What’s ahead for the week of December 11, 2017? You can see the whole list on the What’s In My Box page, but here are the highlights:
- Butternut squash & spinach from Sage Mountain Farm (whose story we highlighted last week);
- Cauliflower from Gaytan Family Farm;
- Beefsteak tomatoes from Dassi Farm;
- ‘Cara cara’ navel oranges from Sweet Tree Farm (more on those below!).
Cara cara oranges: aka the “Power Orange”
Oranges are orange, right? Well, not always. Blood oranges (whose origins date back to the 1700s) are well known due to their deep red color, which peaks when the plants experience the cool/cold temperatures of fall and winter.
However, blood oranges aren’t the only game in town when it comes to non-orange oranges. The ‘Cara cara’ is a variety of navel orange discovered in Venezuela in 1976. It’s lighter red than a blood orange, but still creates quite a wow factor when you first see them. Cara cara’s popularity globally has soared not just because of its color, but because the flavor is extraordinary. When you bite into yours, wait for the rich orange flavor followed by notes of cream and vanilla. Yum!
Remember: in food, color denotes unique nutritional compounds. That’s why nutritionists recommend that you eat every color of the rainbow.
When you see fruits and veggies with a red, purple, or blue color–whether it’s a blueberry or purple kale or a Cara cara orange–that color is due to high levels of anthocyanins. In case you’ve never heard of them, you can read more about anthocyanins, how your body processes them, and their health benefits here.
In the case of Cara cara oranges, studies have found that the fruit is not just higher in anthocyanins than other oranges, it’s also higher in Vitamins A & C. Hence their other name: the “Power Orange!”
Cara Cara Orange Recipes
With a fruit as good for fresh-eating as a Cara cara orange, we recommend you just eat them raw. Close your eyes for the first bite to enjoy their sublime orange-vanilla-cream flavor.
If you’re just itching to put them to work in a recipe, make them into a salad using your spinach from Sage Mountain Farm! Here’s a simple recipe to show you how.
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