“Blood roses, blood roses”
Whilst that is one of my favourite Tori Amos songs, it is actually blood oranges that are the theme of today’s post. You see, after seeing the ‘blood orange’ featuring in the world of blogging, I was intruiged and wanted to find out more as I’d never actually seen one before! Egads, you may say, but when you live in the middle of retiree central, specialty grocers are rare/nonexistant and goods such as these require trekking to the city markets.
Don’t let the patchy colour of the pulp fool you, the flavour is orangey with a touch of something berry-ish, and the juice is ruby red.
Conversing with a friend of mine at work, I told her how as was fascinated by these ‘blood oranges’ and how I’d never seen them before. She was surprised and offered to get some from the markets (she’s a lucky lass and lives near the Queen Vic), and upon my arrival at work today, I was greeted by 10 beautiful specimens! I was so excited that I almost squealed, but managed to contain my joy, peeking into my bag throughout the day to make sure that the oranges were still there and daydreaming about what to turn them into!
Juicing these oranges was an absolute joy - watching rivulets of ruby red juice flowing through the juicer and into my bowl. Juicing these, I was happy in a cloud of heady citrus scent.
Browsing the internet during my lunch break, I happened upon this recipe on Epicurious for a blood orange tart. Whilst it looked delicious, I didn’t like the sound of the curd as it was only half blood orange and the other half was meant to be lemon juice. The idea of making a tart stuck with me, but I wanted to make a curd that would be plain with the flavour of these oranges themselves. The search seemed endless, till I happened upon this plain and simple recipe on the ABC website. BINGO!
I raced home and started straight into the recipe. I cut, I zested, I juiced, I measured and I whisked. Oh boy, did I ever whisk! I was so nervous about it curdling that I whisked my little hand right off!
I wasn’t kidding when I said the juice from these oranges was ruby-red 
I made a slight alteration to the recipe, but it turned out beautifully, going from this rich red to a muted caramel colour that smelt divine and tasted heavenly! I was meant to save it for tomorrow to make a tart with, but I couldn’t help spreading a piece of multigrain toast with the curd and having it as a snack. All I’m going to say is that I’m glad we didn’t have any more bread or I might have devoured the lot!
Ingredients for Blood Orange Curd (adapted from recipe on ABC)
4 blood oranges, zest and then juiced
120g unsalted butter
190g castor sugar
3 eggs, lightly whisked
1/4 cup almond meal, sifted
1. Place the juice, zest , butter and sugar into a heavy based saucepan on a low heat, stir until the sugar is dissolved.
2. Remove from heat and add whisked eggs, continuously whisking till combined.
3. Return to a gentle heat, stirring very regularly until the mixture becomes thick - be careful, do not let it boil though as it will curdle. Once it has thickened, whisk in the almond meal and make sure it is well combined.
4. Pour into hot, sterilised, small jars or a jam dish if it is going to be used straight away.
Not only is the curd delicious, but the little bits of zest become soft and sweet and taste like tiny bites of citrus candy!
Join me tomorrow to see me turn this curd into a delicious blood orange tart with some sort of citrussy caramel
Technorati Tags: curd, blood orange
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Comments
Gorgeous. I love blood oranges. Cooking with them can be frightening if any visitors or small children wander into the kitchen. It looks like you’ve disemboweled somebody and are hunting for a recipe for the spare parts.
Blood oranges are the best. I had a great sorbet once that was made with blood oranges. I wish I could remember where…
Lis - I am slack! Really. I keep looking at the butter going “I know you’re there - STOP LOOKING AT ME, DAMNIT!”
Rachel - Well, we’re now in spring so our citrussy bounty is disappearing, which would mean it’s around the corner for you 
Kevin - Blood oranges are beautiful, aren’t they? Hehehe, after I was done zesting and juicing the oranges, the pile of empty orange remains did look a little…dangerous!
Kat - Soon, I promise…
Ed - They are fantastic, I wish I’d tried them earlier! I did wish that I had an ice-cream maker to make a sorbet with, but hopefully I’ll have one by the time they come back into season!
Holy cow I can’t wait until tomorrow! The curd sounds delish! And I’m glad you didn’t have any more bread either!