Tangerines are in season (and quite inexpensive at Costco!), and I was inspired by
Alex Guarnaschelli this weekend to turn them into a fancy, yet simple, dessert. Peel as many tangerines (or clementines) as you have guest, plus one for good measure, and separate the sections into a bowl. Heat a saute pan over a medium-high
flame until it is good and hot, and melt a tablespoon or two of butter in the pan. Toss the citrus sections into the pan, and pour a couple of tablespoons of honey over the top. Saute over high heat until the citrus is warmed through and beginning to caramelize. Take the pan off of the heat, pour a glug of Grand Marnier into the pan, and then tip the side of the pan into the flame to set the whole thing on fire. Bask in the adulation of your guests as they witness the pyrotechnics! After the flame burns down, remove the pan from the heat. Pour dollops of flambeed tangerines over scoops of vanilla ice cream and enjoy.
Eleven-year-old boys are a lot of fun to decorate cookies with. This year, we made the usual assortment of little and big gingerbread men. Inevitably, some lost appendages due to hazardous conditions (hungry little boys); here, an amputee gingerbread boy is getting a bloody stump. Other cookies became cyclops, got strange diseases that resulted in multicolored spots all over, etc. Another happy, holiday, family experience.
