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a vintage aluminum pie tin filled with zested and juiced Sicilian Tarocco half blood oranges with a microplane filled with orange zest, an angular glass jar filled with blood orange sugar, empty orange halves stacked up in the back, with a whole orange on the left and a glass of carrot-colored orange juice on the right in a Venetian glass with polka dots on it and a tulip wide top.

Sicilian Blood Orange Sugar (Italian Sunshine in a Jar)

Whether you’re the type of person who doesn’t want to waste a single part of a really good ingredient, or you just want to add a little sunshine to your baking (or your minibar), this quick and easy blood orange sugar recipe takes less than 5 minutes to make. If you live in an area where you have access to Sicilian half-blood oranges (or even some good Florida or California varieties), you’ll be able to add a new twist to your baked goods and cocktails with this easy flavored sugar recipe. Plus, you can use this sugar to substitute for Fiori di Sicilia in your baked goods when also combined with a little vanilla extract, as I do with my Italian Easter Colomba bread and Christmas Panettone. 

How to Get the Most Out of a Single Tarocco Blood Orange (or any orange)

Sicilian-grown blood oranges are especially delicious so it’s essential to get the most out of each one. I’ll first zest them all because they’re full of extremely fragrant oils typically used in extracts, perfumes, etc.  In fact, there’s more natural oil found in the zest of these oranges than regular oranges which makes it perfect for flavoring baked goods, french toast, ciders, cocktails, hot toddies, or tea. Since these blood oranges are seasonal, this is a great way to preserve a little “sunshine in a bottle” to be used later on by either making this orange sugar recipe or by simply freezing the zest.  I do both because it leaves me with more options later on. Then I juice the oranges because they make the sweetest orange juice imaginable. 

Blood Orange Sugar Ingredients

  • granulated sugar (pure cane sugar or white sugar)
  • Sicilian Blood Oranges (or other organic blood orange varieties), washed and zested

Top-up Homemade Flavored Sugars so You Never Run Out

Keep adding more orange zest and sugar to the jar as needed. This way you always have enough for baking or for giving as holiday gifts to your baker or bartending friends.  I continually add to my blood orange sugar throughout the year much like my homemade vanilla extract. And if you ever notice a pool of orange syrupy goodness in the bottom of your jar (see photos below), that’s because of all the fragrant oils in the zest and it means you need to balance out the sugar-to-zest ratio.  Top up the mixture with more sugar. I like to remove the orange sugar from the jar to a bowl, add more sugar, and stir in just enough additional sugar until there’s no syrup remaining. Then I pop it all back into the jar and seal it up. 

The Three Most Common Types of Blood Oranges Come from the Mediterranean

  • Tarocco Blood Orange is super sweet and comes from Italy.
  • Sanguinello Blood Orange (aka “Sanguinelli” if you find it in your supermarket in the States) – comes from Spain.
  • Moro Blood Orange is the darkest and most bitter of the three Mediterranean blood oranges. Its color range varies more widely even reaching an almost black interior flesh and it’s from near and around Syracuse, Sicily.

Blood Orange Vs. Orange — What Makes Tarocco blood Oranges so Special?

Sicily has some of the best fruits and vegetables in the world. The Tarocco blood orange is seedless, super juicy, and has the highest concentration of vitamin C out of any other orange variety in the world. This is mainly on account of the oranges being grown in and around Mt. Etna which is home to some of the best volcanic mineral-rich soil anywhere in the world.  While that’s pretty special on its own, these oranges are also known for their superior sweetness compared to regular oranges. Plus, this particular blood orange variety is known to be the sweetest of all the blood orange varieties. You get it, they’re really sweet and full of orange flavor.

Blood oranges are a natural mutation of the orange and are thought to be a hybrid of a pomelo and tangerine.  Its deep ruby crimson flesh color comes from anthocyanins which are a family of polyphenol pigments found in many flowers and other types of fruit with beautiful deep colors. However, anthocyanins are not commonly found in citrus fruits which makes blood oranges even more unique. And like so many other great Italian foods, this Sicilian,  “arancia rossa di Sicilia” (red orange of Sicily) has protected geographical status or IGP.

