Saturday, March 8, 2008

winter citrus


Oranges. Tangerines. Clementines. Grapefruit. A true luxury to eat citrus in winter. We especially love that wild-rose-pink grapefruit that is both sweet and acidic and brightens the palate when everything is so gray. A luxury for those of us with snow on the ground, yet citrus is by nature a winter fruit. It grows in the winter months in Florida, Spain, Italy, Morocco, California. I think of the big, fat lemons in the terraced groves on the Amalfi Coast, or the thick-skinned bergamot that grows along the Jasmine Coast of Calabria. Bergamot used mainly as an ingredient in perfume until the hearty Calabrians peeled it, dried it, and candied it.

For us in our snowy hills, we delight in it for breakfast, or toss it in a salad of wild arugula and shaved Parmigiano. It’s also a perfect highlight in a plate of bresaola and fresh mint, the air-cured meat a foil for the juiciness of the fruit. For a hot dish, quail roasted with pink grapefruit and Marsala is one of the tastiest quail preparations we’ve ever had. Paired with wine, pink grapefruit can be magic. Alois Lageder’s brilliant Moscato Giallo from the Alto Adige in Italy is a truly perfect pairing with that Bresaola, ruby grapefruit, and mint. And we found much to our happy surprise that Vermont’s own FreshTracks Farm Frontenac Gris makes a happy match with the arugula-grapefruit salad. The wine is semi-sweet upfront, but finishes with a pretty, clean citrus note. A country pate with candied orange peel also comes readily to mind…..

--Deirdre

1 comment:

pam castelli said...

Yeah, I'm so glad you answered me!! I don't have your email and whenever I call the restaurant, I'm not lucky enough to get either of you....

My email is pkcastelli@yahoo.com and I would love to try and come down when George is there...

I've got someone else addicted to your blog now, it was the cornichons that did her in.... You're the best, you even suck us in writing about PICKLES for gods sake!!!

I'm getting more and more jealous as April approaches and I know you are leaving for heaven:) Have some extra fun for me....