Oranges for Thanksgiving

                                                 Oranges on the sweetest tree

I have two fruit bearing orange trees in my yard.  I planted them myself about eight years ago.  One has really sweet oranges whose fruit is ready starting about Thanksgiving.  The other tree bears in January.  The past few years the trees have had a bumper crop.  I give oranges to relatives, neighbors and the local mission and still there are oranges.

A few years ago, one of my projects was writing a cookbook in which every recipe used some sort of orange or other citrus.  I developed a few recipes and tried them out on my family.  The recipe book got no further, but I still have the rough draft of what I completed.  This post and maybe a few others in the future features a few of the recipes, all tested and tried.

Orange Pancakes with Orange Syrup

  Delicate and sweet, great for breakfast or brunch

1 egg, slightly beaten

1 cup milk

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 teaspoon grated orange rind

¼ cup orange juice

1 ½ cups pancake/waffle mix

1.  Start heating griddle.  Turn oven to lowest Baking temperature.

2.  In a large bowl, combine eggs, milk, oil, orange rind and orange juice.

3.  Stir to mix well.

4.  Add pancake mix and stir until smooth.

5.  For each pancake, pour ¼ cup batter onto the hot griddle

6.  Cook until bubbles form on the surface and the edges are firm.

7.  Turn and cook the other side.

8.  As pancakes are done, put them on a plate and cover lightly with foil.

     This keeps them warm until all are done. 

9.  Serve warm with warm Orange Syrup.  Makes 8, 4”-5” pancakes.

Orange Syrup

It is best to make the syrup first, so that it is ready when the pancakes are done.  Keep it on warm and stir occasionally as you cook the pancakes.

3/4 cup orange sections cut into ½ inch pieces

¼ cup sugar

1 cup orange juice

¼ cup maple syrup

1.  Bring all ingredients to a boil in a medium saucepan.

2.  Turn the heat to medium

3.  Cook about 25 minutes or until slightly thickened and the orange

     pieces are broken

4.  Pour over warm pancakes and enjoy.

Citrus Shrimp with Spicy Dressing

2 cups cooked medium deveined shrimp, cut in half

3 cups oranges, sectioned and seeds removed

1 cup grapefruit, sectioned with membrane and seeds removed

½ cup black olives, sliced

2 sticks celery , chopped

Spicy Dressing

Lettuce greens

1 lime cut into 8 wedges

crackers

Spicy Dressing

2 plum tomatoes, chopped small

½ onion, chopped

1 tablespoon (or more to taste) bottled hot sauce

2 tablespoons cider vinegar

2 tablespoons olive oil

1.  Mix the shrimp, oranges, grapefruit, olives and celery in a large bowl.

2.  In a separate bowl, mix the tomatoes, onion, hot sauce, vinegar and

     olive oil.

3.  Chill both bowls for at least an hour.

4.  Before serving, pour the dressing into the shrimp mixture.

5.  Serve over lettuce greens with crackers and lime wedges.

6.  Serves 4.

                                         Milk chocolate orange pudding

Milk Chocolate Orange Pudding

 Who doesn’t love the mixed flavors of orange and chocolate

¾ cup sugar

¼ cup cocoa

2 tablespoons cornstarch

2 tablespoons flour

¼ teaspoon salt

2 cups milk

2 egg yolks, slightly beaten

2 tablespoons butter or margarine

1 teaspoon grated orange rind

1 tablespoon Cointreau (or other orange liqueur) or orange extract

1.  In a medium saucepan, combine sugar, cocoa, cornstarch, flour and

     salt

2.  Stir in milk and egg yolks.

3.  Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly.

4.  Boil and stir 1 minute.

5.  Remove from heat;  add butter, orange peel and Cointreau.

6.  Let the mixture sit for a few minutes

7.  Garnish with whipped cream and orange peel twists.

8.  Serve warm or chilled in tart cups, or custard dishes. Serves 8