| Winter Citrus: Get It While It’s Not Hot | |
by Judy Sobeloff, from the February 2006 newsletter
This winter, having pledged to eat only seasonal foods (iceberg lettuce, slushies, and the occasional mud pie) and having reconciled myself to the fact that the only fresh fruit I was likely to encounter in the coming months was small swipes of my children’s mango and strawberry toothpaste, I was shocked when Scott in the Co-op produce department declared winter not the worst but the best time for citrus. “Around now, the prices go way down and the quality goes way up,” Scott said. “Most citrus is harvested in the late fall or early winter, so it all comes onto the market right now.”
An overwhelming citrus incident is depicted in Richard Scarry’s Cars and Trucks and Things That Go: The Pig family is driving through a neighborhood under construction when Mrs. Rabbit yells to her wheelbarrow-toting husband, “DUMP IT THERE!,” prompting all the nearby dump truck drivers (whose various loads include rocks, coal, cement, tomatoes, oranges or sand) to dump their loads as well. Pickles Pig, his family’s car submerged under oranges, expresses gratitude that it wasn’t the coal truck that dumped on them.
In order to orient you more gently to the dizzying array of citrus options available this winter, I’ve compiled testimony about a few varieties from those knowledgeable about citrus and those not (my friends and relatives). But don’t let the experts have the final word here—they’re the ones who’ll try to convince you that an orange is technically a berry. Instead, come on down and sample these yourself. Having written with affection about pomelos (sweet, oversized grapefruit ancestors) and satsumas for this newsletter a year ago, this month I bring you the word on the street about honey tangerines, mineola tangelos, and cara cara navel oranges.
First up, the critics rave about the honey tangerine, Scott’s personal favorite, describing it as sweeter and juicier than a standard tangerine. Though honey tangerines purportedly sport the proverbial “zipper peel,” I found them thin-skinned and not particularly easy to peel. My friend Maria said she liked honey tangerines even better than satsumas, “though I couldn’t tell you why. You can get a whole meal out of one, but with satsumas, you need to eat about four.”
Next on our tour, the Mineola tangelo is described as a “cross between a grapefruit and a tangerine, characterized by a slightly elongated neck on one end and by its rich tart flavor” (www.freshmarket.com). While I found the tangelo worth eating for its shape alone, Fred described it as “so juicy, it’s gruesome.” Our 4-year-old concurred, stating that she “liked the taste, but it was too juicy,” and urging me to write about cheese and crackers instead.
When Maria described the tangelo as “tangerine-y,” her husband, Mark, declared himself, “not a tangerine guy, I’m an orange guy,” and reached for a piece of the cara cara navel orange. “I like the denser texture, it’s more like an apple-eating experience,” he said.
Whoa, hold everything, now we’re comparing apples and oranges. Little did Mark know that the cara cara is said to boast “a unique tangerine flavor with a hint of grapefruit” (www.freshmarket.com). I personally liked this flavor medley and declare the cara cara worth eating for its deep pink color alone, similar to that of a ruby grapefruit, though not such a deep red as a blood orange (not yet available for taste-testing as the newsletter goes to press.)
As far as “cooking” with winter citrus, the recipes I came across tended to be for alcoholic beverages and complicated-sounding dishes with labor-intensive steps and exotic ingredients. I suggest eating winter citrus out of hand, the old-fashioned way, or in fruit salad or in the “Spinach, Honey Tangerine and Cashew Salad” recipe below, which I found delicious and multi-flavored.
Though it can be difficult to characterize one’s reaction to various new foods, the response of my almost-2-year-old to his first taste of cara cara navel orange said it all. Tired and crabby at that hour, his mood lifted after only one or two orange sections, and he immediately began dancing a sweet little jig. Perhaps when it comes to description, actions do speak louder than words.
Spinach, Honey Tangerine & Cashew Salad
Adapted from www.lifescript.com
4 Tbsp. coarsely chopped, unsalted cashews
2 tsp. soy sauce
4 tsp. lime juice
2 tsp. finely chopped shallots
4 tsp. olive oil
Salt to taste (Note: Use sparingly!)
Black pepper to taste
2 1/2 cups spinach, torn into bite-sized pieces
2 honey tangerines, peeled and sectioned
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spread the chopped cashews on a baking sheet and toast in the oven until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. For the vinaigrette, combine soy sauce, lime juice, shallots, and olive oil in a container with a tight-fitting lid and shake well. Add a little salt and pepper to taste. Place the spinach in a bowl and toss with the vinaigrette. Arrange the tangerine sections on top and sprinkle with the cashews.
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