mixed citrus, mascarpone, croissant, coriander honey syrup
the only name that makes sense for this versatile, 2 ways to serve it recipe
citrus is certainly one of the small joys of winter. once soup season and all the root veg start to feel a bit “been there, done that,” oranges, mandarins, pomelos and grapefruits come to the rescue. i personally think the single best way to eat in season citrus is to peel and eat it, plain and simple. however, since these are fruits are generally easy to pick up and purchase in bulk, if you use some for this (or another) recipe, you’ll have plenty left over to peel and snack on later.
in developing this recipe, i found myself turning to niki segnit’s the flavor thesaurus for pairing inspiration. when i came to coriander and orange, it says this:
look at a coriander seed close up. it could be a peeled mandarin from the kitchen table in a doll’s house. bite it and you’ll find it has an orange flavor too; like marmalade or seville orange peel with a cedar background.
whole coriander seeds are one of my favorite spices, so upon reading this, i knew what needed to be done. as segnit notes, the orange-y aromatics that are already in coriander pair so well with and round out the earthy flavors of oranges themselves, and with the added sweetness of honey, bitterness of grapefruit, delicate vanilla mandarin, and creamy richness of mascarpone, i think this flavor combination really shines here.
lately i’ve been seeing tons of citrus salads and various fruit-oriented toasts floating around, so i took inspiration from both to create this recipe (video here), named for its individual parts which can be adjusted, swapped, and served in two different ways, depending on your mood, how much time you have, and how you feel like eating: you’ll want to stick to the croissant toasts if you’re short on time and want to eat with your hands, the bowl version with croissant croutons takes a bit more time and is best eaten with a spoon.
this dish is not quite sweet enough to be a dessert (imho) but it certainly leans that way; i think it could be a great addition to a lazy weekend brunch but could just as easily make the case for it as a mid-morning snack or late night fridge raid when grilled cheese sounds just a bit too heavy.
coriander syrup, makes about 200 ml; can be made up to one month in advance
1 tablespoon coriander seeds
100 grams honey
100 milliliters water
to assemble; toast serves 4 as a snack or 2 as a light meal, bowl serves 2 as a light meal
2 butter croissants (preferably day-old)
1 blood orange (substitute: orange)
1 grapefruit (you will only use half, but i call for the whole, as it’s easier to work with for this preparation)
1 mandarin (substitute: clementine)
150 grams mascarpone cheese (substitute: creme fraiche, ricotta, plain labneh or greek yogurt)
flaky salt
black pepper
to make the coriander honey syrup, add coriander seeds to a small pot over medium heat. toast in the dry pot for about 3 minutes, or until very fragrant. add the honey and water and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. once boiling, turn the heat down to low and let it simmer until its thickened a bit and reduced by about 25%, it will take about 10 - 15 minutes. turn off the heat and transfer to a jar. let cool before covering and storing the fridge for up to one month; strain (or not) and use in cocktails, as a soak for cakes, over granola or cereal, in salad dressings, or over other sweet leaning toasts.
to make the toast version of this recipe, halve the croissants horizontally. add to a baking sheet and toast under your oven’s broiler until golden, about 3 minutes; you can also toast them in a hot frying pan with a little butter if desired. to make the bowl version of this recipe, preheat the oven to 175°C/350°F. halve croissants horizontally, then cut into bite-sized pieces. transfer to a baking sheet and toss with a little bit of olive oil. bake until golden brown and crisp, about 10 minutes, tossing halfway through.
slice off the top and bottom of the blood orange with a small knife. turn it so a flat side is directly on the cutting board, then use your knife to work from the top to the bottom, following the curve of the fruit, and slicing off as much of the peel and pith as possible while leaving the fruit flesh intact (see video linked in step 4 if you need a visual here). once you’ve removed the peel and pith, turn the orange onto its side again and slice into 1/4 inch rounds, removing any seeds along the way.
do the same to the grapefruit, but instead of slicing into rounds, use your knife to supreme the grapefruit (it helps to do this over a bowl if you can, to catch any juice). set half of the supremes (and any juice) aside for another use, or to eat later. this is a great, old video showcasing how to slice off the peel and pith and supreme citrus.
peel the mandarin with your fingers, then slice the segments in half. remove any seeds, peel them apart, and remove the thin skin around each segment.
to assemble the toast version of this recipe, place one toasted croissant on a plate, cut-side up. add a quarter of the mascarpone to each half. arrange about half of the slices of blood orange, grapefruit supremes, and mandarin pieces between each half. drizzle with some coriander honey syrup and top with flaky salt and black pepper. repeat for the second serving and serve immediately. to assemble the bowl version of this recipe, add half the mascarpone to a bowl. arrange half the citrus in one side of the bowl and half the croissant croutons on the other side. drizzle with coriander honey syrup and top with flaky salt and some black pepper. repeat for the second serving and serve immediately.