When Life Gives You Sour Oranges

We are experiencing the coldest weather Arizona has seen for 25 years, so I have boxes of citrus in my house that we rescued from our trees. And our neighbors trees. Currently I am surrounded by Vitamin C.

This bin almost went to the dumpster.

The bin was filled with oranges, fruit we picked from our neighbor's tree. The orange's skin was mottled and bumpy and a bit soft. We planned on squeezing the fruit to make juice.

One bite of a peeled orange had us revising that plan, as we spit out the sour, offending fruit.

Sour Oranges. Ornamental Oranges. Seville Oranges. Bitter Oranges -- a brand of orange used in the root stock of other orange varieties, that sometimes takes over the tree if it is not pruned correctly.

We now understood why our neighbors were glad to have us clean the fruit off their trees.

This variety of orange is known for its use in marmalade recipes. If you like marmalade. We don't.

"I'll take the bin to the dumpster when I get home," my husband said.

"Good plan," I said, but throughout the day I kept eyeing that bin of oranges. I hated the thought of throwing the fruit away.

They say if life gives you lemons, to make lemonade.

But what if life gives you sour oranges?

Should you make orange-ade? (Tried that. Not very impressed - like a sick orange Koolaid.)

Could sour orange juice be used in place of lemon juice?

I mixed up a batch of lemon bars, using the sour orange juice. They turned out okay, but I preferred the original lemon variety.

I decided to try a batch of sour orange curd.

I heated the juice, eggs and sugar on the stove, stirring constantly for ten minutes so the mixture wouldn't form clumps on the bottom of the pan. I added the butter and orange zest.I poured it into glass jars. And waited.

After it cooled slightly, I took a spoonful of the pale orange mixture.

Tangy. Sweet. Rich. Creamy.

The sour orange curd tasted incredible. (How can something with the name of curd taste so fantastic?)The plans for the trip to the dumpster were immediately shelved.

Now, I could make some metaphors and allegories about things fit for the trash and life giving you sour oranges/lemons and lemonade and finding treasure in pieces of junk, but I think you'd rather have my recipe.

And while you are stirring up this concoction of deliciousness, you can think of your own messages for humanity and quotable quotes.

Sour Orange or Lemon Curd

1 1/2 cups sugar

4 large eggs

Whisk sugar and eggs in a heavy saucepan. Whisk in the following ingredients:

1 T light corn syrup (Most recipes don't include this, but a 75-year-old church lady who gave me the original recipe swears by this addition, so you know it is necessary.)

3/4 cup fresh squeezed sour orange juice or lemon juice

Stir constantly on medium heat for at least ten minutes until the curd thickens. Don't boil!! Remove from heat.

Stir in:

1/2 cup butter, cut in chunks

zest from two oranges or lemons

Immediately pour into glass jars or heat-proof container. Press plastic wrap against the surface to create a seal and prevent a film from forming.

Refrigerate up to three weeks. (But there is no way it is lasting that long!)

Makes about 3 cups.

Serve on french toast, regular toast, pancakes, biscuits, as a cake filling, or eat by the spoonful. Also fantastic on this scone recipe:

Cranberry Orange Scones  (thank you sister, Lisa)

2 c flour

7 t sugar

1 T grated sour orange zest

2 t baking powder

1/2 t salt

1/4 t baking soda

1/3 c cold butter

In bowl, combine above ingredients, cutting in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Set aside.

1 c dried cranberries

1/4 c sour orange juice (or regular OJ)

1/4 c half and half

1 egg

In small bowl, combine above ingredients.

Add to flour mixture and stir until soft dough forms. On floured surface, gently knead. Pat dough into an 8-inch circle. Cut into 10 wedges. Separate wedges and place on ungreased baking sheet. (Optional: brush with 1 T milk and sprinkle with sugar. I usually skip this step.)

Bake at 400 degrees for 12-15 minutes or until lightly brown.

Serve with sour orange curd and a little bit of real whipped cream for total decadence.

That's definitely what you should do if life gives you sour oranges!