Chocolate and Sea Salt Mandarin Oranges

Chocolate and Sea Salt Mandarin Oranges from Merry Thought

Orange and Chocolate Ice Cream

One of our family's favorite flavor combinations is chocolate and orange.  Ben and Jerry's used to make a flavor called Pulp Addiction:

It was the perfect combination of those two flavors.  PERFECT!   But sadly they retired it to the Flavor Graveyard.  Every year they resurrect one of the flavors and every year we wish and hope it will be Pulp Addiction, but it never is.

Dreyer's makes Swiss Orange:

It is an orange sherbet with chocolate chips.  It has become our substitute, but isn't quite as good as the real thing.

So for the fourth we are making both chocolate ice cream and orange ice cream in an attempt to create the perfect combination again.  I am using my all time favorite chocolate ice cream recipe. Seriously it is THE BEST!  It is a little bit of work and has to be made a day in advance, but it is SO worth it!  And we are going to try THIS orange ice cream recipe from Joy of Baking:

We have the ingredients all mixed together and chilling in the fridge.  I will tell you how it turns out, but if the mixture is any indication it is going to be GOOD!

Orange Ice Cream
from Joy of Baking

What you need:

1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
1/2 cup half and half
2 cups freshly squeezed orange juice (strain to remove pulp)
1/2 cup granulated white sugar
1 T fresh lemon juice
1 T orange zest (optional)
1 t pure vanilla extract

What you do:

In a large bowl or measuring cup, combine all the ingredients. Cover and place in the refrigerator until it is completely cold (several hours or overnight).

Transfer the mixture to the container of your ice cream machine and process according to the manufacturer's instructions. Once made, transfer the ice cream to a chilled container and store in the freezer. If the ice cream becomes too hard, place in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes before serving so it can soften.

makes about 3 cups

Chocolate and Orange

You may know that I have an obsession with all recipes that promote the marriage of chocolate and peanut butter. My husband feels the same way about chocolate and orange.

Every year when Ben and Jerry's has a contest to resurrect one of their flavors, we try our hardest to get enough votes for them to bring Pulp Addiction back from the dead. But alas, we haven't had any luck. So I am always looking for ways to feed his addiction.

One of the best ways I have found is cake. In any box cake, you can substitute the water for orange juice. So if I make a white or yellow cake, I can make it orange flavored by replacing the water with orange juice, and then frost it with chocolate frosting. Or you can do the same thing with the chocolate cake...but then you have to decide if you are going to frost it with orange frosting or chocolate frosting. Decisions, decisions.

So when I saw a recipe for Chocolate Orange Fudge on A Little Loveliness, I immediately knew it was a recipe I was going to have to try. And it looks pretty easy!

What you need:
2 1/2 cups (15 ounces) semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 (14-ounce) can fat-free Eagle Brand
Zest from one orange

What you do:

Line an 8-inch square pan with foil, and spray the bottom and sides with Pam. Melt chocolate chips with Eagle Brand in a saucepan, then stir in orange zest and remove from heat. Pour the mixture into the foil-lined pan, and chill for 2 hours or until firm. Pull the foil from the pan and slice the fudge into diamond shapes by cutting straight lines across the block of fudge one way, then cutting diagonal lines across the other way. Garnish with orange zest, if desired. Store tightly covered in the refrigerator.

White Chocolate Orange Cookies!

Sherelle's White Chocolate Orange Dream Cookies
-1 c. butter
-2/3 c. firmly packed light brown sugar
-1/2 c. white sugar
-1 large egg
-1 Tbs. grated orange rind
-juice from 1/2 orange
-1 tsp. orange extract
-3/4 tsp. salt
-1 pkg. white chocolate chips
Beat butter and sugars on medium speed until creamy. Add egg, orange rind, juice and extract. Mix well. Combine flour and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture. Stir in white chocolate chips. Roll or scoop into balls and bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes. ENJOY!

Got this from Sherelle's blog.

Chocolate Orange Cupcakes with Limoncello Frosting

Another one from Giada

Chocolate Orange Cupcakes with Limoncello Frosting

Cupcakes:
1 box chocolate cake mix
Orange juice (instead of water in cake mix)
1 cup chocolate chips
1 teaspoon all-purpose flour
1 cup diced candied orange peel (about 8 ounces)
Frosting:
2 cups powdered sugar
4 tablespoons butter, softened (1/2 stick)
2 tablespoons limoncello (you can substitute with 2 tablespoons lemon juice for minors)
2 tablespoons orange juice
1 orange, zested
1/4 cup finely diced candied orange peel, for garnish

Special equipment: cupcake liners, 2 muffin pans


To make the cupcakes: mix the chocolate cake mix according to package instructions, substituting orange juice for the water. Toss the chocolate chips with the flour. Fold the chocolate chips and the candied orange peel into the chocolate mixture. Line the muffin pan with the cupcake liners. Fill and bake the cupcakes according to package instructions. Let the cupcakes cool for 1 hour on a wire rack before frosting.
To make the frosting: combine all the ingredients except the candied orange peel in a medium bowl. Using a hand mixer, beat until smooth, about 2 minutes. Using a small spatula, place about 1 tablespoon of frosting on top of each cupcake. Top with a small sprinkle of candied orange peel.