This is indeed a cream dessert parfait that’s meant to be enjoyed in every sense!
The rich and fluffy texture, and the flavor of warming spices and citrus, are what makes this mousse so utterly mouthwatering.
Oranges are fantastic when it comes to combining fruits and spices. Their sweet taste goes amazingly well with spices like cinnamon, cloves, or cardamom.
There are certainly some calories involved, but a sweet indulgence is worth a little bit of naughtiness, isn’t it?
If you prefer something a little less richly sinful, you could replace the soft cheese with low-fat yogurt, as I have done in the version photographed for this post.
I always enjoy topping the cream with few crumbled ginger cookies, ladyfingers, or chocolate chunks. But it also makes a great base for a layered dessert.
Or, it’s beautiful served in natural bowls, made from scooped out orange rinds.
Here’s how to make your own at home:
Carefully scoop the flesh out of a few oranges with the tops cut off, and spoon in your filling.
For a parfait, start with a crunchy cookie bottom, and build your layers with crushed cookies, cream, and syrup in between.
Add some fruit compote or fresh berries on top, to make a perfect dessert that’s truly everything you could wish for.
Since two fresh egg whites are used in this recipe, refrigerate and consume this treat within a day or two.
The Recipe
- Juice and zest of 1 orange
- 1 cardamom pod
- 2 egg whites
- pinch of salt
- 3 oz sugar
- 7 oz heavy whipping cream
- 9 oz creme fraiche, cream cheese, or yogurt
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- Chocolate sprinkles or crumbled cookies for the topping (optional)
- Crush the cardamom pod in a mortar, remove the outer covering, and thoroughly grind the seeds as fine as possible with the pestle.
- Whisk the egg whites with salt and sugar until stiff peaks form. In a separate bowl, whip the cream until stiff. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, mix the yogurt, creme fraiche or curd cheese with the orange juice, zest, cardamom and cinnamon.
- Gently fold in the stiff egg whites and the whipped cream, using a rubber spatula.
- Fill into individual jars or a large serving bowl, and refrigerate until ready to serve.
Cooking by the Numbers…
Step 1 – Grind the cardamom.
Using a mortar and pestle, grind the cardamom seeds into a fine powder.
Don’t have your own mortar and pestle? You’d be surprised at all of the things you’ll be able to use it for in your own kitchen. Check out Foodal’s review of the best models here.
Step 2 – Beat the egg whites and whip the cream.
Combine the salt and sugar with the egg whites and whisk them together, by hand or using an electric mixer, until stiff peaks form. Set aside.
After washing your beaters (or using a separate set, if you have them) and a clean bowl, whip the cream until stiff. But don’t overwhip – we want to make whipped cream for this recipe, not butter! Set this aside as well.
Whipping the cream can certainly be done by hand, if you’re in the mood for a little workout. Check out Foodal’s review of the best whisks for your kitchen.
Looking for a quality standing mixer? Check out Foodal’s review of the standing 5-quart Artisan mixer, or check out prices now on Amazon.
Step 3 – Combine the yogurt with flavoring ingredients.
In another large bowl, combine the yogurt (or creme fraiche, cream cheese, or other soft cheese of your choosing) with the orange juice and zest, cardamom, and cinnamon. Continue to stir until the mixture is uniform.
Step 4 – Fold in the whipped ingredients.
Gently fold the beaten egg whites and whipped cream into the yogurt or cheese mixture, using a rubber spatula. This is what will give lift, and a light texture, to your mousse.
Be careful not to over mix, and use a light hand for the fluffiest results.
Step 5 – Plate, refrigerate, and serve.
I chose dessert bowls for my presentation, but you might like to use single-serving Mason jars, parfait glasses, ramekins, or even a large pie dish or serving bowl.
If you’ll be adding a fresh fruit syrup or jam, cookie crumbles, chocolate, or fresh berries, now is the time. This cream lends itself so nicely to serving as a layered dessert parfait
Refrigerate your creations until thoroughly chilled, and then you’re ready to serve!
For more fruity desserts, try some of our favorites:
Photos by Nina-Kristin Isensee, © Ask the Experts, LLC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. See our TOS for more details.
About Nina-Kristin Isensee
Nina lives in Iserlohn, Germany and holds an MA in Art History (Medieval and Renaissance Studies). She is currently working as a freelance writer in various fields. She enjoys travel, photography, cooking, and baking. Nina tries to cook from scratch every day when she has the time and enjoys trying out new spices and ingredients, as well as surprising her family with new cake creations.
Cinnamon, yogurt, whipped cream, and oranges sounds like a yummy combination. Parfaits aren’t really my choice, but I love all four of these items. Spices in yogurt? At first it sounds crazy, but staring at this recipe has made me wonder. What is that on top? They look like chocolate sprinkled over the parfait. Very nice touch!
It is indeed a delicious combination. You have to imagine it more as a creamy mousse, it’s not frozen, just cooled in the fridge. It still has a fluffy texture that I appreciate so much. Oh, and right! That are some chocolate chunks on top, – I just enjoy adding chocolate whenever I can 😉
My mother would love this. She enjoys those orange cream pops, the frozen things. She also enjoy orange and chocolate candy. So, this with the chocolate added would be perfect for her.