How to Make Sicilian Blood-Orange Sugar

  1. Zest the oranges.  Add the zest to a small bowl and add the sugar in increments, stirring to combine the mixture well until you have the ratio of zest-to-sugar that suits your taste.

  2. Store the sugar. Add the blood orange sugar to a jar, seal it, and keep it in the cupboard, stirring periodically throughout the first week using a fork or spoon to break up the sugar as it dries. Store in the cupboard and use it to replace the sugar in your favorite baking or cocktail recipes Enjoy!

Ways to Use Blood Orange Sugar

The uses for this recipe are endless and provide countless inspiration throughout the year including for special holiday desserts.  Even if you can’t find Tarocco oranges, get the best oranges you can find, and start zesting. Here are a few of the ways we use blood orange sugar.

And if you’re wondering, yes, you can (and should) also make lemon sugar too. 

Traveling to Sicily is its Own Sort of Sunshine

If you ever have a chance to visit Italy or Sicily, you should definitely go during the Tarocco harvest season. Sicily not only has some of the best oranges (and food) on the planet, it has some of the best views, majestic sunrises, sunsets, and clear blue ocean water you’ll ever see. All of this is right in the middle of ancient ruins and historic sights and the best cannoli of your life (really) around every corner. And for movie buffs, it’s also where the most important Sicilian scenes from The Godfather, were filmed –in Savoca, Sicily including at Bar Vitelli. You can see it in the photo below with all the green ivy growing over the café front. It’s a small medieval village atop a very tall and winding mountain. In fact, this is where Michael Corleone’s first meeting with Apollonia’s father (and the infamous wedding) takes place. Inside Bar Vitelli, it’s a little touristy, but you’ll get past that when you taste their famous homemade”granita al limone”…it’s the best freshly squeezed frozen lemonade you’ll ever have in your entire life.  I still think about this granita more than you’d care to know.

Looking for More Sicilian Recipes?

We’ve got one of the most famous of all, the delicious cannoli and it’s worth every bit of effort. 

 

Tarocco Blood Oranges tips + tricks + FAQ’s

  • What are blood oranges?  Blood oranges are a citrus fruit known for their hint of raspberry flavor, and variety of deep red to black interior flesh and can either be extremely sweet like the Tarocco Sicilian blood orange or sweet and bitter like the Moro blood orange also grown in Sicily.  They have anthocyanins (polyphenol pigments) which are mostly found in other red fruits and flowers, but which is rare to have in citrus fruits.
  • Are Tarocco blood oranges seedless? Yes, Tarocco blood oranges are seedless and extremely juicy, making them Italy’s favorite table orange.
  • What orange variety has the highest concentration of vitamin C? Tarocco Blood Oranges or “arancia rossa di Sicilia” has the highest concentration of any orange variety in the world!
  • Do blood oranges grow in the United States? Yes, you can find other varieties of blood oranges grown in Texas, California, and Florida nowadays and although they won’t taste like the Sicilian-grown blood oranges (because of soil and climate), they’re still really good.
  • What do blood oranges taste like?  Blood oranges vary in taste depending upon which variety you’re eating, and where it was grown.  They can be intensely sweet or bitter (or both) and can have notes of cherries, raspberries, and pomelo.
  • Are blood oranges healthier for you? Yes, even if only slight because although they have a similar nutrient value to that of other oranges, they also have antioxidant-rich anthocyanins present (giving them their extraordinary dark ruby color).  And if you’re eating a Tarocco blood orange from Sicily specifically, it is more vitamin c content than any other orange variety in the world.
  • When are blood oranges in season? Blood oranges are typically in season from December through April depending upon where you are in the world. Blood oranges are harvested in Italy from January through April and can last till May in some cases.
  • Where do blood oranges come from? Blood oranges originated in the Mediterranean most like first cultivated in Italy and later in Spain.
  • Are blood oranges safe to eat?  Yes, blood oranges are completely safe to eat barring you have any food intolerance or allergies to citrus and/or the orange family specifically. I eat as many as I can while they’re in season (especially the sweetest variety, the Sicilian Tarocoo Blood Orange).
  • What can you substitute Fiori di Sicilia extract with?  In baked goods, you can substitute all or part of the sugar called for in the recipe with this homemade blood orange sugar and use vanilla extract in the amounts called for in the recipe. The combination of pure orange oil found in the blood orange sugar along with the creamy notes of pure vanilla provide an excellent substitute without the fake orange flavor often found in inexpensive orange extracts. 
  • What is Fiori di Sicilia made of? Fiori di Sicilia is an Italian extract that combines vanilla, citrus oils (like Tarocco blood orange, and Sicilian lemons), along with some flower essences of those same plants. Fiori means “flowers” and di Sicilia means “of Sicily”, so Fiori di Sicilia means, “Flowers of Sicily”.
  • What is Fiori di Sicilia extract used for? Most often it’s used in Italy for Easter Colomba Bread, Christmas Panettone, biscotti (cookies), etc. But it can also be used for cakes, muffins, bread, or anything else you can think of like cocktails.
  • What is Italian millefiori extract? In Italian, millefiori translates to ‘one thousand lowers’.  It is an extract that’s used in Easter Colomba and other pastries you’ll find around this time of year. If you can’t find it, you can use pure vanilla extract along with homemade lemon sugar or lemon extract (or blood orange sugar).
  • What can I replace orange extract with? The best orange extract substitutes are orange zest, orange oil, orange liqueur, or this blood orange sugar.
  • What are the flavors of Fiori di Sicilia?  The predominant flavors in Fiori di Sicilia are vanilla and orange and in fact, most US versions of “Fiori di Sicilia extract” is made using a combination of vanilla and orange extract.

