Chocolate, blood orange, hibiscus, and campari

[tammylc]

What would you do with this flavor combination?

I'm thinking of doing a caramel pairing dinner with a line of "sweet and savory" caramels that Vosges and Zingerman's paired up to produce, and that's one of them. I was planning it for dessert, and thinking of a flourless chocolate cake with a blood orange-campari sorbet and a hibiscus sauce.

But I'm not sure about cake with sorbet - ice cream seems more appropriate, but can I make a blood orange ice cream?

Any other ideas for this flavor combination?

[chiantiglace]

I would keep the chocolate on the minimal side. Maybe make a chocolate ice cream to go with whatever else.

[RWood]

What would you do with this flavor combination?

I'm thinking of doing a caramel pairing dinner with a line of "sweet and savory" caramels that Vosges and Zingerman's paired up to produce, and that's one of them. I was planning it for dessert, and thinking of a flourless chocolate cake with a blood orange-campari sorbet and a hibiscus sauce.

But I'm not sure about cake with sorbet - ice cream seems more appropriate, but can I make a blood orange ice cream?

Any other ideas for this flavor combination?

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I think the richness of a flourless chocolate cake would be better with an ice cream, and I have made orange ice creams before. I usually reduce the orange juice first, then add it right before staining the base. When I have made a blood orange creme brulee, I used the blood orange concentrate from Perfect Puree, and it makes a really nice brulee. So, ice cream wouldn't be much different. I also have added candied zest after spinning. Sounds like an interesting combination.

[Darienne]

David L. gives a recipe for blood orange granita using the juice only. I have made his incredible Orange-Szechwan Pepper Ice Cream using the zest only from Navel Oranges...where we live we are pretty limited to one or two varieties of orange at a time.

I can't see why you can't take pretty much any orange ice cream recipe and substitute blood orange zest or blood orange juice for any other orange. I don't know if there is an ice cream recipe that uses orange pulp. Something else to research...

[tammylc]

Orange ice cream it is, then! (Guess I should have goggled that first.)

Spike the orange ice cream with campari? Put the campari in this hisbiscus sauce? Add it as a different component all together?

Hibiscus will infuse well into water, and then I could use that in a sugar syrup. Cook it for a while, and I could have a hibiscus brittle or something. Thoughts?

[Desiderio]

If I could I would add the campari into the ice cream, granita or sorbet, in Italy we usually drink Campari with a slice of orange, oh its yummy!! What about an hibiscus jello?

[pringle007]

Make a blood orange marshmallow creme as a topper

[Sentiamo]

The whole combination sounds delightful...right up my street!

I agree that if possible, add the Campari to an orange icecream but be aware that the high alcohol content will reduce finished product firmness but I guess that can be a good thing? No worrying about having it out of freezer 1/2 hr before service.

After years of living in Italy and learning to love a Bitter with Seltz each night I now add Campari to my marmalade each year.

ETA: Could you maybe use a Hibiscus flower as garnish rather than a sauce? Just wondering about introducing another flavour with chocolate and Campari/orange. They stand out pretty strongly on their own?

Edited June 24, 2009 by Sentiamo (log)

[KatieLoeb]

Why don't you substitute Aperol, Campari's orange flavored cousin (made by the same folks) for the grapefruit flavored Campari? It's just slightly less bitter and there's a lot going on there already without adding a fourth flavor to the mix...

[tammylc]

Why don't you substitute Aperol, Campari's orange flavored cousin (made by the same folks) for the grapefruit flavored Campari?  It's just slightly less bitter and there's a lot going on there already without adding a fourth flavor to the mix...

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It's for this wacky caramel pairing dinner. And the caramel for that course is flavored with blood orange and Campari, dipped in chocolate, and dusted in hibiscus powder. So that's my motivation for those particular flavors.

(The other caramels are sundried tomato, parmesan, anise myrtle, peanut butter, and bacon. I said it was wacky!)