The Daily V

By Vanessa, January 17, 2010 10:26 pm

I was surprised to learn that Clementines are in season right now. Being from Chicago, it’s difficult for me to grasp the concept that anything’s in season in January besides like… potholes.

But every year around Christmas, you’ll start to see these everywhere:

For the most part, I don’t have a discerning palate. I’m not one of those people who can take a bite of cheese or a sip of wine and instantly tell you what region it’s from. But I can always tell a Clementine from any other tangerine or orange.

- Clementines have very thin skin, which makes them easy to peel

- They’re always seedless, and much sweeter than a regular orange or tangerine.

- Clementines are shaped like a flattened sphere.

You Clementine purists out there are probably chiding me for writing this in the middle of January. Mid-late January is the tail end of Clementine season. So hurry up and buy some, before they’re gone! Once you get them, try out my recipe for Spinach Salad with Clementines:

Ingredients:

- a few handfulls of raw spinach

- one Clementine

- orange juice

- olive oil

- red wine vinegar

- dijon mustard

- red onion

Directions:

- Cut your clementine segments into small pices, and scatter over the raw spinach.

- To create the orange vinaigrette, mix together orange juice, olive oil, red wine vinegar, and Dijon mustard. Use whatever amounts you prefer.

- Top your salad with chopped red onions, and and the orange vinaigrette.

Enjoy with some relaxing jazz music

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Soundtrack to this post: The Dave Brubeck Quartet – Take Five

(Interesting note – Paul Desmond, the saxophonist who wrote Take Five, specified in his will that all royalties from his music be donated to the Red Cross. Something to think about, in light of the tragic earthquake in Haiti.)

Coming Soon: Do you think all flours are created equal? Think again. How I turned sugar cookies into sugar biscuits.