The blood orange compote or Sicilian red oranges.
Traditional and Bimby recipe, also in diet version.
Do you know why the Sicilian red or blood oranges develop their red pigmentation?
The reason is the presence of anthocyanins, and they develop red pigments only when cultivated in a place with a significant temperature change between day and night, especially during the ripening period. Like on the slopes of Mount Etna.
The blood orange compote is an excellent food that will accompany us in all breakfasts, snacks, and dessert preparations such as croissants and tarts.
Ideal for everyone’s diet and especially for children and the elderly with low immune defenses.
Red or blood oranges contain vitamin K, which along with low sodium content, helps fight high blood pressure, and citric acid helps prevent kidney stones. Lastly, fiber aids in intestinal transit and helps control the absorption of sugars and cholesterol.
In this recipe, you will find instructions on how to sweeten the blood orange compote or Sicilian red oranges.
That is, you can prepare it both with sugar and various sweeteners, thus being able to satisfy those with dietary needs such as diabetics.
Furthermore, since the blood orange is quite sweet on its own, even those who wish to use sugar will not need large quantities.
Having a lot of juice, we will use pectin 3:1, a natural gelling agent found naturally in apples. If you don’t want to use it, you can replace it with 2 Granny Smith apples.
The oranges must be strictly organic.
We will thus make a load of vitamin C that will help us fight the ailments of winter, and also a different way of having oranges at hand even when they are no longer in season.
Easy to make, and economical, we will make full use of the fruit, and you will find indications to make this delight both with sugar and sweetener.
We will soak the oranges for 24 hours in plenty of water, changing it several times, and then proceed to the actual preparation.
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- Cost: Very economical
- Rest time: 1 Day
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Portions: 4 jars of about 300 ml
- Cooking methods: Boiling
- Cuisine: Regional Italian
- Region: Sicily
- Seasonality: Autumn, Winter, and Spring
- Energy 15.81 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 13.56 (g) of which sugars 3.53 (g)
- Proteins 0.23 (g)
- Fat 0.03 (g) of which saturated 0.00 (g)of which unsaturated 0.00 (g)
- Fibers 0.56 (g)
- Sodium 0.00 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 1 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA* and FoodData Central** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.
* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov
Ingredients
Let’s go shopping
- 2.2 lbs fresh Blood Oranges (organic)
- 17.64 oz erythritol (or 10.58 oz of sugar or xylitol or 3.53 oz of stevia)
- 1 packet pectin (3:1)
a look at health
Tools
What we need to do
- 1 Pot or the Bimby
- 1 Immersion Blender
- 4 Jars for 300 ml preserves
- 1 Bowl
- 1 Knife
Steps
Preliminaries for both versions of cooking
To make the blood orange compote, the first thing to do is to sanitize the jars.
Arrange the jars and lids in a large pot, completely covering them with water. Bring to a boil over medium heat and let boil for 30 minutes.
At the end, turn off the heat and leave them in hot water, closing the pot with the lid.
Once they have cooled down a bit, carefully remove the jars and lids with the help of tongs and dry them completely with a clean cotton cloth.
Wash the oranges well, and with the tip of a skewer, pierce the surface of the fruit here and there; this will allow the alcohol and essential oils contained in the peel to escape, removing the bitterness.
After piercing all the oranges, transfer them to a large pot full of water, and let them soak for 24 hours, changing the water every 8 hours.
After the time has passed, cut the oranges, first in half, remove the white stem inside, and the seeds, then cut each segment into several parts.
Transfer the orange pieces to a pot, add the pectin 3:1 packet (or peeled apples), plus the sweetener or sugar according to your preference,
and with an immersion blender, blend the mixture, and put it on low heat.
Stir often and from the moment it boils, cook for about 25 minutes.
Here it is, our blood orange composition.
a Sicilian specialty.
Put the oranges in the bowl with the pectin 3:1 or the peeled apple pieces, the sweetener, or the sugar, close with the measuring cup, and blend turbo for 2 sec twice; if you prefer a creamier compote, you can blend more.
Place the basket on the lid and cook 25 min at 212°F counterclockwise speed 1.
Then another 5 min at Varoma temperature, place the basket on the lid speed 1
This compote will not appear very dense as usual because oranges contain a lot of water, but once cooled, you will see that the consistency will be optimal.
When the compote is cooked, transfer it to the previously sterilized jars, close the lids, and invert them to vacuum seal.
From Sicily, here is the blood orange compote.
The blood orange compote
Storage:
Label the jars with the name and date of preparation before storing them in the pantry.
The jam can be kept for several months in a place sheltered from light, cool, and dry.
Warnings:
before using the jam, check that the lid still has the central part lowered; otherwise, it is recommended not to consume the preparation.
Once opened, consume the content within 15-20 days and store it closed in the refrigerator.
FAQ (Frequent Questions and Answers)
The blood orange compote
Can I flavor the compote?
Yes, to give the compote a different flavor, you can add a pinch of cinnamon or ground cloves along with the fruit; I added orange blossom flowers.
