The smell of mandarins is to me akin to Proust’s ‘episode of the madeleine.’ I am immediately transported back in time to my younger self, where, having climbed our mandarin tree and being hidden from view, I would gorge myself on mandarins for the entire day. We would always have a basket of mandarins from our garden around Christmas time, and, after having eaten the fruits, we would burn the skins in the fire pit, releasing their beautiful essential oils all around us. For me, there can be no Christmas without mandarins. The house where we live belonged to our great grandfather Amedeo, who not only planted most of our trees, but also cultivated a number of different medicinal plants. He used the bounties of this garden in all his experiments, which resulted in the creation of an orange liqueur known as Aurum. Aurum liqueur is still often used today in our region, where it is a key ingredient in many typical desserts, and an endless source of inspiration for me in the kitchen. I love using it in both savoury and sweet recipes, and adore pairing it with mandarins, as the combination enhances the taste profile of both ingredients.

Makes 4 portions

ROAST CHICKEN WITH MANDARINS AND AURUM

Ingredients:

1 whole chicken
Depending on their size, 6-10 mandarins (halved)
2 mandarins for the stuffing
Half a glass of Aurum (or any other orange liqueur)
Sprigs of sage and thyme
2 shallots (halved)
4 garlic cloves
1 tbsp. honey
1 tbsp. butter
1 tbsp. olive oil
Salt
Pepper
Extra butter

Set the oven on non-convection mode, and preheat to 180 °C. Then, cover the bottom of a large roasting pan with the halved mandarins. Stuff the chicken with the herbs, coarsely chopped mandarins, shallots, and 2 garlic cloves. Season the inside of the chicken well with the salt and pepper. Place the chicken over the mandarins, and add the rest of the garlic cloves around it. First, rub the skin of the chicken with a halved mandarin, followed by the butter. Season generously with salt and pepper, and add the honey and extra olive oil.

Place the chicken in the oven and cook for approx. 1 h 10 minutes. Then, remove the chicken from the oven, and increase the temperature to 220 °C. In the meantime, scoop some of the gravy from the bottom of the roasting pan and pour it over the chicken. Repeat a few times before placing the chicken back into the oven for another 10-15 minutes until perfectly golden and cooked.

Remove the chicken from the pan and be sure to drain all of its juices into a saucepan. Then, squeeze in some of the roasted mandarins and heat the liquid in the saucepan until it begins simmering; add the Aurum, let the alcohol evaporate, and then add the extra butter. Taste and season a little more if needed.

Wait until the gravy reduces and begins to thicken.

Finally, carve the chicken and serve it with the gravy and some roasted potatoes.

AURUM PANETTONE WITH CANDIED MANDARINS AND ALMONDS

Makes one 1 kg panettone

Ingredients:

(For the candied mandarins)

500 g organic mandarins
250 g sugar
250 g water

(For the panettone)

500 g strong white flour
130 g extra-fine sugar
150 ml water and Aurum mixture (75 ml + 75 ml)
100 g butter (cubed)
5 g salt
7 g fresh yeast
1 tsp. honey
2 eggs
1 egg yolk
Zest from one orange
Zest from one lemon
150 g raisins soaked in Aurum liqueur and drained
100 g chocolate chips (it’s best to freeze them before use)
150 g candied mandarin slices (cut into chunks)

(For the glaze)

40 g almond flour
10 g cornstarch
100 g granulated sugar
1 egg white
Confectioners’ sugar
A few drops of almond essence
A handful of slivered almonds

Rinse the mandarins and slice them into pieces (4 mm in thickness). Remove the seeds before placing the cut mandarins into a large pot (together with the water and sugar) and allow them to boil at low/medium temperature for about an hour until the mandarins’ skins are soft and transparent, and the liquid is reduced to a syrup. Leave the mandarins in this liquid until completely cool.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, place the flour, crumbled fresh yeast, sugar, honey, cubed cold butter, eggs, the egg yolk, lemon and orange zests, and half of the water/Aurum mixture (75 ml). Mix briefly at low speed using a dough hook attachment.

Then, add the rest of the Aurum/water mixture (the remaining 75 ml) and salt. Knead the dough for about 10-15 minutes, then proceed to increase and decrease the speed for a few minutes respectively until all the flour is absorbed and the dough comes together in a fairly smooth ball. Add the raisins, chocolate chips, and candied mandarins, and keep mixing the dough at low speed until all ingredients are well combined. Butter your hands and turn the dough out onto a lightly-floured counter before beginning to pat the dough into a round shape. Place the dough into a lightly-greased bowl and cover with cling film. Let it rise for about 30 minutes before placing it into the fridge overnight (about 8 hours for me).

The next day, remove the dough from the fridge and place it somewhere warm (about 30 °C). Let the dough rise until it doubles in size (2-3 hours). Then, work the dough on a floured surface for a few minutes before placing it inside a panettone mould (I use a 750 g classic paper mould) and let it rise again until it peeks over the top of the pan – about 2 hours (when in doubt, it’s better to under-proof the dough rather than over-proof it, so bake it when you think it’s just about ready.)

Combine the egg white with the almond flour, cornstarch, and almond essence, proceed to beat lightly with a whisk, and then keep aside.

When the panettone is ready to be baked, coat it with the almond mixture, the slivered almonds, and a generous dusting of sugar. Allow it to bake at 185 °C for about 45 minutes in a non-convection oven. If the panettone begins darkening too much, cover with aluminium foil and continue baking. When done, test with a toothpick to see if it’s ready.

Remove the panettone from the oven and allow it to cool at room temperature before enjoying it. Delicious when served with custard or a dark chocolate sauce!

Enjoy! xx

Mandarins and Aurum