Robert Wemischner

Yield: 4 generous servings.

In late winter and early spring, when tangerines in all their variety brighten farmer’s market stalls from Murcotts and Pixies to Kishus and Dancys, it’s hard to resist buying a few of this, a few of that and a few more of those until my refrigerator’s fruit bin is full. And beyond zipping off their skins and eating the fruits out of hand, I find myself juicing some, air-drying the zest of others to flavor tea or sugar and then turning the rest into the base for a satisfying and frankly addictive sorbet.

The idea here is to sandwich the sunny sweet-tart essence of tangerine sorbet between two halves of a crisp-tender shortcake. What results is a memorable seasonal dessert, all the more so because it is a dessert inspired by produce that is at its peak—right now, and only for a limited time.  A simple combination of sugar syrup (granulated sugar and water boiled together until the sugar dissolves) and fresh tangerine juice, the sorbet may be frozen a day in advance of serving (longer and it may lose its creamy personality and just-squeezed flavor). The shortcakes are a cinch to whip up and, if baked a half hour or so before serving and served slightly warm, complement the frozen sorbet perfectly, melting it just a bit and releasing its fragrant personality with each bite. The contrast between icy cold and warm elements makes the dessert that much more satisfying. And if you wish to add to the multisensorial experience, you might wish to top the sorbet with a layer of barely sweetened softly whipped cream and punctuate it with a few fillets of the fresh juicy citrus.

For the Tangerine Sorbet:

Yield: Approximately 1 pint

6 ounces granulated sugar
6 ounces water
15 ounces freshly squeezed tangerine juice, sieved

Make a simple syrup by bringing the sugar and water to the boil in a heavy medium-sized saucepan. Cook until the sugar is completely dissolved. Remove from the heat and allow to cool thoroughly. Then chill, covered, in the refrigerator until cold. Combine tangerine juice and the chilled simple syrup and place the mixture into an ice cream machine. Freeze according to the manufacturer’s directions. When almost fully frozen, remove from the machine and transfer to a covered container. Place in the freezer until ready to serve the dessert.

For the Cream Shortcakes:

Yield: 8 shortcakes, each measuring approximately 2 inches square by 3/4 inch high, about 1 pound of dough

7 ounces (approximately 1-1/2 cups) all purpose flour
2 t. baking powder
1/4 t. salt
1-3/4 ounces (approximately 1/4 cup) granulated sugar
6 T. (3 ounces) unsalted butter, cold
Scant 1/2 cup (approximately 3-3/4 ounces) heavy cream
Flour to coat surface while kneading and cutting the dough

Egg glaze:

1 egg yolk from 1 large egg
1 T. heavy cream
Pinch granulated sugar

Optional garnishes:

Heavy cream, softly whipped and sweetened with sugar slightly, if desired
Tangerine fillets

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. Stir in the sugar and mix to combine.  Cut the butter into the dry mixture until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add the heavy cream and stir just to moisten. At this point, the mixture should be shaggy and rough, only barely holding together. Remove the mixture to a lightly floured surface and knead gently until almost smooth. Now pat the mixture into a rough rectangle, measuring approximately 6 inches long by 4 inches wide  3/4 inches thick. Using a square cookie cutter measuring 2 inches on each side, cut the dough into as many 2 inch square shortcakes as possible. Pat any excess dough again into a rough rectangle without overworking and cut the remaining shortcakes from this dough.

Place the shortcakes on a parchment lined heavy gauge sheet pan. (If the pan is thin, place another sheet pan under it. This will prevent the bottoms of the shortcakes from browning too much.)

Prepare the egg glaze in a small bowl by whisking the yolk, cream and sugar together. Brush the tops of  the shortcakes lightly and evenly with the egg glaze. Bake on an oven rack set halfway up from the bottom of the oven for approximately 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown. Remove to a cooling rack and allow to cool to just lukewarm. (If you are making them earlier in the day on which you wish to serve the dessert, it’s a good idea to rewarm the shortcakes briefly in a hot oven. Then allow them to cool a bit before splitting and filling them.)

To serve the dessert:

Using a serrated knife, carefully split the shortcakes in half horizontally. Using an ice cream scoop, scoop the sorbet into generous mounds. Place one scoop on the bottom half of the shortcake. Top with the other half pressing down lightly to secure and serve immediately. If you wish, you might wish to serve each shortcake with softly whipped lightly sweetened whipped cream (either on the side or spooned as a layer into the shortcake) and a few fillets of tangerine (peeled and seeded, pith removed with a small sharp serrated knife).

Note: Each serving consists of two filled shortcakes.