In Season: Blood Orange

A sweet alternative to better known oranges, this fruit is believed to be the result of a natural mutation of a sweet orange. The flesh of a blood orange is brilliantly dark pink, maroon, or even dark blood red (hence, the name). The fruit has raspberry edge to its flavor.

The red color ceom from anthocyanin, which develops when the citrus fruit ripens during warm days tempered by cooler nights. Anthocyanin is an antioxidant, and starts to develop along the edges of the peel and then follows the edges of the segments before moving into the flesh of the orange, so blood oranges can be lined or streaked when they were harvested.

First grown in Sicily, Italy, blood oranges are now harvested in Texas and California.

more In Season: Blood Orange
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Artwork: Blood Orange Tree