Orange Citrus Tart with Mascarpone Custard

orange tart

This orange citrus tart is the perfect remedy for the doldrums of winter. It’s bright, citrus-y and it looks like sunshine! If you want a nice light dessert, here’s your answer! Yes, there is a custard made with creamy mascarpone cheese, but it doesn’t require much, just enough to give the sliced oranges a delicious, creamy base.

orange tart

I made this tart using a prepared pie crust which made it quite easy to pull together. If you have a Trader Joe’s near you, that’s the one I use (not sponsored).

tart ingredients

Because there are so few ingredients in this tart make sure you use quality mascarpone and good quality vanilla. I made a batch of my own vanilla back in September and I just started using it now.

I also love the flavor and quality of vanilla bean paste which is easy to find, just don’t get any thing that says “imitation vanilla”.

As far as what type of oranges to use, that’s your choice. I always have a surplus of citrus laying around this time of year so I used some navels along with cara cara and a Sumo orange, if I had a blood orange I would have added that because of it’s gorgeous color!

orange tart

Keep in mind this is not a rich dessert, it’s fresh and light tasting, so if you’ve had a heavy meal you can end it on a light note with a slice of this orange citrus tart.

tart slice

Calling all orange lovers, this one’s for you!

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5.0 from 2 reviews
Orange Citrus Tart with Mascarpone Custard
 
Bright and citrusy and brimming with bright flavors!
Author:
Ingredients
  • 1- 12 inch tart pan
  • 3 large oranges, outer peel and pith removed then sliced for layering. You can mix up any variety you like
  • 1 pastry crust, you can also use puff pastry and phyllo but all crusts need to be placed into a tart pan for stability
  • 3 eggs beaten
  • ¼ cup sugar plus 2 tablespoons to sprinkle on top
  • ¼ cup plus 2 heaping tablespoons of room temperature mascarpone cheese
  • 1 heaping teaspoon of good quality vanilla or vanilla bean paste
  • 1 tablespoon orange zest
Instructions
  1. Pre-heat oven to 375
  2. Place your crust into your tart pan. ( if using phyllo use 6-8 sheets brushed with butter in between the layers). Then place the tart pan onto a rimmed baking sheet for easy in and out of the oven.
  3. FOR THE CUSTARD
  4. In a bowl add the mascarpone, grab your hand mixer and make sure there are no lumps, then add in ¼ cup of sugar and mix in 1 egg at a time then the vanilla and zest.
  5. Pour the mascarpone mixture all over the pastry crust then place your sliced oranges all around, single layer.
  6. Sprinkle remaining 2 tablespoons of sugar all around.
  7. Place the tart into the oven until the top is slightly golden, the mascarpone mixture sets and the crust is nice and golden. 30 minutes or so, but ovens do vary so watch and test it.
  8. Let it cool down completely before serving, refrigerate any leftover.
  9. Optional: While still warm you can brush on a thinned out orange marmalade all over the oranges.

 

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Winter Citrus Salad Guaranteed to Brighten Your Day

citrus salad

Start the new year off right with this bright, winter citrus salad. It’s a welcome change from all the holiday and comfort foods we’ve been indulging in. Winter citrus is definitely a bright spot I look forward to when it finally arrives.

Not only is it refreshing but it perks up our taste buds and it’s also loaded with vitamins. For this salad I strictly used cara cara oranges, they’re my favorite and I always buy a bunch when I see them. I would have used a blood orange in this salad as well but it seems they’re hard to find in my neck of the woods this year.

You can use any citrus of your choice to make this salad, the brighter the color the better!

citrus salad

This salad is composed on a platter and is easy to assemble but first you need to slice up your citrus really pretty, removing as much of the pith as possible for a lovely presentation.

I use a serrated knife and cut off the top and bottom of the orange so it can stand flat. Then proceed to take off the peel by slicing from the top to the bottom following the curve of the fruit.

Take off only the peel and the white pith, as much as you can see leaving the flesh naked, then turn the fruit on it’s side and carefully slice crosswise.

citrus salad

There are no exact measurements here, your aim is to fill and arrange your platter with all the ingredients dispersed all around starting off with fresh arugula as the base. This salad is all about color!

