From California to Arizona and from Texas to Florida, the major growing regions for citrus fruit stretch across the southern part of the U.S. Their peak harvest is from January to early spring—a great time to lighten and enliven cold-weather meals.

The recipes in this collection focus on savory ways with grapefruits, oranges, tangerines, and lemons. When choosing your fruits, look for varieties favored in Italy, including blood oranges, which are a dramatic deep red under their peel and have a sweet taste. When choosing fruit at the market, pick those that feel heavy for their size, and indicator that they are juicy inside. 

When you want pretty sections of citrus without pith and peel, prepare them this way: Cut a little of the top and bottom off of the fruit so it can stand upright. Remove the peel by slicing close to the flesh with a sharp knife and a sawing motion from top to bottom following the curve of the fruit. (Be sure to cut away the bitter white pith that clings to the fruit, too.) Once the peel is removed, cut the fruit into segments by running the knife down along an interior membrane toward the center of the fruit. When the knife hits the center of the fruit, turn the blade so that it is coming up the other side of the membrane releasing the individual segment. Continue doing this, over a bowl to catch any juice, until all of the segments are freed. Squeeze the remaining juice from the membrane, and reserve together with the whole segments. 

The zest of citrus, which is full of highly aromatic oils, is often used in cooking as well. There are different ways to remove the zest and how you do it depends on the recipe. For thick pieces, use a vegetable peeler to remove just the zest, leaving the white pith behind. For thin strands, you can slice these thick pieces with a sharp knife or use a zesting tool. For finely grated zest, use a rasp style grater, such as a Microplane. 

If you find yourself with leftover juice, freeze it for future use.

 

February 2009

keywords:

citrus, winter