What are the winter fruits?!
It used to be bananas and some imported tangerines were winter fruits (because they shipped so well from warm places). Now anything you want is here in winter.
Answers: Now that the fruits from the southern hemisphere (where it is summer now) show up here in the northern hemisphere during out winter, that phrase has lost its meaning. It used to be that local produce was all you could get and that turned up in the local summer. Now you can get grapes and strawberries and fresh peaches, plums, apricots all year long (if you are willing to pay their air freight to arrive here).
It used to be bananas and some imported tangerines were winter fruits (because they shipped so well from warm places). Now anything you want is here in winter.
winter melon
ruby grapefruit
navel oranges
tangerines
FRUIT
Bananas
Blood Oranges
Clementines
Cranberries
Grapes (Red)
Grapefruits
Kiwi
Kumquat
Oranges
Passion Fruit
Pears
Persimmons
Pomegranates
Pummelo
Rhubarb
Satsuma Oranges
Tangelo
Tangerine
Ugli Fruit
see also: Winter Vegetable Guide
Spring Vegetable Guide | Spring Fruit Guide
Summer Vegetable Guide | Summer Fruit Guide
Fall Vegetable Guide | Fall Fruit Guide
Bananas
banana
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Nutritional Information
Excellent source of vitamin B-6 and a good source of fiber, potassium and vitamin C.
What To Look For
Bananas are ripe when the skin is a rich yellow color with a few brown specks.
Easy Storage and Preparation
Store at room temperature so that fruit will continue to ripen for about a week. You can freeze overripe bananas for later use in breads and muffins.
Best Uses Spritz the banana with lemon juice after slicing to prevent discoloration. Use overripe bananas in banana bread or muffins. Brush bananas with orange juice and broil for a fantastic dessert.
Recipes
Banana Fruit Smoothie
Sliced Bananas with Butterscotch Pudding
Nancy Silverton's Banana and Cocoa Cake
Blood Oranges
blood orange
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Nutritional Information
Excellent source of vitamin C and fiber and good source of folate.
What To Look For
Choose plump fruit that feels heavy for its size.
Easy Storage and Preparation
They will keep at room temperature for up to several days.
Best Uses
Add the raspberry-colored flesh to green salads.
Recipes
Blood Orange Marmalade Souffle
Blood Orange Sauce
Red Snapper with Blood Orange Sauce
Clementines
clementines
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Nutritinal Information
Excellent source of vitamin C and a good source of fiber and folate.
What To Look For
Pick ones that are heavy for their size.
Easy Storage and Preparation
They will keep for up to a month in the refrigerator.
Best Uses
Excellent in green salads. They complement poultry dishes as well.
Recipes
Pan Roasted Scallops with Mandarins and Chickpeas
Cranberries
cranberries
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Nutritional Information
Excellent source of vitamin C and a good source of fiber.
What To Look For
Look for cranberries that are shiny and not shriveled. A brown or a deep red color signals freshness. A good, fresh berry should be hard and bounce if dropped on a hard surface.
Easy Storage and Preparation
They'll keep for up to 2 weeks in the refrigerator. Sort and rinse cranberries in cold water before using.
Best Uses
Cranberries are unpleasantly tart on their own, but they're excellent for flavoring a sauce, adding to stuffing or in cakes and breads.
Recipes
Cranberry Butternut and Roast Shallot Couscous
Wild Rice with Dried Cranberries and Walnuts
Mulled Cranberries and Spiced Cherries
Grapes (Red)
red grapes
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Nutritional Information
Excellent source of vitamin C.
What To Look For
Select firm, plump grapes. Color varies according to variety.
Easy Storage and Preparation
For easy snacking, wash thoroughly and store in the refrigerator for up to a week.
Best Uses
Toss grapes into salads or serve them along with cheese and nuts.
Recipes
Muesli with Red and Green Grapes
Tomatoes with Fresh Grape Juice
Grapefruit
(white, ruby red)
grapefruit
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Nutritional Information
Excellent source of vitamin C and fiber and good source of folate.
What To Look For
Pick grapefruits that are heavy for their size, firm and thin-skinned. Skin color varies from yellow to ruby red.
Easy Storage and Preparation
They'll keep at room temperature for a week to 10 days or 2 to 3 weeks in the refrigerator.
Best Uses
Add raw grapefruit to green salads, or in fruit salsas. Good with fish.
Recipes
Caramelized Grapefruit
Avocado and Grapefruit Salad with Bibb Lettuce
Watercress and Endive Salad with Winter Fruits
Kiwi
kiwi
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Nutritional Information
Excellent source of vitamin C and a good source of fiber.
What To Look For
Pick a kiwi that yields to slight pressure but doesn't have soft spots.
Easy Storage and Preparation
They should be stored at room temperature for 3 to 5 days to ripen. Refrigerate ripe kiwis in a plastic bag for 2 to 3 weeks.
Best Uses
The entire fruit is edible including the skin. Like papayas, kiwis are also great meat tenderizers. Spread the green flesh over your meat before cooking to tenderize and add a tangy flavor. The same trait that softens meat also prevents gelatin from setting; so use another fruit in your Jell-O. Use raw atop a fruit tart or in fruit salads. Kiwis also make an unusual accompaniment to ham.
