she is in the freezer! I will probably bake her in the morning as I don't want to be up late baking tonight. Like I said, I was going to do mine with a twist. I candied the slices like we discussed but instead of making a tart like Jo Ann I made a galette like in the original pic. My twist is that I did a Chocolate Meyer Lemon Crust. Here are the pics.

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rwj

I have no idea why they are loading as thumbnails now. It wasn't like this a few days ago.

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rwj

Wow, your oranges are really red. I saw some like that at the supermarket, but hought the dark red tinge and slightly dry look to the peel meant they were a bit past their prime. I now know better. That looks soooooo good! Keep us posted.

I have no idea why they are loading as thumbnails now. It wasn't like this a few days ago.

Beats me too. I loaded something in F&F and can't work out why it loaded as a thumbnail. Mucked around with size and all with no diff to the result.

And here she is, fresh out of the oven!

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Tasting will be done momentarily with other's thought throughout the day.

rwj

[Jenise]

I have no idea why they are loading as thumbnails now. It wasn't like this a few days ago.

rwj

Robin was playing Dr. Frankenstein and threw a switch he thought would make everything all better. It didn't. I believe he's reversed that step, but it might not undo any pictures posted during Thumbnail Time.

Allrighty...I'm slightly biased here since I made the thing but I love the taste. I only put a Tbsp of cocoa in the crust along with the zest of 1 meyer lemon. I mixed some of the lemon juice with the ice water when making the dough. Just like I wanted, the oranges are the dominant flavor. There is just a hint of chocolate resonating on the palate along with a little citrus boost from the lemon. So I'll take credit for goal #2. What a hoot these little challenges are!

rwj

[Jenise]

Allrighty...I'm slightly biased here since I made the thing but I love the taste. I only put a Tbsp of cocoa in the crust along with the zest of 1 meyer lemon. I mixed some of the lemon juice with the ice water when making the dough. Just like I wanted, the oranges are the dominant flavor. There is just a hint of chocolate resonating on the palate along with a little citrus boost from the lemon. So I'll take credit for goal #2. What a hoot these little challenges are!

rwj

Bitter orange and dark chocolate are a classic pairing--I think your crust was brilliantly creative. And "she" looks lovely. I love looking at these photos, how we all take the one concept and then make our own version of it. The same recipe will result in as many different versions as there are cooks. Mine (pictures to follow) looks nothing like yours or Jo Ann's.

I planned to make a free-form tart if the crust would hold that shape, which it did. What I call free-form is about halfway between Jo Ann's formal pan tart and your galette. No pan, but less edge.

So, first wrinkle: the blood oranges I intended to use came from Stella's tree in California. On my last trip I brought home a big box of mixed citrus from various friend's yards. I knew Stella mentioned blood oranges, and I know Stella's oranges aren't very sweet, so I had in mind some form of candying to put back some of the sugar that should have been naturally there but wasn't. I did not look in the bag Stella gave me until I went to get the oranges out yesterday, however. What was in there? Lemons, and one blood orange. Thank goodness I'd bought some "Heirloom navals", they were called, a few days before, so those got pressed into service.

I used four naval oranges and one blood orange.

I did not cut supremes. I adore circular shapes and love the radial look of sliced oranges, so I decided to go with what nature provides. All the navals were peeled and sliced. To ensure uniformity, I ate the end pieces.

I elected not to peel the blood orange because I love the bitter peel flavor in modest quantity, but I decided to tame it with a blanching. I tasted an end piece and confirmed that it was pretty sour, just as I'd thought, and would benefit from an infusion of sugar. So I sliced the orange and nipped each edge with scissors a few times to keep the slices from cupping, blanched them, dipped all but two slices in sugar and then put them in the hydrater at 160F for two hours. The two undipped slices went into the hydrator nekkid, just to confirm later that I was right about sugaring. Right move--the sugar helped the slices stay moist so they got chewier instead of just drier. They were both better tasting and more attractive both before and after baking.

While the blood orange slices dehydrated, the naval slices drained in a colandar. I then assembled the tart. I baked it on parchment on the rack just as the directions said with some misgivings. Can't say I'd do that again vs simply baking it on a baking sheet (with or without parchment). It's a method I've not done before and I'd hoped that the crust would be crustier this way, but I don't think it was at all. No loss--learned something.

But I loved the finished tart. Using citrus fruit this way is brand new to me and a revelation. Loved the orange flavor, loved the amount of peel in the tart, loved the way the candied/dehydrated blood orange slices singed slightly during baking. Can't wait to do it again with all blood oranges. Here are my pictures, before and after baking.