Then thinly sliced fennel and radish rounds, the slices of citrus, small sized rings of red onion, nicoise olives, toasted hazelnuts, pomegranate seeds and some fennel fronds for garnish.

The vinaigrette is made with equal parts olive oil, fresh squeezed orange juice, a tablespoon or two of white balsamic vinegar, a dollop of dijon to thicken it up a bit and salt and pepper.

Whisk it up and spoon it all over the salad right before you serve it.

There’s a bounty of citrus all around so now is the time to make good use of it!

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Citrus Fruit Ideas to Brighten the Winter Blues

citrus caprese

It’s the beginning of a new year and as I look forward to spring I must admit one of the things I do like about winter is all the beautiful citrus that is available. Maybe it’s the way it makes you feel after over indulging during the holidays, it’s fresh, bright and very healthy for you, and who doesn’t need a good dose of vitamin C during these cold winter days.citrus

Every time I go food shopping I fill my cart with orange citrus, my three favorite varieties are navel, Cara Cara and blood oranges, each have a unique and special flavor on their own and I love to mingle them together.citrus caprese

While I patiently wait for my summer tomato caprese salad, this winter caprese has become my cold weather favorite.

You don’t need a recipe, just layer your favorite sliced oranges with fresh mozzarella, just like you would a tomato caprese. Lay it all on a bed of arugula with an optional sliced red onion ring in between.

 

The dressing is simply fresh squeezed orange citrus juice that is whisked with good olive oil, ( you could add a little white balsamic or champagne vinegar to the mix if you wish) the bitterness of the arugula against the sweetness of the orange and the creaminess of the fresh mozzarella is the perfect combination, especially when the dressing mingles all over it.citrus slicescitrus and fennelcitrus salad

I’ve been making a few other citrus salads as well, one has sliced oranges with fennel, red onion, creamy avocado, a little bit of arugula and toasted hazelnuts.

 

The other one is a huge bunch of arugula, orange slices and toasted hazelnuts, I love the bitter with the sweet. Both are simple to put together and they compliment any protein you might be eating, I especially love it with fish and seafood.citrus with crab cakes

On New Years Day I made this salad along with crab cakes, they complimented each other perfectly with the richness of the crab and the brightness of the citrus.citrus salsa

Citrus in the form of salsa is outrageously good, make it like you would any other salsa only with various varieties of orange segments, chopped jalapeno, cilantro or parsley, red onion and a drizzle of olive oil.

citrus salsa

The salsa’s are wonderful to top off scallops, shrimp, salmon, whitefish, basically any fish, plus it’s light and healthy something we all need after the holidays.citrus with cod

Here’s a one pan meal that is so delicious and it will surely brighten a cold winter day, my baked cod with blood orange, fennel and olives.
citrus with cod

Citrus fruits are not only refreshing they actually make you feel better, there must be a reason why these sunny fruits are available during the darkest time of the year. How many more days til spring?

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Herb and Citrus Roasted Chicken

herb and citrus chicken I know I’m posting this on Meatless Monday, but save it for another day, a midweek meal or even a special occasion, it’s that good, it’s simple to make and the bright colored citrus makes it look elegant and pretty!

It’s filled with juicy fresh lemons and oranges, lots of garlic and herbs and when roasted together the flavors are divine!

herb and citrus chicken I found this recipe on Pinterest and was instantly drawn to it, you can use a whole cut up chicken, other chicken parts or you can adapt the recipe like I did using just the breasts, either way it’s bullet- proof!

herb and citrus chicken The citrus juice mingles perfectly with the olive oil, garlic and herbs, a nice bright dish on a cold winter day!

