looks pretty, tastes not so good

A while back, I bought a big box of pixie tangerines out of curiosity. They're quite good but definitely not mind-boggling. I think perhaps their major claim to fame is their size. They kept very well so far, except that in the last week or so they started to look dry and shriveled up. When you cut into them, they still taste good. But if shriveled I must unshrivel.

I parboiled them in plain water, cut them in half, stuffed the centres with a walnut piece and cream cheese. Layed them cut side down on silpat and poured caramel over them. Pretty.

Too bitter, though. The pith was super thin and I thought parboiling it would take care of whatever bitterness there was. Didn't work out. I had just made three to test, and ate them anyway because I had missed caramel so much. I know, I know. White sugar. But really, give me a break. I made the caramel with less than two tablespoons of sugar and it was so worth it.