Recipes
Watercress and Endive with Winter Fruits
Tropical Fruit Salsa
Kumquat
kumquats
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Nutritional Information
Good source of vitamins A and C.
What To Look For
Choose thin-skinned, orange fruit about 1.5 inches long. Fruits with green leaves still attached are freshest.
Easy Storage and Preparation
Keeps at room temperature for several days.
Best Uses
Eat raw (a very refreshing treat after rich meals); or cut it in half, seed and puree, then add to a sauce for dessert or poultry.
Recipes
Avocado and Kumquat Salad
Oranges
oranges
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Nutritional Information
Excellent source of vitamin C and fiber and good source of folate.
What To Look For
Look for firm, thin-skinned oranges for juicing and thick-skinned oranges for eating.
Easy Storage and Preparation
Store at room temperature for up to one week, or even longer in the refrigerator.
Best Uses
If grating the zest, avoid the white pith, which tends to be bitter. Raw orange slices make a wonderful addition to salads. Oranges complement the flavors of onions, olives and cucumbers.
Recipes
Allen Susser's Red Snapper with Orange-Mango Salsa
Orange Shortbread Tea Cookies
Spinach, Orange and Almond Salad
Passion Fruit
passion fruit
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Nutritional Information
Good source of vitamins A and C.
What To Look For
Choose the largest, heaviest passion fruits. If ripe, the skin will be wrinkled but firm with a purple brown color. Smooth skin indicates that it is unripe.
Easy Storage and Preparation
Ripen at room temperature until the skin wrinkles. They will keep at room temperature for a few days, or longer in the refrigerator.
Best Uses
Use the juice to flavor drinks, fruit soups, dessert creams and custards. Although each fruit will yield very little juice, it will be very strong in flavor.
Recipes
Passion Fruit Sauce
Pears
(Bartlett, Bosc, D'Anjou and others)
pears
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Nutritional Information
Good source of vitamin C and fiber.
What To Look For
Pears should yield to very slight pressure. Color varies according to variety.
Easy Storage and Preparation
Store at room temperature to soften slightly, then refrigerate for one to two days when ripe.
Best Uses
When serving sliced, rub the cut surface with lemon juice to prevent discoloration. Slice raw pears into salads. Cooked pears are delicious in cakes and tarts. Serve alongside cheese or game.
Recipes
Pears Poached in Syrup
Fall Fruit Salad
Whole Wheat Griddle Cakes with Pear Compote
Persimmons
persimmons
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Nutritional Information
Excellent source of vitamin C.
What To Look For
Select one with soft, deep red-orange skin, with no yellow areas. Hard persimmons are too tart to eat; try ripening in a paper bag with a banana or an apple. Pick a persimmon that is very soft if you want to eat it immediately.
Easy Storage and Preparation
Store in the refrigerator. They are best if used within two days.
Best Uses
Peel before using raw. Add sliced persimmons to fruit salads or green salads. Or, for a simple cooked side dish, cut persimmons in half, keeping the peel, and cook quickly under the broiler.
Recipes
Broiled Persimmons
Pomegranates
pomegranate
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What To Look For
Good source of vitamins A and C.
What To Look For
Select one that feels heavy for its size and very plump. The top should be slightly soft when pressed and the skin should shine, not appear dry and dull.
Easy Storage and Preparation
If refrigerated, they will keep for two weeks.
Best Uses
Use the juice to flavor drinks, fruit soups, dessert creams and custards. Add the seeds to green salads. Can also be cooked into marmalade.
Recipes
Watercress and Pomegranate Salad
Pomegranate Dressing
Pummelo (Pomelo)
pummelo
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Nutritional Information
Excellent source of vitamin C and fiber and good source of folate.
What To Look For
The largest citrus fruit, they can be round or pear shaped. Choose ones that are firm, thin-skinned and feel heavy for their size.
Easy Storage and Preparation
They will keep at room temperature for several days or a week or more if refrigerated.
Best Uses
Use for juice or add sections to fruit or green salads or fruit salsas. Good with fish.
Rhubarb
rhubarb
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Nutritional Information
Good source of calcium, fiber and vitamin C.
What To Look For
Select stems that are long, thin, and fully colored red.
Easy Storage and Preparation
Can be refrigerated for a few days. If the stalks are thick, peel with a vegetable peeler to remove the fibrous strings. The leaves are poisonous.
Best Uses
Rhubarb must be cooked. Use it in fruit soups, compotes, crisps, jams and pies. Good with rich meats such as lamb.
Recipes
Patrick O'Connell's Rhubarb Pizzas
Michael Lomonaco's Strawberry-Rhubarb Shortcake
Roast Pork Loin with Rhubarb Sauce and Onion Relish
Satsuma Oranges
(Mandarin)
satsumas
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Nutritional Information
Excellent source of vitamin C and a good source of fiber and folate.
What To Look For
Pick ones that are heavy for their size. Its nickname is "Emerald Green" because of its greenish-orange color.
Easy Storage and Preparati
oranges and apples
In the USA, we are now able to get any type. In the winter, it is being imported from other countries such as Mexico, Chili, and other parts of South America. I am surprised to see watermelon in the dead of winter!