fruit notes

Our intrepid fruit notes writer has the week off, so we thought we’d share some writings by others. What better theme than blood oranges? They're stunning, delicious, high-drama, and juicy. They don't develop their deep color until they've had their fill of cold nights, arriving well-after many mandarins and Navels. They make you wait on them so you know they're important!

“Mysterious Blood Oranges” in Fruit Gardener

Professional fruit enthusiast David Karp goes deep on pigmented citrus. Highlights include Vaniglia Sanguigno (“vanilla blood”), “an Italian variety of acidless orange which tastes a bit like an orange Creamsicle”; a survey of varieties of Sicily, where blood oranges reign supreme; and the story of a Ventura County gardener who discovered a spontaneous blood-red mutation on an otherwise orange Valencia tree, causing her to suspect foul play – poison!

“Unwrapping the Golden Apples” in The New Gastronome

When shipping citrus for export, Sicilian packers used to wrap the fruits in beautifully-printed paper tissues, to help prevent them from drying out or molding in transit. By the 1960s, citrus wrappers were largely replaced by coating fruit with food-grade wax, save for blood oranges. They remain a helpful identifier (and marketing tool) for oranges whose peels don’t always advertise the dramatic color of their flesh. Lisa Schultz writes the history of these charming wrappers here.

And a handful of examples of Italian orange wrappers, here, thanks to Elizabeth Minchilli.

This week's fruit

Moro Blood Oranges grown by Cloverleaf Farm in Winters

Tango Mandarins grown by Spreadwing Farm in Rumsey

Bruno Kiwis grown by Shared Abundance Organic Farm in Auburn

Oro Blanco Grapefruit grown by Cloverleaf Farm in Winters

Ice Cream Beans grown by Condor Ridge Ranch in Goleta

Mexican Beaumont Guava grown by Garcia Organic Farm in Fallbrook

Meiwa Kumquats grown by Garcia Organic Farm in Fallbrook