Winter sweets aren’t limited to just candy canes and hot chocolate. We wait all year in restless anticipation for Florida citrus and other fresh, seasonal fruits. Now that you’ve gotten your gifts from under the tree, treat yourself to what’s just been picked from them.

Clementines
Winter is the season for this smallest and most popular variety of Mandarin. Famously from Spain and Morocco, this seedless orange is the ideal snacking citrus. The right size for kids, and grown-ups can easily pop two or three at a time. Each individual section bursts with juiciness, and it’s decidedly sweet, with just a little tart edge.

Satsuma
A variety of seedless Mandarin orange, originally from Japan, that migrated to the U.S. in the late 1800’s. A mainstay of the Florida panhandle produce industry, the Satsuma is conspicuous in that it responds well to colder growing temperatures. A thicker skin keeps it nice and juicy, as well as easy to peel.  Lower in natural sugar than other oranges, the flavor is full but slightly less sweet and a touch more tart.

Grapefruit
The Florida Grapefruit season runs from October through May, with its peak occurring in the dead of winter. Best fruit and best prices … lucky us! Native to the Caribbean and a Florida citrus mainstay since the mid 1800’s, grapefruit’s health value has been well documented. (Remember the Grapefruit Diet?) Half a grapefruit will provide your daily dose of Vitamin C and is also high in antioxidants.

Traditional white grapefruit has that classic, tart “pucker” taste we’re most familiar with, but pink varieties, like the Ruby Red will run a little sweeter and less acidic.

Juice Orange
Few fruits tell you exactly what they’re for, but Florida juice oranges remain a winter reward for us fans of the fresh squeeze. Valencia and Hamlin are two of the most popular varieties, often seedless (but not always), and they’re grown for maximum sweetness and juice content. Navel Oranges can also be juiced, although their seedless, easy-peel and sectional design make them an ideal eating orange as well.

Blood Orange
The Crimson Pirate of produce! The Mediterranean climates of Seville and Sicily are the originators (and still the happiest homes) of the blood oranges, although U.S. varieties also come from Florida, California and Texas. Noted for their striking red, near-magenta, color, blood oranges are distinctly tart, almost bitter to some, but unmistakably “orange” in flavor.