herb and citrus chicken 

Herb and Citrus Roasted Chicken
 
Ingredients
  • 2 bone in, skin on chicken breasts, or other chicken parts
  • 5 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 tablespoons honey
  • 2 whole lemons, one juiced and one sliced
  • 2 whole oranges, one juiced and one sliced
  • 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning, dried
  • 1 teaspoon , garlic or onion powder
  • red pepper flakes, a good pinch
  • 1 medium red onion, sliced
  • ¼ cup of olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
  • fresh thyme and rosemary
  • salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
  1. Heat oven to 400 degrees
  2. Whisk together the olive oil, honey, lemon and orange juice,dried seasoning,paprika, red pepper flakes, onion or garlic powder, salt and pepper.
  3. Place chicken into a baking dish and pour mixture on top turning to coat all sides, at this point you can let it marinate for a little while if you have the time for even more flavor infusion.
  4. Arrange the sliced citrus and onion all around and underneath the chicken.
  5. Place fresh thyme and rosemary throughout and a good drizzle of olive oil.
  6. Roast uncovered for about an hour or until juices run clear and chicken is fully cooked.

 

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Baked Cod with Blood Orange, Fennel and Olives

baked cod with blood orange and fennel Are you having the winter blahs? Here’s a dish that will perk up all your senses, it’s light, bright, healthy and super flavorful and most likely a nice diversion from all the Super Bowl snacking you might have done.

cod with blood orange and fennel It’s so simple to make, everything goes in one baking dish, the more colors the better! You could use any white fish you like, I bought fresh Alaskan Cod that was on sale at Whole Foods but it would be equally good with sea bass or even halibut.

cod with blood orange and fennel I’ve seen fish cooked with blood orange and fennel before but I thought the addition of yellow peppers, olives, red onions, tomatoes and garlic would pop out the flavors even more, and it did!

baked cod with blood orange and fennel The mild sweetness of the fennel and peppers, the citrus flavor from the oranges, the briny olive taste, the juice from the tomatoes along with the garlic and onions, I promise you’ll be smacking your lips!

baked cod with blood orange and fennel A quick midweek meal or a dish pretty enough to serve to guests!

Baked Cod with Blood Orange and Fennel
 
Ingredients
  • Feel Free To Double Recipe!
  • ½ lb. fresh cod
  • 1 blood orange, peel cut off all around, then sliced
  • 1 bulb of fennel, sliced thin into strips
  • ½ red onion, sliced
  • 1 large yellow pepper, cut into thin strips
  • 3 garlic cloves, shaved
  • handful grape tomatoes, cut in half
  • handful of kalamata olives
  • fennel fronds
  • chopped parsley
  • olive oil
Instructions
  1. Drizzle oilve oil on the bottom of a shallow baking dish.
  2. Scatter ¾ of the veggies, citrus and olives on top, adding another drizzle of oil all over.
  3. Place fish on top and add remaining vegetables and other all around making sure to place some blood orange slices on top of the fish.
  4. Scatter fresh chopped parsley and fennel fronds all around.
  5. Season with salt and pepper.
  6. Douse everything again with olive oil!
  7. Bake uncovered at 400 F. for 15 minutes or until fish is done according to thickness and veggies are soft.
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SAVORY RICOTTA BUNDLES WRAPPED IN PANCETTA!!

First I have to say, this it not my recipe, I discovered this little gem while sipping on a latte at Borders bookstore and looking through the latest Donna Hay magazine. She had a whole section on ricotta, which really interested me. I never did purchase the magazine, but I definitely made a mental note of these. They are very easy to make, so refreshing and light!! I have been craving something citrus so I knew just the thing to pair it with! Now I don’t quite remember the name Ms. Hay gave these, ( you’ll have to check out the magazine). But to me they are little ricotta bundles,so savory and so good!!! If you’re looking for a light lunch or dinner ( and you love ricotta!) you got to try these. And whats really nice, you can make a whole bunch, keep them in the frig, all you have to do is warm them slightly in the microwave. When they’re warmed all the flavors come out.

Simply mix about 1lb or more of ricotta, with 1 cup of Parmesan, (I used Romano) 1 egg, I added some lemon peel, salt and pepper. That’s it!!

Next take a muffin tin, sprayed with oil and line it with 1 piece of Pancetta, scoop the ricotta mixture on top. Bake at 350 degreesF for about 30 min. or until set and golden.
I placed them into a salad mixed with Romaine and Arugula, whipped up a fresh lemon and olive oil dressing to pour on top, and then topped it off with some toasted pine nuts.

Give them a try, if you’re craving something light and refreshing!

Buon Appetito!!!

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