Spanish Dessert with Oranges, Honey and Hazelnuts Recipe
This simple dessert uses the best of what Spain has to offer in winter: sweet oranges, honey and crunchy nuts. It’s a bit like a light version of baklava, only instead of pastry you have juicy slices of fruit. It’s a great way to end a meal when you don’t feel like a heavy cake but still want something sweet and impressive.
A light, refreshing dessert that showcases winter oranges in a Spanish-inspired way, combining juicy fruit with fragrant honey, warm spices and crunchy nuts without any baking required.
Chef's tips
Choose really sweet, juicy oranges—blood oranges also work beautifully and look very striking. Don’t skip toasting the nuts; it deepens their flavour and makes a big difference in such a simple dessert.
How to serve
Serve well chilled or at cool room temperature. For a more elegant presentation, arrange the orange slices in a fan or rosette pattern and finish with a few extra mint leaves on top.
Ingredients
- orange large, sweet - 4 pieces
- honey runny - 3 tablespoons
- hazelnuts roughly chopped - 50 g
- ground cinnamon - 0.5 teaspoons
- lemon juice - 1 tablespoon
- fresh mint for decoration, optional - 6 leaves
Preparation
- Tip the hazelnuts into a dry frying pan and toast over medium heat for 3–4 minutes, shaking the pan often, until they start to smell nutty and turn lightly golden. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool.
- Peel the oranges very thoroughly, removing both the peel and the white pith. The easiest way is to cut off the top and bottom, stand the orange on a board and slice off the peel from top to bottom with a knife.
- Slice the peeled oranges into rounds about 0.5–1 cm thick and arrange them on plates or a serving platter, slightly overlapping.
- In a small bowl, mix the honey, lemon juice and cinnamon until you get a smooth, aromatic sauce.
- Drizzle the orange slices with the honey–cinnamon sauce, making sure each slice is lightly coated.
- Sprinkle the dessert with the toasted, chopped hazelnuts. If using mint, decorate the top with a few leaves.
- Leave the dessert to stand for 5 minutes at room temperature so the flavours can meld, then serve.
Storage
Deser najlepiej smakuje świeży. Jeśli zostanie, przechowuj w lodówce do następnego dnia, ale orzechy zmiękną, więc przed podaniem możesz dosypać świeżą garść prażonych orzechów.
