You've seen them on the dessert cart every time you went out for dim sum. But the lure of the custard tarts and the sesame balls has always been too strong, so you've never actually tried the jelled fruit slices. So here's a quick and easy way to make them at home, using the tart and tangy blood oranges currently in season in California, to boot.
These are a wonderful finish to any meal, like a stir-fry of gingered shrimp and snow peas. Not eating animal products? The same effect can be had using agar agar dessert sticks or powder, found at most Japanese grocers.
Blood Orange Jelly Smiles
Start by halving 3-4 blood oranges horizontally and squeezing out 3/4 cups of juice. With the edge of a spoon, scrape out the insides of the halves as closely as you can, down to the whites, and set them upright on a tray.
In a bowl, bloom one package of gelatin in 1/4 cup cold water for one minute. Heat the juice until nearly boiling in either a pan or the microwave, and add a few tablespoons of sugar or honey to taste. Mix the juice into the gelatin, and fill as many cleaned orange halves as you can (likely 4-5). It's okay if you don't reach the top exactly - you can trim the edges later.
Chill for 3 hours, and then slice into smiles. When done properly, you should experience Proustian flashbacks to snack time at elementary school.
This is by Sarah, who is up for one of our new writer positions. Welcome Sarah!
© 2010 Apartment Therapy
What exactly does to bloom mean?
"In a bowl, bloom one package of gelatin in 1/4 cup cold water for one minute."
I've never heard that used before...
view ktoth04's profile
Not something I've ever seen on a dim sum cart....but now I'll be keeping my eyes peeled!
view Michelle of Montreal's profile
It's easier to set the orange halves in a muffin tin so they don't tip or slosh.
view angorian's profile
Ahh, I've seen these at Yank Sing and always wondered how they made them.
view Kathryn Hill's profile
How cool, I might try this with agar agar. I just bought blood oranges yesterday; the oranges prompted a lunchtime call from my husband asking if his orange was okay because the color was wrong.
view classiccook's profile
These looked good the first time I saw them.
Pichet Ong's (P*ong) frozen orange segments (via ulterior epicure) http://www.flickr.com/photos/ulteriorepicure/2191105065/
view art's profile
Love those Proustian flashbacks! I'm definitely going to try making these...
Also, I gotta say that your recipe instructions are very clear and easy to follow: merci beaucoup for that.
view mllemiki's profile
Yum! I was always a fan of jellied fruit slices. Never had them with a real rind instead of a sugary one before.
view verily's profile
What a fantastic idea, truly inspirational.
view foodiegirl's profile
This sounds like a great idea. Making it vegetarian with Agar Agar sounds even better. Maybe I'll add booze to mine. Gin and Vodka makes everything better ;P
Ktoth, The term bloom in cooking means to activate or hydrate in a liquid. It is most often used when yeast is used in a recipe. Yeast are kept in a dehydrated state and need a bit of time and moisture to come back to life.
view Comicgeek's profile
I made these this morning after randomly buying a bunch of blood oranges yesterday and my daughter was absolutely JOYOUS to find them on her plate for lunch's dessert. Perfect recipe, it was SO easy!
view brandi's profile