[Sca-cooks] Citrus Question [was Funges Follies]

[Decker, Terry D.]

But how much of your rememberance is based on apocryphal legend and how much
is based on sources contemporary to the events?

Here is a story about blood oranges:
http://ba1.impnet.com/fmc-catania/english/news/blood.htm

The significant points in the story are the mozaics in Piazza Armerina
(central Sicily) which seem to support early introduction of blood oranges
and that the classic citrus texts consulted (Ferrari, Hesperides; Rome, 1646
is mentioned) had no references to blood oranges.  Having worked with
artistic evidence, I consider the lack of information in the texts of
greater import.

Blood oranges are a varietal of C. sinensis.  The first written reference to
C. sinensis in Europe is around 1635 and according to one casual grower,
blood oranges only start appearing in the literature in the early 19th
Century.

Here's another interesting site on oranges:
http://www.aquapulse.net/knowledge/orange.html .

I've referred to Japan as the source of "Portugals," the sweet oranges
introduced by the Portugeuese in 1529.  I have considered this questionable,
but used the reference in lieu of a better opinion.  This site suggests that
the "Portugal" came from India (a location better suited to the date) and
provides a bibliography which may provide information to earlier sources.

Bear



> > I remember a bit of information about blood oranges from my
> teaching days,
> > unfortunately I do not have the sources from whence I
> picked this up,
> > Blood oranges were found by the crusaders on the island of
> Malta.  Hence the
> > name of the Hollandaise variante that uses their juice "
> Sauce Maltaise"
> > They have a dark red interior when they are ripe. if they
> are harvested too
> > imature, the juice is bitter. When allowed to ripen on the
> tree their juice
> > is sweeter than your average navel orange.
> >
> > hope this helps,
> > Olga