Let’s get started!

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a vintage aluminum pie tin filled with zested and juiced Sicilian Tarocco half blood oranges with a microplane filled with orange zest, an angular glass jar filled with blood orange sugar, empty orange halves stacked up in the back, with a whole orange on the left and a glass of carrot-colored orange juice on the right in a Venetian glass with polka dots on it and a tulip wide top.

Sicilian Blood Orange Sugar (Italian Sunshine in a Jar)


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  • Author: Kelly
  • Total Time: 1 minute
  • Yield: 1 cup
  • Diet: Vegan

Description

Whether you’re the type of person who doesn’t want to waste a single part of a really good ingredient, or you just want to add a little sunshine to your baking (or your minibar), this quick and easy blood orange sugar recipe takes less than 5 minutes to make. If you live in an area where you have access to Sicilian half-blood oranges (or even some good Florida or California varieties), you’ll be able to add a new twist to your baked goods and cocktails with this easy and delicious flavored sugar recipe. Plus, you can use this flavored sugar to substitute for Fiori di Sicilia in baking when also combined with vanilla extract, as I do with my Italian Easter Colomba bread and Christmas Panettone. 


Ingredients

  • granulated sugar (pure cane sugar or white sugar)
  • Sicilian Blood Oranges (or other organic blood orange varieties), washed and zested


Instructions

  1. Zest the oranges.  Add the zest to a small bowl and add the sugar in increments, stirring to combine the mixture well until you have the ratio of zest-to-sugar that suits your taste.

  2. Store the sugar. Add the blood orange sugar to a jar, seal it, and keep it in the cupboard, stirring periodically throughout the first week using a fork or spoon to break up the sugar as it dries. Store in the cupboard and use it to replace the sugar in your favorite baking or cocktail recipes Enjoy!

Notes

  • If you notice your orange sugar looks more like orange syrup from all of the oils in the zest, just add more sugar to help even out the ratio of zest to sugar. Stir and seal.
  • Use this blood orange sugar as a substitute for Fiori di Sicilia in baked goods as I’ve done in this Italian Easter Colomba Bread and Christmas Panettone.
  • Prep Time: 1 minute
  • Cook Time: 0 minutes
  • Category: Condiments + Sauces + Dips
  • Method: Mix & Stir
  • Cuisine: American

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 1 teaspoon
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Blood Orange Sugar Step-By-Step Recipe Photos & Instructions

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