This is my version of a flourless orange cake which I love to eat. It’s based on a classic Italian whole orange cake that is traditionally flourless (and gluten-free), relying on eggs to bind it, and whole oranges (pick seedless varieties) boiled in water until soft, then puréed. Polenta (cornmeal) lends a beautiful golden colour and the cake utilises a whole orange to provide a wholesome orange flavour! The skin contains a huge amount of aromatic oils that impart their beautiful citrus flavour and a hint of bitterness, and the pithy skin contains large amounts of fibre and pectins. Use a gluten-free baking powder to keep it gluten-free.
Serves 2 to 4 as a side dish
I have been baking olive oil cakes for years. I often make them for my kids’ birthdays—they are excellent for rainbow layer cakes and sturdy for decorating, and they also freeze well. (I always have homemade cakes in the freezer for my kids’ school lunches.) If you are a lazy baker like me, olive oil cakes are essential to have in your repertoire. Oil is much more forgiving than butter, and helps keep cakes moist. I like to use a fruity extra-virgin olive oil for a stronger taste, but use a lighter oil if you prefer. I adore the richness of this cake—the delicate savory undertones pair so elegantly with the herbaceous rosemary and zesty citrus. Feel free to omit the rosemary if you want a plainer finish. A simple yet impressive cake for all occasions.
Beware: The roast needs to be cooked in the oven for more than 3 hours, so plan accordingly. The result will be quite something, though. Yes, it’s very fatty meat, but that’s what makes this so delicious. This dish is impossible to ruin; if you leave it in the oven for 30 minutes too long it won’t matter. Serve with something fresh-zesty. I like the horseradish mustard (see recipe below), for example. Such a substantial roulade serves a crowd, and whatever you have left over (if you manage to not finish all of it) will still be delicious the day after.
To create a flavorful yet balanced “cooking” liquid for our Peruvian fish ceviche, we made what's known as a leche de tigre by blending lime juice, aji amarillo chile paste, garlic, extra-virgin olive oil, and a small amount of fish. Once strained, the liquid was an intensely flavorful and silky-textured emulsion. We then soaked thinly sliced and briefly salted fish (red snapper, sea bass, halibut, and grouper were all good options) in the leche for 30 to 40 minutes until it was just opaque and slightly firm. To complete the dish, we added sweet oranges; crisp, peppery radishes; and chopped cilantro. We served the ceviche with corn nuts and popcorn, which provided salty crunch.
Sweet, earthy beets and tangy, bright citrus are a heavenly pair, but when you toss some cool, crisp fennel into the mix you have a truly memorable trio.
The classic accents of briny olives and tart oranges balance the mellow sweetness of fennel when it is cooked until fork-tender.
The natural bite of the radishes is balanced by fresh basil, orange segments, and a simple citrus dressing.
A simple and delicious dessert, it is much more interesting when the caramel has a bitter edge.
This is my Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon salad. The two main ingredients -- carrot and avocado -- might not seem compatible or connected, but your first bite will convince you otherwise. The carrots are roasted with cumin and paired with orange, both classic pairings for the vegetable. The citrus goes great with cilantro, and both are a fine match for avocado. Before you know it, you have this fresh, vibrant salad. I love the carrots roasted to the same creamy softness of avocado. The contrast comes not from the texture but from the fact that one's warm from the oven and the other's cool from the fridge.