I’ll have to save this one for her, for sure. Like me, she tries to avoid indulging in too many sweets, but I think for this she will make an exception.
Thanks for sharing it.
Great, if she’s into the chocolate-orange combination, I’m sure she’ll enjoy it! Plus, it is not too sweet. It’s possible to reduce the sugar a bit, if you tend to add the chocolate chunks. I also think the mix of creamy and fruity flavors makes this so delicious!
This looks delightful, and easy enough to make without dirtying too many kitchen things. I am bookmarking this to make for the future. I love that you combine cinnamon and orange for this dessert, as I love both flavors. MM!
Thanks, you’re right. It is not too much of preparation, and it won’t take long to make it. Happy to hear that you love that combination too. And the hint of cardamom fits this really well 😉
Oranges and I do not get along very well. I have been thinking about alternatives since reading this article, and I realized that mangoes might be a good substitute in this recipe.
I am guessing that the recipe might need to be adjusted slightly because mango “juice” has a different viscosity than orange juice, or I might be able to thin it out with some water. What are your thoughts on this substitution?
I agree with you about the differences in consistency for both juices. By the way, I think that mango is a wonderful idea, thanks for that! Although I already like the orange-version, I will probably be trying this out 🙂 So, adding some water to the mango juice would work – the “pulp juice” can be kind of thick. So I would try to thin it a bit, but not too much, as the desired texture will be that of a mousse, and it’s not necessarily bad to use juice that is a bit thicker. I’m sure it will taste great too 🙂
This dessert looks so delicious! I love foods that pairs cardamom and cinnamon with oranges. Also, the plating of the dessert in the pictures is super artistic and beautifully done! One question for you is do you think there would be any possible substitutions to make this dessert vegan? My younger brother is vegan but I think he would love this and the dessert would be right up his alley.
Thanks, I’m happy you like the arrangement on the pictures!
I thought about a vegan variety and it is a bit tricky indeed, because the egg whites and cream are used as firsthand ingredients.
For the yogurt, I think there are vegan alternatives made of soy or else you could use here.
One possible variety that comes to my mind would be silken tofu. Have you heard of this? It is soft and – well- silky 😉 and great to use for sweet treats. You could use it instead of the whipping cream, I suppose. I have also heard that it’s possible to whisk the cream of coconuts, although I can’t tell from my own experience here. But it would be worth a try!
I can’t think of a proper substitute for the egg whites, but you might leave them out completely. This way, it wouldn’t be so fluffy anymore, but still, I think it would work.
I hope any of this could be of help for you 🙂 Feel free for any more questions!
This recipe looks so easy but so yummy at the same time! It must be so soft and fluffy! I love easy to make desserts likt this one. Sometimes it can be too tedious to bake cakes and pies, but simple no-bake recipes are a great way to treat yourself without spending lots of time in the kitchen. Plus, I love the combination of oranges and cinnamon, so I’ll try this recipe soon.
You’ve captured it correctly 🙂 It’s quite easy to prepare and so delicious. It’s like you say, sometimes it has to be something different than baked goodies, this is a great and quick alternative.
And the spices and flavors of this cream-dessert always make me want some more..
You had me a cinnamon! It’s one of my favorite spices and I think it gives a great flavor to almost everything. Combined with oranges? heven on heart! I love those two ingredients mixed together, I think they blend in a delicious way and your dessert looks so good that I want to make it right now. The spices are a really nice touch, this is something my whole family will appreciate for sure. It looks very pretty too, a good visual presentation is a plus. I can’t wait to try it out, I can already feel its soft texture in my mouth if I look at the pictures. Tomorrow I’ll make a trip to the grocery store to get all the ingredients. Thank you!
Thank you a lot! Did you already have the chance to try it?
It’s great that this recipe could match your preferences so well! I also think that this spice and fruit work great together, so for me – there’s nothing not to love about it 😉
The idea of combining orange and cinnamon had not even crossed my mind before, but it actually sounds really good! I haven’t really made a parfait before, so I’m actually kind of scares to even try this one out, but I guess that I’ll take the risk right now, and it seems to be a good option since I have a large orange tree outside my house, what can be fresher than that?
Thanks for sharing! 🙂
Well, that’s just perfect! 🙂
It’s still more like a creamy dessert, not to be mistaken with the kind of frozen parfaits that exist. So I’m sure you will be successful when trying. When folding in the egg whites and cream, be gentle, so it can keep its fluffy consistency. Enjoy it, I think it’s gonna be great with your own oranges!
Oh my, that looks delicious! I love chocolates with oranges in them and I also love cinnamon~ Mixing them together… Yummy~ It seems weird having yogurt mixed in though -but the pictures say otherwise! Well, seems like I’d have another dessert to make and eat added in my bucket list!
Thanks, that combo can’t be beaten, right? 😉
The yogurt is rather unusual, I agree, but it will add a fresh and light touch to the cream-base. And with some fluffy egg-whites, I’m sure it will convince you. Enjoy making it!