Healthy Highlight: Oranges

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I always think of Oranges as summer fruit, and they are, but they are also a great way to brighten up a fall or Thanksgiving meal. We add oranges to our Sangria, so why not add them to our salads, dessert table, and even decorations?

  • One medium sized Orange is just 60 calories, contains 237 milligrams of Potassium and 6% of your daily recommended amount of Calcium
  • Vitamin C is very important to your body. It helps protect your cells from damage, boosts your immune system, helps wounds heal, and can help lower your stress levels and blood pressure
  • Oranges can help prevent inflammation, they also have 3 grams of fiber to keep your bowels healthy
  • Oranges have a big dose of natural folate. This is very important for pregnant women and babies

Recipes:

Roasted Citrus & Herb Turkey (tasteofhome.com)

  • 1/4 cup Butter, softened
  • 2 tablespoons Italian Seasoning
  • 1 medium Lemon
  • 3 fresh Rosemary Sprigs
  • 1 Turkey (14-16 pounds)
  • 3 fresh Sage Sprigs
  • 2 teaspoons Salt
  • 3 cups Chicken Broth
  • 2 teaspoons Pepper
  • 1 Large Onion
  • 3-4 tablespoons All-Purpose Flour
  • 1/8 teaspoon Browning Sauce, optional
  • 1 medium Orange
  1. Preheat oven to 325°. Mix butter and Italian seasoning.
  2. Place turkey on a rack in a roasting pan, breast side up; pat dry. With fingers, carefully loosen skin from turkey breast; rub half of the butter mixture under the skin. Secure skin to underside of breast with toothpicks. Rub cavity with salt and pepper; fill with onion, orange, lemon and herbs. Tuck wings under turkey; tie drumsticks together.
  3. Melt remaining butter mixture; brush over outside of turkey. Add 2 cups broth to roasting pan.
  4. Roast, uncovered, until a thermometer inserted in thickest part of thigh reads 170°-175°, 3-1/2-4 hours, basting occasionally with pan drippings. (Cover loosely with foil if turkey browns too quickly.)
  5. Remove turkey from oven; tent with foil. Let stand 20 minutes before carving.
  6. Pour pan drippings into a small saucepan; skim fat. Mix flour, remaining broth and, if desired, browning sauce until smooth; whisk into pan. Bring to a boil; cook and stir until thickened, 1-2 minutes. Serve with turkey.

Rosemary Orange Bread (tasteofhome.com)

  • 1 package Active Dry Yeast
  • 3/4 cup Warm Water
  • 3/4 cup Orange Juice
  • 2 tablespoons Honey
  • 1 tablespoon Vegetable Oil
  • 1 tablespoon minced fresh Rosemary or 1 teaspoon dried Rosemary
  • 2 teaspoons Salt
  • 1 teaspoon Grated Orange Zest
  • 3 3/4 to 4 1/2 cups All-Purpose Flour
  • 1 Large Egg White
  1. In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Add orange juice, honey, oil, rosemary, salt, orange zest and 2 cups flour; beat until smooth. Stir in enough remaining flour to form a soft dough.
  2. Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.
  3. Punch dough down. Roll into a 15x1-in. rectangle. Starting at a short end, roll up jelly-roll style. Pinch edges to seal and shape into an oval. Place seam side down on a greased baking sheet. Cover and let rise until nearly doubled, about 30 minutes.
  4. Bake at 375° for 20 minutes. Whisk egg white; brush over loaf. Place small sprigs of rosemary and peppercorns on top if desired. Bake 25 minutes longer or until browned. Remove from pan to wire rack to cool.

Root Vegetable Soup with Orange, Ginger, and Tarragon (marthastewart.com)

  • 1 tablespoon Unsalted Butter
  • 1 Vidalia Onion, coarsely chopped
  • Coarse Salt and Fresh Ground Pepper
  • 1 large Parsnip, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
  • 1/2 small Rutabaga, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
  • 1 small Celery Root, peeled and coarsely chopped
  • 2 Thyme Sprigs
  • 2 cans Chicken Broth (14.5 ounces each)
  • 2 Oranges
  • 3/4 teaspoon freshly grated, peeled Ginger
  • 1/2 cup Water
  • Fresh Tarragon leaves

Melt butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add onion and 3/4 teaspoon salt, and cook until onion is softened, about 6 minutes (do not let brown). Add parsnip, rutabaga, celery root, thyme, and broth. Bring to a boil, and reduce heat. Cover, and simmer until vegetables are tender, 15 to 20 minutes.

Discard thyme. Puree soup in batches in a blender until smooth (fill blender only halfway), and transfer to a clean pot.

Finely grate enough peel of 1 orange to yield 1/2 teaspoon zest. Working over a bowl, cut segments of orange free of membranes, and set aside. Squeeze juice from membranes into a bowl, then squeeze enough juice from remaining orange to yield 1 cup total. Just before serving, reheat to warm. Stir in orange zest, juice, ginger, and water, plus more to thin to desired consistency. Season with salt, and garnish with orange segments, tarragon, and pepper.