Got Tangerines? Make A Mousse!
Of course I understand how someone might have asked, “Why exactly do you need 10 pounds of tangerines?” And that person would have been asking without even a hint of exaggeration, because I literally had 10 pounds of tangerines in the refrigerator.
To answer that question, let me just say I’m not sure it’s a matter of need. Maybe more like a slight urge to hoard, because I know good tangerines are seasonal and there will come a day when I won’t be able to just buy them whenever I want.
So, then I needed to do something with my stash. What a happy coincidence that we had a group of friends coming for the weekend. Since one of our dinners was beef stroganoff, I was looking for something light for dessert. A quick surf of the net yielded several recipes for tangerine mousse. A perfect solution to use some of the tangerines and provide just the kind of dessert I was picturing after a big, heavy meal.
This is a wonderful dessert. It’s light and airy, with just the right amount of tangerine-ness to give it flavor. At the risk of sounding like Dr. Seuss, let me say you can serve it in a spoon or you can serve it in a cup; you can eat it sitting down or you can eat it standing up.
Zesting and Juicing
If I was slightly intimidated by the process before I started, I quickly discovered it came together pretty easily. Turns out it’s not that difficult to properly dissolve unflavored gelatin or whip egg whites just so. And, I was able to prepare it in the morning and clean up my mess before our guests arrived without leaving any hint of the tangerine carnage. I served it in my vintage champagne glasses, but you could use any cup or parfait glass or martini glass. And I think the porcelain spoons
Happy Entertaining!
A double boiler does the job well.
A properly coated spoon.
Beat the egg whites to soft peaks.
And whip the cream until stiff.
Gently fold in the egg whites.
Mousse
Perfect for scooping mousse
Dessert is served, buffet style.
