Our British friend, Tessa, has had to give up gluten. The worst part of it, she says, is avoiding hot bread when it hits the table. Second to that: saying no to cake, especially at the holidays.

Years ago, at a birthday party in Cornwall, the hostess decided Tessa should not go cake-free for the evening. She whipped up this tangy, delicious almond and clementine confection especially for her—and a tradition was born.

“In the U.K., clementines and tangerines are very much part of Christmas, and the combination of sweet oranges and almonds are a good gluten-free alternative to Christmas Cake (aka, fruit cake),”  says Tessa, who capped her holiday dinner in D.C. this year with this easy dessert.