READ ALL ABOUT THESE FLAVOR-PACKED BEAUTIES!

Citrus fruits inject a toasty shot of summer into the winter-gripped Northeast!  Their famously cheery colors, bright flavors and heavenly aromas bring tropical pizazz to our subdued winter palates.  To keep you forever mindful of summer’s bountiful warmth, Guido’s produce shelves overflow with a tantalizing selection of citrus fruits. Choose your favorite citrus personality to electrify the cold months with fresh, sparkling taste! 

To choose the best quality citrus, look for fruit that’s heavy in the hand for its size (this indicates plenty of juice) and bears shiny skin.  Note that oranges can be stored at room temperature for three to four days and will keep refrigerated in plastic bags or in closed bins for one to two weeks.  Tangerines are more perishable, lasting for one to two days at room temperature and up to one week in the refrigerator. 

Navel Oranges
The classics of the citrus world, navel oranges are most often considered the best for eating out-of-hand.  Juicy, seedless and sweet with just a hint of tartness, navels have medium to thick skins which are easy to peel.  Inside, sections separate easily into segments.  These oranges earn their name by virtue of convoluted openings at the blossom end which look like navels!  Peak months are February through April.

Valencia Oranges
Most frequently used for processing and juicing, Valencias were first developed by California agronomist William Wolfskill in Santa Ana, California.  Most Valencia oranges are now grown in Florida, and are unique in that their prime season occurs from February to October.  Thin skinned, small to medium in size, Valencias are hailed for their excellent taste and color.  While they’re primarily juice oranges, they can also be eaten out of hand.  When eating a Valencia orange, the skins can be difficult to peel, so it’s best to cut these oranges into juicy slices.

Blood Oranges
Known for their gorgeous garnet red flesh, blood oranges are possessed of lively tart/sweet flavor with raspberry overtones.  This handsome orange, its deep orange skin washed with dusky red, is the result of a naturally occurring mutation discovered in 17th century Sicily.  Lucky for us!  Seedless blood oranges, grown in California and Texas, are fabulous eaten as is, or added to cocktails, salads and sauces for a decidedly dramatic effect. 

Cara Cara Oranges
Cara Cara Oranges resulted from a cross between Washington Brazilian and Bahia navel oranges.  From the Italian for “dear one,” cara caras are also known as red or pink navels.  These medium size, seedless oranges claim sweet, deep, rich flavor and have the lovely pink/orange hue of ruby grapefruit.  Cara caras have the longest shelf life of all citrus, and are best eaten fresh or incorporated into desserts and sauces.

Seville Oranges
In a departure from most other citrus fruits, Seville oranges don’t lend themselves well to eating fresh.  The fact that they’re also known as “bitter orange” underscores their raw flavor:  they’re tart, yet bitter and full of seeds!  The skin is characteristically thick and rough.  While consuming a raw Seville orange is not advisable, they are delicious when cooked, pairing especially well with rich meats such as duck.  The acidity in the orange well balances the fat in the meat. Seville oranges are also perfect for marmalade and in liqueurs.  An added bonus to this unusual fruit:  they freeze well! Sevilles are in season from December through February.

Clementines
The diminutive clementine is the smallest of the mandarins.  A cross between sweet oranges and Chinese mandarins, these are not small tangerines, but a completely different variety. Generally imported from Spain, Morocco and other parts of North Africa, clementines are very sweet, with little acidity, and are virtually seedless.  Their small size and easy-to-peel nature make them especially popular with children.  The descendants of a natural mutation, clementines developed their present-day aroma and sweetness in the climate of Spain.  These beloved little flat fruits are in season from late October to February.

Minneolas
Developed in 1931, minneolas are a cross between grapefruit and tangerines.  These reddish/orange members of the citrus family are round with a distinctive knobby neck.  Medium to large in size, they’re thin skinned, with abundant juice, few to no seeds and unique, vibrant, tart flavor.  Quite aromatic, minneolas are most often grown in Florida and are best eaten out-of-hand.  Their season is relatively short, so take advantage of their brief appearance and remember – they’re knobby, but nice!

