I will admit, this idea comes from Instagram – but I don’t remember the source. I saw this in the frantic lead up to Christmas cooking and I was intrigued but didn’t really pay that much attention. Until I finalized my menu for Christmas day brunch and realized I needed something fruity on the table. Now, admittedly this is fruit soaked in wine, but it is the holidays after all. So I had to kind of reconstruct what I remembered seeing on my feed. And let me tell you, what a surprise this is! Everyone raved, not only at the flavor but at how stunning these deep ruby jewels looked on the table. I served these with a big bowl of yogurt and some granola on the brunch display but enjoyed a leftover with some lightly sweetened oatmeal. Some of my family ate the clementines straight up. These would also be amazing with ice cream or beside a pound cake.
You certainly want a drinkable wine, but it does not need to be an expensive bottle of the finest. The orange peel of clementines come off very easily, but there is a veil of white pith left behind. Blanching the fruit and plunging in cold water makes it easy to trim that pit away. Then the segments can soak up the wine and tinge the whole fruits that lovely jewel tone. Plan accordingly – because the fruit needs to sit for a day, then another several hours after the poaching liquid is reduced to a syrup. But it can all be done ahead of the big day. If you have some extra clementines, make a Sticky Clementine Quick Bread.
Ingredients
8 small clementines
½ cup granulated sugar
1 ½ cups red wine
1 cinnamon stick
1 teaspoon whole cloves
½ teaspoon black peppercorns
3 cardamom pods, lightly crushed
2 star anise
½ vanilla bean
Directions
- Peel all the clementines. Prepare a large bowl of ice water and bring a large pot of water to the boil. Drop the peeled clementines in the boiling water for about 30 seconds, then lift them out with a slotted spoon and drop them in the ice water. Remove the clementines and pat them dry, then use a small paring knife to trim away all of the white pith. You can use a tea towel to rub away some of the excess.
- Put the red wine and ½ cup of water in a saucepan that fits all the clementines snugly. Add the sugar, cinnamon stick, cloves, cardamom pods and star anise. Split the vanilla bean open and scrape the seeds into the wine, then drop the bean in the pot. Bring to a simmer over medium heat and stir until the sugar is dissolved. Gently lower the clementines into the pot and simmer for about 20 minutes, gently turning each clementine over with a spoon about half-way through. Leave the clementines to cool, then transfer the clementines to an airtight container, then pour the wine over the top. Cover tightly and refrigerate at least overnight, but 3 days as fine. When you can, gently turn the clementines over in the wine so the brilliant red color can evenly penetrate.
- Eight hours to one day before you want to serve them, transfer the clementines to a plate and pour the wine into a small saucepan. Bring the the wine to a boil and reduce to a thin syrup. Strain out the spices. Put the clementines back in the container and pour over the syrup. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Scoop the clementines onto a serving plate or bowl and drizzle over the syrup.
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