Winter in the northern hemisphere means its citrus season closer to the equator! Florida, for example, grows a lot of citrus fruits during the long hot summer, and by the time snow falls in Utah, the oranges, lemons, limes, grapefruit, pomelo, and mandarin oranges are ready to pick and ship to you! Each one has a little different taste, and can be used in many different ways.
Orange juice is a classic breakfast drink, tiny Mandarin oranges (tangerines and clementines) peel easily and are snack sized, and lemons and limes add vitamins and some zing to anything. Grapefruits have their own flavor and pretty pink insides that make adding fruit to breakfast or lunch easy. There are more unusual varieties of fruit in the citrus family too, so don’t be afraid to try something new if you see it!
Why eat fruit from the citrus family? The usual answer is because they are full of vitamin C, which is true, and they also have lots of other vitamins in them like
- Vitamin A.
- Vitamin B6.
- Calcium.
- Potassium.
- Folate.
- Magnesium.
- Manganese
Eating a whole fruit will also add some fiber to your diet, and there are lots of ways to add citrus to these cold winter days! Simply peel and eat, because they are easy to pack in lunch boxes and are already segmented for easy sharing. You can also shave off the zest for boosting flavor while baking, or add the sections to a smoothie, salad, or stir -fry. The uses for fruit from this family are endless so feel free to CREATE!
Captain Create has a few recipes to share that will make it easy to add a little citrus to these winter days!
