Blood Oranges are in season, let’s have fun with them!
This is definitely a mid-February recipe, using beautiful root vegetables from our local farms, as well as the delightful citrus from the south that brightens up wintertime in all parts of the country. We need all the color we can get right now.
Wake up the senses!
There’s something magical about blood oranges! You almost need to put on your shades when you slice them open, the vibrant color ranging from deep orange to a dark burgundy. What a treat for the winter-weary eyes. They are not only show-off beauties, but they have delightful flavor as well and lend themselves nicely whether used in sweet or savory dishes.
A little goes a long way
They are a bit more expensive than other oranges right now, but worth the little bit more to showcase their razzle dazzle. Cut into supremes for a fruit salad, they are little flavorful gems that glisten in the bowl. Top a simple bowl of cottage cheese or yoghurt, so delicious. Additionally, they pair beautifully with both poultry and fish, so use your imagination.
A vibrant salad
One of my favorite winter salads is a shaved fennel salad with a blood orange vinaigrette. So simple, and if you close your eyes, you won’t even see the four-foot snowbanks outside.
A lot of nutrition in a little fruit
As for nutrition, we know that oranges are filled with Vitamin C, your entire daily supply no matter the variety, but one medium blood orange can also supply Vitamins B-6 and B-9, and is higher in important antioxidants than regular oranges. They are also higher in fiber, potassium, Vitamin A, and calcium.
They will make you smile
While they are around, have some fun with them. This time, I added them to roasted potatoes. I will often roast potatoes with some lemon slices, so this swap was right in line with that. I had a beautiful leek in the crisper, so I sliced it very thin, dark green tops and all, and added that to the mix along with some whole garlic cloves because they are delightful when roasted. I had a mishmash of different potatoes, colors and textures, so I used those up as well. It doesn’t really matter, they will all roast and get crispy and delicious. The whole dish was a hit, and the best part were the crispy orange slices, eat them whole peeling and all, and garlic clove gems.
Well, the potatoes were pretty darn good too!
Roasted Potatoes with Blood Oranges and Leeks
Served with seared scallops
- 2 lbs. (900 g.) or so potatoes
- 1 large leek
- 1 blood orange, sliced thinly
- 1 blood orange, zested and juiced
- 1 head garlic, cloves separated and peeled
- Sweet Hungarian paprika
- 2 to 3 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
Preheat oven to 450 degrees and place a rimmed baking sheet on the middle rack.
Cut the potatoes into chunks and place in salted cold water. Bring to a boil and cook for 5 to 6 minutes, just to soften a bit. Drain, place them back in the pan, cover, and give it a couple of shakes. This will rough up the edges and give you more crispy bits in the end.
Remove any really tough or browned outer leaves from the leek, rinse well, then slice the entire thing, dark green and all, into very fine slices. Place these in a bowl along with the sliced orange, juice from the second orange (reserve the zest for the final finish), the garlic cloves, paprika, some salt and pepper, and a tablespoon of the olive oil. Mix well, then add to the potatoes and gently combine.
Drizzle the rest of the olive oil on the heated baking sheet and spread out the potato mixture in a single layer.
Roast for about 20 minutes, then turn and continue to roast another 10 minutes or so, or until the potatoes are browned on all sides. This will vary greatly depending on your oven, the type of potato you used, and the phase of the moon (maybe).
Give a taste, add more salt and pepper if needed, scrape up all the crispy bits to the serving dish, garnish with the zest, and enjoy. I had some blood orange juice left in the bowl, and drizzled it over as well to reinforce the orange flavor.
Here, I rounded out the meal with some gently seared and lightly seasoned sea scallops, a side salad, and served it all with a little Greek yoghurt I seasoned with sriracha. Just mix a third cup or so of plain Greek yoghurt with however much sriracha you like, taste as you add, and season with some salt, and a squeeze of lemon (or blood orange!).
Copyright 2025– or current year, The New Vintage Kitchen. Dorothy Grover-Read. Unattributed use of this material and photographs is strictly prohibited. Reposting and links may be used, provided that credit is given to The New Vintage Kitchen, with active link and direction to this original post.\
The New Vintage Kitchen does not accept ads or payment for mention of products or businesses.
Supporter of: Slow Food Fair Trade USA Northeast Organic Farmers Association EcoWatch Let’s Save Our Planet No Kid Hungry Hunger Free Vermont Environmental Working Group World Central Kitchen Sustainable America Seed Savers Exchange Save the Children Vermont Farm to Plate
Our posts and images are created by a human, not by AI. We like it that way.
Mmmmm. What wonderful flavors!
Thank you! It was tasty indeed!
Looks delicious. I’ve only had blood orange juice, never the actual orange. Odd when I think about it.
They are everywhere right now! Worth a try.
Blood oranges have started appearing in our supermarkets lately. Saw a few last year at this time, but their airmiles were showing and they looked a bit tired. This year, they’re looking better. So nice as a midnight snack for bed.
They are a perfect snack, aren’t they! Just the right amount of sweet, and you can peel out the little sections and share as well!
Thank you, Dorothy, for the wonderful dish!
Joanna
You are very welcome! These potatoes are now on my cravings list!
This sounds absolutely wonderful, yes please!
Jenna
I’ll save you some Jenna!
Hope all is well with you!
Wowsah, that looks good! My mouth was watering as I read this post. And that’s a lot of snow you have. More than we do, I think.
Thanks Laurie!
