The texts start rolling in around the last week of January. “I hope the girls are getting their prescribed four sumos a day.” “Two sumos down before 1 p.m.” “And now I’m eating a sumo!!!”
My friends and I approach peak sumo orange season with thunderous enthusiasm, and for good reason: The arrival of the easy-to-peel mandarin-navel hybrid fruit could not be more timely. The wintertime blues, reinforced by dismal wintry mixes, can be offset only by the invigorating tang of citrus.
It is also around this time that creamy, hearty comfort foods begin to feel a little monotonous to me. The season’s all-stars — cauliflower, cabbage, carrots, broccoli — call out for bracing lemon, vibrant lime, tart grapefruit, juicy orange!
Oranges are especially delightful to cook with right now. Reach for your favorite varietal for Ali Slagle’s recipe for roasted broccoli rabe and white beans with burrata (above). The fruit’s juices mingle with the cheese’s soft center, creating what I can describe only as a slightly savory Creamsicle backdrop to the meal’s heartier components. (One reader in the comments suggested using blood oranges, which I wholeheartedly endorse.)
Roasted Broccoli Rabe and White Beans With Burrata
Yasmin Fahr also pairs cruciferous vegetables with citrus in this sunny couscous salad, to the delight of the many readers who gave it a five-star rating. Orange and lime juice are the foundation of the honey-sweetened dressing, which coats the beady pasta along with broccoli florets, Fresno chile, pistachios, herbs, feta and, yes, bite-size orange pieces.
Frankly, we should be using orange juice as the dressing in all kinds of dishes. A simple platter of charred carrots comes alive with the help of orange juice and zest, as well as a little balsamic vinegar, in this recipe from the one and only Ina Garten. Don’t stop at carrots, either. A couple of readers added parsnips, another wintertime darling, to the mix with great results. Speaking of root vegetables: The juice of mandarins (or tangerines, or any sweet orange) makes a lovely lacquer for citrus-glazed turnips, an unexpected combination Eric Kim picked up from the chef Nicole Cabrera Mills.
And then, of course, there is the ever-chic citrus salad. David Tanis pairs fruit with fennel and olives for a vibrant first course or side that can bend to your whims: Use blood oranges, Cara Cara oranges, navel oranges or even grapefruit. Just save your sumos for snacking.
Citrus-Glazed Turnips
One More Thing!
So you read this newsletter, were positively jazzed about citrus season and left the grocery store with more fruit than you needed. That’s what dessert is for!
With pink grapefruit, make Lisa Donovan’s vanilla citrus soufflés. (They’re far easier than you think!)
With grapefruit, oranges or lemons, Melissa Clark’s Campari olive oil cake is a must.
With oranges, well, Genevieve Ko’s orange rolls are obviously in order.
And if you, like me, impulse-bought kumquats recently: David Tanis’s kumquat panna cotta will make your dining room feel like the hottest restaurant in town.
