Chef and restaurateur Ben Tish shares his ‘love letter to the blood orange’ in the shape of this refreshing dessert – from his latest cookbook, Moorish
IMAGE: KRIS KIRKHAM
This recipe is a love letter to the blood orange. The blood orange, a slightly bittersweet citrus fruit, is only available in the winter months after Christmas. Aside from the delicious flavour of the blood orange itself, which I absolutely love, it is also the crazy colouring of the flesh that gets me excited.
The colours of the blood orange rainbow are an intoxicating swirl of yellow, orange, pink, purple and red, offering the willing participant a gastronomic, psychedelic freak-out. It’s a culinary trip well worth taking!
Blood Orange and Saffron Jelly with Blood Orange Granita
Ingredients
Jelly
- 700 ml blood orange juice from 9–10 oranges
- 175 g caster sugar
- ½ teaspoon saffron threads
- 7 small sheets/leaves gelatine 14g in total
Granita
- 220 g caster sugar
- 500 ml blood orange juice from 7–8 oranges
Instructions
- For the jelly, pour the orange juice into a saucepan and add the sugar and saffron threads. Place over a medium heat, whisking to dissolve the sugar. Meanwhile, soak the gelatine in cold water to soften it. Drain the gelatine and squeeze out excess water, then whisk into the hot juice until completely melted.
- Strain the mix through a sieve and pour into individual glasses or a large serving bowl. Cover and place in the fridge. Leave to set for about 4 hours.
- For the granita, put the sugar and 300ml of water into a saucepan. Bring to the boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar, then boil over a high heat to create a sugar syrup. Whisk in the blood orange juice. Pour the mix into a bowl and set aside to cool down.
- Once cold, pour the syrup into a freezerproof container and freeze, every hour scraping through with a fork until the syrup is completely frozen and resembles snow.
- Serve the jelly alongside the granita for an incredibly fresh and light finish to a dinner.
Recipe taken from Moorish by Ben Tish, (Bloomsbury Absolute, £26). Photography by Kris Kirkham. Out now.
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