Good morning, friends of Erre4m, and welcome to this new post. Today we continue our journey through the aromas of pastry.
In the last post we got to know the aroma par excellence…vanilla. I don't know about you, but when I think of aromas, alongside the scent of the Bourbon orchid there is always a citrus fruit. Lemons, oranges, citrons, limes, mandarins and clementines, etc.… are constantly present in sweet preparations… let's discover them!
Citrus fruits are also called fruits of the sun. They take their name from the Latin Acrumen, that is sour because of the acidity that is their main characteristic.
The main species come from Asia. They were brought to Europe by the Arabs and by Genoese and Portuguese seafarers, but it was only from the nineteenth century onwards that true cultivation and commercial exploitation began. Given their sweet-and-sour character, citrus fruits are very widely used in many areas of gastronomy.
From citrus fruits we use the fresh or dried peel, the essential oils contained in the peel itself, and the juices. They are used to prepare almost all pastry products: shortcrust pastries and biscuits, sponge cakes and cakes, all creams, semifreddos, spoon desserts, ice creams, sweets, nougats, sugared almonds, soaking syrups, liqueurs, syrups, soft drinks and much more…
The essences of citrus fruits must be stored with care because they deteriorate very easily and turn unpleasant. Of the peel, only the outer coloured part is used, while the white pith just beneath the zest is very bitter and so is not to be used in our pastry work.
The most widely used citrus fruit of all is the LEMON.
The lemon is an evergreen plant native to China and is now cultivated throughout the Mediterranean basin. The scientific name of the lemon plant is Citrus Limonium and it bears fruit practically all year round. For some varieties, such as the Verdello, ripening is delayed so as to always have fresh fruit available even in the months when there would otherwise be no ripening. Lemons are harvested at full ripeness and, if kept in cool, dry places, they can be stored for 5 to 6 months.
There are several varieties, of which Italy (and Sicily in particular) is the world's leading producer. Among the best we count the Monachello, with its rounded shape and highly fragrant peel; the Femminello, which has an oblong fruit of about 10 cm and is very juicy; and the Interdonato lemon of Messina, which, being medium to large in size, yields a juice with a particularly sweet and delicate flavour thanks to its modest citric acid content. Of the lemon, mainly the peel is used as a flavouring, as it contains extremely fine essential oils; while the juice, sour in taste, is an important ingredient in many preparations and is also used to flavour, to preserve and to soften.
ORANGE: The orange tree is a beautiful evergreen, native to eastern Asia, and here in Italy it is grown in all the southern regions. The flower, very beautiful and fragrant, is used for aromas and perfumes.
The fruits, divided into two types, namely the Biondo and the Sanguinello, differ in the colour of the flesh and in flavour.
Among the Biondo oranges we find the Washington Navel, early-ripening and suitable for eating as fruit; the Belladonna, with large fruits and a pleasant flavour; the Ovale calabrese, with large fruits and juicy, seedless flesh, suitable for eating as fruit or for juice; and the Biondo di spina, small and roundish, suitable for juice.
Among the Sanguinello oranges we find the Sanguinello, with medium-sized fruits and intense pink flesh with a flavour tending slightly towards strawberry; the Moro, with a good-sized oval fruit and red flesh; and the Tarocco, with fine oval fruits, seedless and with flesh only tinged with red, suitable for eating as fruit.
The use of the orange is very varied, because both the juice and the peel go into a great many preparations: cakes, fillings, crêpes, small pastries, chocolates, creams, Bavarian creams and mousses, glazes, jellies, jams, juices, syrups, ice creams, sorbets, and the list could go on! Moreover, the candied peel is used in leavened doughs, chocolates, fillings, cakes and much more. Orange peel is normally used as a flavouring. From the peel an essence is also obtained, used for soft drinks, liqueurs and perfumes.
Today, although their ripening period runs from autumn to July, oranges are available all year round.
CITRON: It is probably the largest of the citrus fruits on the market; it has a slightly tapered oval shape and is the fruit of a delicate plant native to Persia, already known in ancient Rome. The distinctive feature of this fruit, quite widely grown across almost the whole Mediterranean, lies in its thick, pale yellow peel, smooth or slightly knobbly depending on the variety. It has little flesh, similar to that of the lemon but sweeter, and little juice.
One of the best qualities on our market is the Liscia di diamante grown in Calabria. The peel is used for candying; and indeed it is one of the most prized candied fruits, both for its flavour and for its versatility. From the same peel are obtained essences and oils, liqueurs, syrups, soft drinks and perfumes.
In the next post we will continue the long list of citrus fruits…FOLLOW US!
Blog by Enrico Gumirato, pastry chef and trainer