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Thanks, Jenise! And I think yours is just beautiful!!!!! I love the radial look to it and how you used peeled slices instead of supremes. I think that I will go for that next time, too. I love doing these things.

rwj

Edit: Our Chef de Cuisine, Paul Schunder, just tasted mine and had the following comments:

"There is a good balance; just a little tart up front with everything coming together in the back. It [makes me pucker] just the tiniest bit. I like how the chocolate just sort of bounces around. If I had ordered this in a restaurant I would have been real happy."

Wow, guys. I'm awe stricken. All so bloody beautiful! I'm really jealous that I didn't think of altering the crust like Robert. I would have used one with nuts -- never tried chocolate before. I'll definitely think of that next time. Jenise's looks so juicy and plump. That is an idea to remember as well. Pile it up! I don't have a dehydrater, but perhaps someone can give me some hints about how to do that using the oven. Great exercise. Can't wait for the next one.

I don't have a dehydrater, but perhaps someone can give me some hints about how to do that using the oven.

Low and slow. 200 degrees for about 12 hours should do it; maybe longer, just keep your eye on it.

Thanks for the kind words, Jo Ann. I think that they all look beautiful. I can't wait for the next one, either. This is such fun!

By the way, the perfect wine match with these tarts would be a Hungarian Royal Tokaji.

rwj

By the way, the perfect wine match with these tarts would be a Hungarian Royal Tokaji.

rwj

Thx for the heads up, Robert. BTW, have you rated it on Snooth.com? You should drop in sometime. I don't know a great deal about wines. Trying to learn. I just looked this up -- Yikes!!!!! Which one, and how much should I expect to pay per bottle? I can tell you, $500 is out of the question.

I have no idea why they are loading as thumbnails now. It wasn't like this a few days ago.

rwj

Robin was playing Dr. Frankenstein and threw a switch he thought would make everything all better. It didn't. I believe he's reversed that step, but it might not undo any pictures posted during Thumbnail Time.

I actually like the thumbnails...

By the way, the perfect wine match with these tarts would be a Hungarian Royal Tokaji.

rwj

Thx for the heads up, Robert. BTW, have you rated it on Snooth.com? You should drop in sometime. I don't know a great deal about wines. Trying to learn. I just looked this up -- Yikes!!!!! Which one, and how much should I expect to pay per bottle? I can tell you, $500 is out of the question.

You should be able to get a 4 Puttonyos at approx. $45. Tokaji is my all time favorite wine.

rwj

[Jenise]

I don't have a dehydrater, but perhaps someone can give me some hints about how to do that using the oven.

Low and slow. 200 degrees for about 12 hours should do it; maybe longer, just keep your eye on it.

Thanks for the kind words, Jo Ann. I think that they all look beautiful. I can't wait for the next one, either. This is such fun!

By the way, the perfect wine match with these tarts would be a Hungarian Royal Tokaji.

rwj

A convection oven on 150 degrees with the fruit set on a rack should be able to duplicate the degree of dessication I achieved in 2-3 hours. I didn't want my fruit very dry, just chewier. Without convection air currents, a little longer.

Reviving an aged topic here, but how long can you keep the tart frozen before baking? 2 days, a week, longer? And I'm talking well-wrapped to prevent freezer burn.

[Jenise]

Reviving an aged topic here, but how long can you keep the tart frozen before baking? 2 days, a week, longer? And I'm talking well-wrapped to prevent freezer burn.

Robert, the rule of thumb with non-liquid, non-vacuum sealed frozen anything is three months and that rule would probably apply here. But sooner's always better!

Make 6 of them and try one every two months. Then get back to us with the results.

rwj

I stopped in at my local Wild Oats yesterday looking for the blood oranges, and not only did they have some, they were on sale. I got about a dozen, enough for two tarts plus a few to eat. One is going to be for Valentine's Day with Gail.

[Jenise]

I stopped in at my local Wild Oats yesterday looking for the blood oranges, and not only did they have some, they were on sale. I got about a dozen, enough for two tarts plus a few to eat. One is going to be for Valentine's Day with Gail.

That's pretty neat. I think she should keep you.

She already has that idea, Jenise! The best part of the VD festivities is that we have a cabin in the Arkansas hills reserved for next weekend (after V.Day). We will spend plenty of time under the stars in the hottub, sipping wine and... whatever...