Blood Orange Posset with Orange Shortbread

I’ve been looking forward to blood orange season, now it’s finally arrived my Instagram feed is full of these ruby red fruits.

I’ve been thinking long and hard about what I was going to make with them, this idea just popped into my head one night while I was lying in bed! I thought with the pretty colour it would make the perfect valentines dessert, and only having a few ingredients it doesn’t cost the earth to make which is great. It’s also very easy to make but still looks like a dessert you’d be served in a fancy restaurant!!

Photograph of Blood Orange Posset with Orange Shortbread baked by Jane.
Photograph of Blood Orange Posset with Orange Shortbread baked by Jane.
Photograph of Blood Orange Posset with Orange Shortbread baked by Jane.

Blood Orange Posset

Makes 4

Note: The redder blood oranges will give you the best colour to make this dessert the pretty shade of blush, I had to cut a few open to choose the brightest ones.

Ingredients

  • 300ml double cream 
  • 70g caster sugar
  • 90ml blood orange juice, about 2 small oranges
  • Zest of one blood orange

Method

  1. Zest both your oranges and keep about half the zest aside to make your shortbread later.
  2. Add the zest from one orange to the cream and caster sugar in a small saucepan, bring to the boil stirring constantly to dissolve the sugar.
  3. Take off the heat, squeeze your oranges and whisk the juice into the hot cream mixture.
  4. Strain through a sieve into a jug to remove the zest, pour the mixture into your chosen jars or glasses.
  5. Leave to cool to room temperature then cover with clingfilm and chill in the refrigerator for several hours or overnight. 

Orange Shortbread Hearts

Makes 20 small biscuits

Ingredients

  • Zest of 1 blood orange
  • 225g plain flour 
  • A pinch of flakey sea salt 
  • 100g caster sugar, plus extra for sprinkling 
  • 150g unsalted butter at room temperature

Method

  1. To make the shortbread, preheat the oven to 160°C fan oven.
  2. Place the flour, caster sugar and salt in a food processor, pulse to combine, add the diced butter and orange zest and process until it begins to clump together in a dough. You can also do this by hand if you wish by rubbing the butter into the dry ingredients with your fingertips then bringing together until you have a crumbly dough.
  3. Been as the dough is quite crumbly I put it between two sheets of greaseproof paper and gently roll it out until it’s about 1cm thick. Put the dough with the paper still on it onto a baking tray and chill it for about half hour or until firm. Once the dough is firm remove the top piece of paper and use it to line a baking tray, cut out your shapes, my heart cutter was about 5cm but you can use any shape you like, just remember if it is a bigger cutter you may need to bake them slightly longer. Space out on the baking tray, re-roll the scraps of dough and cut out some more. 
  4. Bake in a preheated oven for 18-20 minuets or until the edges are lightly golden. Allow to cool on the tray for a few minutes before removing to cool on a wire rack, sprinkle with caster sugar while still warm.

Shortbread will keep for a week in an airtight container.

Author

Published by Jane Lewis

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In 2015 I made it through to the last 50 in the last audition of The Great British Bake Off. Sadly I wasn't chosen for the programme but I need to carry on my journey as I can't imagine my life without baking.

I'd love to start writing my own recipes. So what better place to do it than starting a blog.