Blood Orange

When I photograph food I tend to chose foods that are visually appealing to me or on trend with the latest news.  In the case of this blood orange I was in a visual mood when I picked it up from my local grocery store.

When I photographed this blood orange I was living in Surf City which is a small seaside town in North Carolina that is chock full of tourists in the summer, and inhabited by a small group of locals in the winter.  This causes the variety of goods in the grocery store to fluctuate with the season so when I saw a new orange in the produce section I was excited to pick it up for a photo shoot.

The blood orange is a variety of orange with a sweet taste and bright red fruit in the center.  The pigment anthocyanins is the source of the bright red flesh of the fruit.  It is a healthy choice for a snack chock full of antioxidants, fiber and vitamin C.  A medium size blood orange is about 80 calories.

Being the history buff that I am I decided to look into its history and found an interesting story over at NPR that notes the first mention of the blood orange in history was in 1647 in Italy.  Columbus brought the blood orange to America where they thrived in Florida.  Today they are also grown in California and Texas.  Some interesting little tidbits to add to my collection of food facts.

The most common way to eat the blood orange is to slice or peel it and eat slightly chilled.  You can also juice a blood orange, and Martha Stewart has some great cocktail ideas to try after you squeeze.  If you are more of a dessert person she also has delicious blood orange cheesecake recipe.

The best time to find a blood orange in your produce section is Winter so keep an eye out and give it a try.