Oranges were on sale at the grocery store today and I picked up a big bag of them and got my orange groove going in the kitchen.
Among other things, I made a batch of Cranberry & Orange Ginger Mango Chutney which had the added bonus of making my house smell phenomenal.
I had picked up an extra bag of cranberries before Thanksgiving, but never made anything with them before we left for Aruba on December 2.
They’ve been parked in the freezer and taking up valuable space so I used them along with some of the new oranges in a fresh batch of cranberry sauce which is almost no work. Toss things in a saucepan with sugar and let them simmer for a half hour. I can handle that.
Skylar adores cranberry chutney and it’s packed with vitamin C.
Being that my little princess is going to be around even more snotty-nosed sick rugrats other children in her new school, I figure the extra does of Vit C can’t hurt.
I also baked something with the oranges. Which involved a cream cheese glaze. There’s always a way to fatten up even fruit. Just add butter, cream cheese, and sugar. Smart thinking, right?
And I made something to drink with the oranges.
One of my best drinkey-drink recipes in awhile.
Kind of like Peaches & Coconut Cream Smoothie but different enough. Recipe coming soon on the new orange drink.
I’ve definitely gotten my Vitamin C in today.
I haven’t had enough chocolate or peanut butter.
I’m about to change that with a Nutter Butter Special K Bar (No Bake)
Do you like oranges? Do you make things with them or just eat them plain?
I have mango recipes, lemon recipes, apple recipes, and banana recipes in case you need fruit-based recipe ideas. All recipes include pictures with links in those posts.
How do you peel your oranges? Knife, peeler, keeping them in sections, wedges, other?
I used to peel them carefully with a peeler, keeping the sections in tact, but that’s much slower than just chopping them down the middle with a knife and quickly removing the peel with my knife.
Sometimes I’ll make orange wedges and keep the peel the “butt” of the wedge on but I find the family is more likely to eat them if they’re totally peeled and ready to pop in the mouth, sans peel.
That’s the one downfall of oranges compared to apples, bananas, or grapes for lunches is that the peeling situation is not as desirable for husbands or little kids who can’t manage to get that orange peel off. That’s when I hear, “Mom, can you help me with this…”
Have a great weekend!
That chutney looks fantastic! I love oranges, such a refreshing fruit. I’m like you, just cut them down the middle and peel with a knife. I tend to just eat my oranges in segments or in a fruit salad… i love the simple combination of orange, apple, banana and grapes or berries. It always hits the spot!
I really should get a bit more creative with oranges in my food creations… the drink looks delish! Thanks for the inspiration.
Made your wonderful chutney recipe and it was fantastic! Also, followed your recommendation to use it in those amazing “brie sticks” (can’t remember whose blog it was on). Absolutely amazing. I love hearing about your finds at TJ’s. The closest one to me is 2 hours away, so I don’t really get there, but, love hearing about what you find! Thanks for sharing so much of your life with us.
Oh thank you soooo much for this comment! The fact that you made the cran chutney AND that you made the brie bites in puffed pasty (Joy the Baker’s site). I have had so many other baking projects since getting home from Aruba not even two weeks ago (but feels like a lifetime ago!) that I haven’t even made those yet. But I’m going to!
Thanks so much for reading and for this note. Made my day :)
I like orange juice, but I hate oranges! Orange-flavored things were always my favorite too. But I can’t stand the texture of oranges. I hate the pith and just the plain weird texture. A smoothie is the best because you can get the awesome flavor without any of the weird texture.
mmm I love oranges & cranberries :) I don’t know how to peel oranges with a knife — i’m too scared to slice my fingers off! Haha, I usually just cut them in wedges and then peel off the peel or i start a little hole at the top and peel from there!
I guess over the years I’ve fine-tuned my knife skills :)
I don’t know if I’ve ever actually made anything with oranges other than fruit salad, but I don’t think that counts. I usually eat them plain and peeled, or sliced if they aren’t really peel-able. To peel them, I either bite them or dig in with my thumbnail and just peel from there.
Cranberry orange chutney goes with just about any white meat in my house, as a condiment. Its awesome!
I just love peeling oranges and eating them with my hands :) That cranberry-orange chutney is a fantastic idea!
I have a fridge full of oranges right now – can’t wait to see what you baked up!
Leave it to you to make oranges look so beautiful! I love your creativity
Thanks, Maris :)
I don’t think I have ever made anything with oranges other than juice, or eating them plain. I peel them with my hands all the time.
Oooo, oo, oo. Will you feed me?
For.Sure. :)
LOVE citrus & cranberries together. My cranberry sauce usually has a bunch of citrus in it as well :) Have a great weekend miss Averie :) XO
I love to bulk up the cranberry sauce with other goodies and I’m sure you’re the same. Enjoy your weekend, too! :)
My son is almost a year old and oranges are one of his most favorite things! Ogaden been planning on holding off until after a year because I had read the acid in citrus is a bit much, but he grabbed one out of my hand one day and started throwing fits whenever he saw one! We always have oranges in the house now.
May I hire you as my personal chef, please???? Looks yummy as always, what can I say
xo!
Yes, and thanks :)
I love oranges. They are SUPER cheap here and they are such a refreshing and super sweet snack.
Brooke
http://www.TheAnnessaFamily.com
Your chutney is SO good. SO good. I’ve made it a couple of times and just can’t get enough of it! I usually pair it with roasted chicken. Omg and I’ve put it on a chicken pizza, too. Delicious!
I didn’t know you made it! Well thanks for telling me that! :)