DIRECTIONS

In a stainless steel saucepan, whisk the tangerine zest with the juice, 1 cup of the sugar and the egg yolks until well blended. Cook gently over medium-low heat, stirring constantly with a rubber spatula, scraping along the bottom and sides of the saucepan, until the curd is thickened but still pourable, 7 to 8 minutes (to avoid splitting the curd, do not bring to a boil). Strain the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into a medium bowl and stir in the butter, 1 tablespoon at a time, until incorporated. Press a piece of plastic wrap onto the surface of the curd and refrigerate until set, at least 2 hours.

Meanwhile, place the remaining ½ cup sugar and the water in a large skillet over medium heat and stir until the sugar is dissolved, about 1 minute. Reduce the heat to medium-low. Whisk in the Cointreau, cinnamon and cloves, then add the orange pieces. Cook for 1 minute, then carefully turn the oranges and cook for another minute. Remove from the heat and leave the orange pieces to cool in the syrup. Once cooled, transfer the orange pieces to a plate; reserve the syrup. Soak the ladyfingers a few at a time in the syrup, turning to coat both sides. Cut each soaked ladyfinger into 1-inch pieces; set aside.

Whip the cream and icing sugar together in a small bowl until soft peaks form. Stir in the crème fraîche. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

To assemble, line up 6 small trifle dishes. Place a few landyfinger pieces (the equivalent of one biscuit) in the bottom of each dish. Top each with a dollop of curd and a few orange pieces. Repeat the layers until they almost reach the top of each dish, then cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours to soften the ladyfingers.

To serve, top each trifle with a generous dollop of the cream mixture and sprinkle with toasted almonds.