Oranges are bright, colourful and a happy fruit. Yes, fruit can be happy, especially when it reminds me of summer and holidays.
Todarello’s Katoomba Village Fruit Market is the best place to buy fresh produce in Katoomba. They have a bright and large store to showcase their fresh fruit and vegetables. I love visiting Toddarello’s to get all my fresh goodies for the family, as I always know that I get great quality, and the service is excellent. If you need help to get your fresh produce to the car someone will carry it for you making your shopping experience so much easier.
I visited Todarello’s to stock up on Valencia oranges to make a few things to enjoy during summer. The recipes I created don’t have to be just for summer they can be enjoyed all year round!
“Valencias are one of the most common orange varieties, and available from November to February – the summer months. They are deliciously sweet and juicy and ideal for juicing. Valencias are mainly grown in the Riverina.”
Citrus Australia.
I wanted to cook a pie or dessert with oranges but had no idea what to make, a Google search had many suggestions but one recipe that interested me was a Valencia Orange Sunset Pie.
The website for the recipe said it was like a Key Lime Pie but with Valencia oranges. In the recipe, I saw the crust was made with Nilla Wafers instead of Graham crackers. I however made my version with vanilla wafer biscuits.
One of the attractions of creating this recipe was to attempt a very orangy dessert and a crust from vanilla wafers rather than pastry. I really wasn’t sure about it, as I had never made a crust with wafers or crushed biscuits. I know other tarts and pies have similar crusts so it is not that different, it was just something I had never created before.
My recipe was inspired by the All Recipes version. I made a few changes to make it my own.
INGREDIENTS
Crust:
- 2 cups of crushed vanilla wafers ( I used 2 packs of vanilla wafers from Woolworths)
- 2 tablespoons of white sugar
- 5 tablespoons of unsalted butter, melted
Orange Filling:
- 5 large egg yolks, beaten
- 1 can of Sweetened Condensed Milk 397g
- 4 Valencia Oranges juiced and pureed (before you juice the oranges make sure you get the zest from each of the oranges). In the All Recipes version, they used concentrated orange juice. I thought why not have fresh juice and make it even more orangey.
Decoration:
- Zest from oranges – use a grater to get the zest from the oranges (do this before you use them to juice and then puree).
- Extra oranges for fresh orange slices
- Flowers
Other options for decorating the pie can be toasted almond flakes and whipped cream or ice cream.
METHOD
Preheat oven to 180 degrees C or 350 degrees F
Step 1: Make the crust first. Stir wafers, butter, and sugar in a bowl until all are mixed thoroughly together. Take the mixture and press evenly in the bottom and up the sides of a pie tin.
Step 2: Bake crust for 10 minutes or until golden brown. Cool the crust while you make the orange filling.
Step 3: In a saucepan over high heat to begin with and then lower to medium heat after about 2-3 mins. Mix eggs, add condensed milk, and the pureed Valencia oranges with juice as well. Make sure all ingredients are combined well and it is slightly thickening up.
Step 4: Pour the filling into the cooled crust.
Step 5: Bake until the filling is firm to the touch and only slightly wobbly in the centre. Cooking time is about 13 minutes or a little bit more depending on your oven. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely before you put your sunshine pie in the fridge to fully set.
Step 6: Now your Valencia Orange Sunset Pie has cooled down it needs to go into the fridge to set completely and not be so wibbly wobbly.
Step 7: Decorate your Valencia Orange Sunset Pie. Add the orange zest, fresh orange slices, almonds, cream, flowers, or other nuts like pistachios. You can even have flakes of dark chocolate and make it a bit like a jaffa cake, it is up to you. Be creative!
“Valencia oranges were originally grown in southern California, they were named after Valencia in Spain, which is renowned for growing sweet oranges. It’s a thin skinned orange and is perfect for juicing.”
Yates
POST FEAST REVIEW
Looking at a pie like Valencia Orange Sunset Pie I thought creating it would be complicated. Well, it was a lot easier and straightforward than I thought it would be, in fact, it was super easy.
The filling was so tangy and orangy, the zest on top really made it pop. I think that using fresh juice and pulp puree from valencia oranges made it taste fantastic.
WOULD I MAKE THIS AGAIN?
Yes, I would make this in a heartbeat. I would change the crust to shortcrust pastry, and make little individual pies rather than one big one.
I do hope you like this Valencia Orange Sunset Pie as much as I do. It will impress guests at your next dinner party or be a great treat if you visit friends and family for dessert.
What to make if you have extra Valencia Oranges
If you have extra oranges over why not make a very orangey orange syrup
SIGN UP FOR MY NEWSLETTER
Don’t miss a thing by signing up for my newsletter. The newsletter will list all giveaways and fabulous things that are happening. Stay current with all the things that are happening on Mummy to Twins Plus One.
This post has affiliate links
