{"id":861,"date":"2012-02-02T09:19:09","date_gmt":"2012-02-02T16:19:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/realfoodchronicles.maoomba.com\/?p=861"},"modified":"2016-04-23T19:49:35","modified_gmt":"2016-04-24T01:49:35","slug":"how-do-i-love-thee-citrus-let-me-count-the-ways","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.stormysweitzer.com\/recipes\/how-do-i-love-thee-citrus-let-me-count-the-ways\/","title":{"rendered":"How do I love thee, citrus? Let me count the ways!"},"content":{"rendered":"

I had a completely different plan in mind for this week\u2019s blog post than what I ended up writing\u00a0– like a lot of people, I was going to make something \u201cSuper Bowl-ish\u201d. \u00a0The thing is, I\u2019m not much of a football fan. \u00a0I am crazy about citrus, though.<\/p>\n

Earlier this week, I went to a citrus tasting held by our local Slow Food chapter and decided the subject matter was too sweet to pass up. \u00a0Besides, many citrus fruits are in their prime right now, and there are so many ways to use them it would be a shame not to try a few.<\/p>\n

\"Citrus<\/p>\n

When we arrived at the tasting, there was a table spread with 10 different citrus fruits, all of which had come from California farms. \u00a0The plan was to sniff, taste, and touch the fruit in front of us.<\/p>\n

I was expecting to suck on lemons, so to speak, but\u00a0then the champagne and a pitcher of fresh juice came out.\u00a0\u00a0The mimosas were a lovely surprise that everyone enjoyed.<\/p>\n

The citrus fruits we tasted ranged from Meyer lemons and sweet Palestinian limes to mandarin, orange, and grapefruit varieties. \u00a0I have to admit that, even though I love citrus fruits, until I tasted them side by side in this way, I hadn\u2019t given much thought to the spectrum of sweet and tart, the intensity of flavor, the play of acid on the tongue, and the sheer bursts of color that come with each of these fruits.<\/p>\n

They were gorgeous! And, tasting them gave me all sorts of ideas!<\/p>\n

\"blood<\/p>\n

20 Ways to Use Citrus<\/h3>\n

Next time you buy citrus fruit, think about all of the ways you can use all of it\u2019s parts. \u00a0Every piece is edible and chock-full of vitamins. \u00a0And, between the oils, juice, peels, and the fruit itself, there are many options.<\/p>\n

Here are just 20 for inspiration:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Zest the peel \u2013 by grating it while the fruit is still whole \u2013 and use it a soup or in a dessert<\/a>\u00a0OR\u00a0dry the zest out (You can just leave the zest on a piece of wax paper in a protected area for a couple of days until completely dehydrated) and put it in a recycled glad jar \u00a0to use \u00a0later.<\/li>\n
  2. Zest the peel of a lemon and mix it with sugar, salt OR pepper to infuse them with the fruit\u2019s oil \u2013 use these in your cooking.<\/li>\n
  3. Zest the peel of a lime and mix it with chili flakes and chili powder to make a vibrant popcorn topping<\/li>\n
  4. Rub citrus peels on dry skin \u2013 the oils and aromas make for amazing natural moisturizers<\/li>\n
  5. Make\u00a0candied grapefruit peels<\/a>\u00a0that taste of childhood memories<\/li>\n
  6. Use chunks of whole lemon to add flavor when making \u00a0a roast chicken or turkey<\/a><\/li>\n
  7. Use chunks of whole oranges (with rind) when making pork carnitas<\/a><\/li>\n
  8. Eat whole citrus sections as a snack \u2013 mandarins are mellow, cocktail grapefruit bold. \u00a0Try different fruit to find the ones you like best.<\/li>\n
  9. Try bold and ripe \u00a0oranges with a piece of dark chocolate for a decadent but healthy treat<\/li>\n
  10. Make salsa; use any flavor citrus that you like<\/li>\n
  11. Use fresh mandarin orange pieces in an Asian-style salad or blood oranges in a beet salad or navel oranges in a fruit salad with fresh berries<\/li>\n
  12. Use citrus fruit meat, pith, and juice in homemade preserves to add natural pectin.<\/li>\n
  13. Mix fresh-squeezed orange or lemon juice with olive oil to make a light salad dressing<\/li>\n
  14. Make a citrus glaze for roast pork<\/li>\n
  15. Blend fresh lemon juice with tahini<\/a> and drizzle it over fresh veggies<\/li>\n
  16. Use lime juice to denature raw fish or seafood to make ceviche<\/li>\n
  17. Squeeze fresh lemon on a piece of cooked salmon or make an orange glaze for white fish<\/a><\/li>\n
  18. Make a margarita with fresh lime juice<\/a>\u00a0or mimosa with fresh orange juice<\/a><\/li>\n
  19. Freeze fresh juice in ice cube trays and place cubes in an airtight container to keep them fresh for a burst of flavor in the off-season<\/li>\n
  20. Wash your windows<\/a>\u00a0or clean your stainless steel sink with lemon juice and vinegar<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
    <\/div>\n

    Citrus Resources<\/h3>\n

    Citrus Variety Info Chart <\/a>from Four Winds Growers \u2013 look to this chart for when each variety ripens; use this as a guide for when to buy fruit at the peak of flavor<\/p>\n

    Sunkist Citrus Flavor & Season Guide<\/a>\u00a0\u2013 describes the sweetness\/tartness of different citrus fruits and their seasonality<\/p>\n

    Citrus Growers and Shippers<\/a> from California, Florida, Texas, and Louisiana (organic and family-owner farms noted)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    I had a completely different plan in mind for this week\u2019s blog post than what I ended up writing\u00a0– like a lot of people, I was going to make something \u201cSuper Bowl-ish\u201d. \u00a0The thing is, I\u2019m not much of a football fan. \u00a0I am crazy about citrus, though. Earlier this week, I went to a… <\/p>\n

    Read More<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":862,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[219,97],"tags":[42,39,14],"class_list":["post-861","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-fruits-vegetables","category-tips-tricks","tag-citrus","tag-fruit","tag-tips"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.stormysweitzer.com\/recipes\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/IMG_0552.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.stormysweitzer.com\/recipes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/861","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.stormysweitzer.com\/recipes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.stormysweitzer.com\/recipes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.stormysweitzer.com\/recipes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.stormysweitzer.com\/recipes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=861"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.stormysweitzer.com\/recipes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/861\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":864,"href":"https:\/\/www.stormysweitzer.com\/recipes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/861\/revisions\/864"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.stormysweitzer.com\/recipes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/862"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.stormysweitzer.com\/recipes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=861"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.stormysweitzer.com\/recipes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=861"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.stormysweitzer.com\/recipes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=861"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}