Sunburst Tangerines
Vivid orange like the Florida sun, these tangerines bear remarkably sweet, full, round flavor, almost like a liqueur.  They’re medium in size, flat in shape, thin skinned, and very juicy. Available from November to January, sunburst tangerines are easy to peel and section, and do contain seeds.  Eat them fresh for snacks, use in salads, as a garnish or as an ingredient in main or side dishes.  For the best flavor, take care to remove all white pith.

Honey Tangerines
Also known as the Murcott orange after one of its originators, honey tangerines live up to their name!  They’re the sweetest of all tangerines, and juicy in the extreme.  Small to medium-size, this citrus fruit is vividly orange, and bears the slightly flattened shape of most tangerines.  Of uncertain origin, it’s believed that honey tangerines are a mix between tangerines and sweet oranges known as tangor.  This felicitous blend has resulted in a fruit with remarkably high sugar content.  Orange/red in color, honey tangerines have high seed content and are slightly more difficult to peel than other varieties, but their incredibly sweet flavor more than compensates for these characteristics.  Available from January through March, enjoy them out-of-hand, in salads or stir fries (zippy!) or use the juice in desserts or salad dressings. 

Pink Grapefruit
Guido’s sells exclusively pink grapefruit, which contain over 50 times the carotenoids (precursors of Vitamin A, an important antioxidant) of white grapefruit!  Pink grapefruit will generally be a rich, yellow color with some rose blush, though they can be solidly yellow.  Fruit that shows a bit of green is ripe and flavorful; “regreening” sometimes occurs in ripe fruit still on the tree and does not adversely affect flavor.  Grapefruit originated in the West Indies and are probably a cross between the pomelo and oranges, perhaps giving our present-day grapefruit its tart/sweet flavor.  They’re available year-round, with peak season from January to April.  In the winter months, Florida and Texas are the main suppliers, while spring and summer fruit comes from Arizona and California.  Grapefruit are relatively new fruits whose ancestors are the pumelo, which bears little resemblance to today’s grapefruit.  In the mid 1700’s, grapefruit was known as “Forbidden Fruit!”  Grapefruit will keep at room temperature for up to a week; for longer storage, refrigerate in plastic bags or in closed crisper bins.

Pummelo
Pummelos are ancestors of the common grapefruit.  This exotic, large citrus fruit is native to Southeast Asia and ranges from cantaloupe-size to over 25 pounds!  Pummelos possess thick, soft rinds and skins that are green to yellow.  Their pulp is greenish-yellow to pink or red, with only a few large seeds.  Sweeter than grapefruit, they’re excellent juiced, made into jellies, marmalade and syrups – and of course, delicious eaten fresh in traditional grapefruit style.  Pummelos are considered good luck in the Orient.  They’re popular at Chinese New Year and are given as gifts in the hope of bringing prosperity and good fortune. In addition, pummelos are valued for their medicinal properties, including controlling epilepsy, relieving chorea and reducing fever.

Meyer Lemons
A cross between common lemons and mandarin oranges, Meyer lemons were discovered in China in 1908 by agricultural explorer Frank Meyer.  Sweeter and less acidic than regular lemons, Meyers are fragrant and juicy.  Their skins are very soft and are edible.  With the zip of lemons, minus the sharp edge, Meyer lemons can be used interchangeably with regular lemons.  They’re particularly well suited to vinaigrettes and sauces. Try this delicous recipe using Meyer Lemons.

Kumquats
These small, somewhat mysterious little oblong fruits are in the Citrus genus and are native to China.  They have been noted in literature since the 12th century! Usually grown in California and Florida in the U.S., kumquats are the size and shape of large olives.  They have thin, sweet peels which taste of orange, and flesh that’s tart, juicy and lemony, with a few seeds.  They’re most often eaten whole, first rolled gently between the fingers to release flavorful oils.  Ripe when the rind is yellow/orange, kumquats can be sliced into fruit salads, used to garnish martinis or other cocktails, used in hot or iced tea, jams, kabobs, or paired with poultry.  They’re a good source of fiber and vitamins A and C.