Too much snow, our driveway feels like a luge run! -2 this morning, but it is supposed to be over 32 by Sunday, and a couple of 40 degrees during the day after. We might even have some sap run!
Thanks for this recipe. I wouldn’t have thought of combining oranges and potatoes but it looks divine!
They were so good Donna! And pretty good reheated under the broiler the next night!
This is such an original combination. Pairing it with scallops is brilliant!
The snow photos reminded me of my Vermont days, and the reason why I left! Hang in there! 🙂
Thanks Ronit, it was all so delicious together.
The last two years, we’ve had much smaller storms, this year it has decided to make up for it!
I haven’t seen any in our shops over here but will keep an eye out for them now. Looks like a lovely and novel addition to savoury dishes. Pleased to say we don’t have quite that much snow!
Well, we didn’t either until last weekend. Now I’m done with it!
Well to paraphrase the song, the weather outside is frightful but the recipe is so delightful!
Ah, thanks Bernadette!
My mouth is watering thinking about the flavors in this dish.
Yum! Thank you!
Thanks Nancy! They were tasty indeed!
I love using oranges in tray bakes, particularly with carrots, but have never tried them with potatoes. I must give this a shot!
The flavor is subtle, but really delicious and I think I could make a whole tray of just the oranges!
Those do look crispy delicious! I just don’t get why you are not dining outside, though. That must be what it is like to be hip deep in snow!
We would still dine outside if it wasn’t -2 degrees. Maybe next week when it hits 32?
And, that is why New Englanders leave furniture outside, so we can measure the snowfall.
Exactly right! We all know it’s 18″ to the seat of a chair!
I remember being on my first business trip to Italy, taking a very food experienced American lass to dinner – her deciding the menu – and wondering why on earth she ordered JUST blood oranges from Morocco for dessert! Soon found out 🙂 ! Love your potato recipe and shall repost it to friends – the leek, orange, potato combo with paprika really is interesting !!!
Thank you! The Italians appreciate the sublime simplicity of the perfection in perfect produce!
Blood orange is something I haven’t had much experience with but you sure do many it look and sound delicious!
Thank you N.! They are really good, and I just adored them with the potatoes.
That combo is very appealing, D.
💕🥔
Your recipe looks so delicious, Dorothy. I don’t think I’ve ever had a blood orange. I have to look for them. I bet the fruit would be good with fennel.
They are so tasty Mary, happy hunting. The skin usually has a distinctive darker pigmentation here and there, it’s easy to pass them by.
I love the Blood Orange but few and far between here ..delicous recipe and I’m sure it was great with the scallops xx
It went beautifully with the scallops Carol, thanks! Any thin-skin orange will work here.
Thanks for the tip, Dorothy 🙂 x
My goodness, that snow! 😲 Definitely time for some colour and flavour in the kitchen, your recipe sounds delightful, Dorothy. We don’t seem to get blood oranges here much if at all, as a child they fascinated me but I’m wondering if they simply don’t appeal to the British market any more. (The Sevilles are around now for the marmalade season, though.) I imagine your dish would be just as tasty if not as pretty using a standard orange. Keep warm! 😉
Yes, we feature lots of snow here in Vermont. Right now, Jay Peak has the thickest snow cover (28 feet) of all the skiing mountains in the US!
You can use any type of flavorful orange here, so experiment with what is available locally. Look for a variety with a thinner skin, I probably wouldn’t use a naval with a thick outer skin here.
If this doesn’t say “Eat me” nothing will. I have always wanted to try blood oranges. My goodness you have a lot of snow!
Yes, and more coming this week, but then a thaw and maybe the sap will start running!
Do you make your own syrup?
No, I have a friend with a sugar shack and I let him do the honors! He knows I like the dark amber the best and always makes sure I have my supply!
I would’ve never put blood oranges and potatoes together but that sounds interesting…and it looks beautiful
It’s a lovely combination, subtle, but unique and quite tasty.
This looks so good. I think potatoes have gotten a bad name. Cooked the right way they are nutritious and delicious.
They certainly are! More potassium than a banana and tons of fiber and other nutrients.
As long as you don’t drown it in sour cream and butter!
Looks ah-mazing, Dorothy. Orange you glad you made it? 😜🍃🍊
🤣🤣🤣
Good one!
A very unique share! Has to be delicious!
It is! Thank you!
That’s a lot of snow! I love blood oranges!
They are so tasty! Little gems in the middle of winter!
We have made up for a relatively quiet winter snow-wise, it’s all come at once at the end!
I love blood oranges so much. The flavor is wonderful.
I look forward to them every year, and they never disappoint
That is so much snow! Wow! I would have fun jumping in that. I noticed you eat a lot of seafood. That is a winning recipe for me. I can source blood oranges so will keep this recipe in mind.
Thanks Amanda! I love seafood of all kinds and occasionally eat a little poultry, never other mammals!
The blood oranges are such gems this time of year!
This looks great! I love blood oranges, and the serving suggestion sounds fantastic.
Thanks Cecilia! They are such little gems at this time of year.
This looks like a little piece of paradise – yummy!
Thank you! It was delicious!
These potatoes sound soooooo good! 🙂
They were Nancy! Devoured with gusto!
I love blood oranges! This dish must be so flavorful 😋
Wow! That’s a lot of snow ❄️ 😁
Yes, we got more than our share this year!
I just made this with red onion instead of leaks. Soooo goooood! Thanks for the recipe!
You are very welcome Julia! I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Excellent post Thanks
So glad you stopped by!