Orange blossom

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Citrus sinensis Osbeck painting by Mary Emily Eaton from a 1917 issue of National Geographic Orange Blossom (NGM XXXI p504).jpg
Citrus sinensis Osbeck painting by Mary Emily Eaton from a 1917 issue of National Geographic
The orange blossom Orange Blossom.JPG
The orange blossom

The orange blossom is the fragrant flower of the Citrus sinensis (orange tree). It is used in perfume making and has been written about as an aphrodisiac. [1] Orange blossom essence is an important component in the making of perfume. The petals of orange blossom can also be made into orange flower water (as an alternative to rose water), a common part of both French cuisine and Middle Eastern cuisine (most often as an ingredient in desserts and baked goods). It's also present in hispanic culinary traditions, with notable examples being Mexican pan de muerto and Spanish Roscón de Reyes.

In the United States, orange flower water is often used to make orange blossom scones, and the orange blossom is the state flower of Florida. [2]

In Spain, the orange blossom lends its name to the Costa del Azahar ("Orange Blossom Coast"), the Castellon seaboard. Fallen blossoms are dried and used to make tea.

Related Research Articles

<i>Citrus</i> Genus of flowering plants

Citrus is a genus of flowering trees and shrubs in the family Rutaceae. Plants in the genus produce citrus fruits, including important crops such as oranges, mandarins, lemons, grapefruits, pomelos, and limes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Calamansi</span> Hybrid species of citrus

Calamansi, also known as calamondin, Philippine lime, or Philippine lemon, is a citrus hybrid cultivated predominantly in the Philippines. It is native to the Philippines, parts of Indonesia, Malaysia, and Brunei, as well as parts of southern China and Taiwan.

Perfume is a mixture of fragrant essential oils or aroma compounds (fragrances), fixatives and solvents, usually in liquid form, used to give the human body, animals, food, objects, and living-spaces an agreeable scent. Perfumes can be defined as substances that emit and diffuse a pleasant and fragrant odor. They consist of manmade mixtures of aromatic chemicals and essential oils. The 1939 Nobel Laureate for Chemistry, Leopold Ružička stated in 1945 that "right from the earliest days of scientific chemistry up to the present time, perfumes have substantially contributed to the development of organic chemistry as regards methods, systematic classification, and theory."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mandarin orange</span> Small citrus fruit

The mandarin orange, also known as mandarin or mandarine, is a small, rounded citrus tree fruit. Treated as a distinct species of orange, it is usually eaten plain or in fruit salads. Tangerines are a group of orange-colored citrus fruit consisting of hybrids of mandarin orange with some pomelo contribution.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fruit tree pollination</span>

Pollination of fruit trees is required to produce seeds with surrounding fruit. It is the process of moving pollen from the anther to the stigma, either in the same flower or in another flower. Some tree species, including many fruit trees, do not produce fruit from self-pollination, so pollinizer trees are planted in orchards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bitter orange</span> Hybrid citrus plant

Bitter orange, sour orange, Seville orange, bigarade orange, or marmalade orange is in a narrow sense the citrus tree Citrus × aurantium and its fruit. It is native to Southeast Asia and has been spread by humans to many parts of the world. It is probably a cross between the pomelo, Citrus maxima, and the mandarin orange, Citrus reticulata.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pomelo</span> Citrus fruit from Southeast Asia

The pomelo, from the family Rutaceae, is the largest citrus fruit, and the principal ancestor of the grapefruit. It is a natural, non-hybrid, citrus fruit, native to Southeast Asia. Similar in taste to a sweet grapefruit, the pomelo is commonly consumed and used for festive occasions throughout Southeast Asia and East Asia. As with the grapefruit, phytochemicals in the pomelo have the potential for drug interactions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yuzu</span> Citrus fruit and plant

Yuzu is a citrus fruit and plant in the family Rutaceae of East Asian origin. Yuzu has been cultivated mainly in East Asia, though it has also recently been grown in New Zealand, Australia, Spain, Italy, and France.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Seaboard Air Line Railroad</span> Defunct American railroad

The Seaboard Air Line Railroad, which styled itself as "The Route of Courteous Service", was an American railroad that existed from April 14, 1900, until July 1, 1967, when it merged with the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad, its longtime rival, to form the Seaboard Coast Line Railroad. Predecessor railroads dated from the 1830s and reorganized extensively to rebuild after the American Civil War. The company was headquartered in Norfolk, Virginia, until 1958, when its main offices were relocated to Richmond, Virginia. The Seaboard Air Line Railway Building in Norfolk's historic Freemason District still stands and has been converted into apartments.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Key lime</span> Citrus fruit and plant

The Key lime or acid lime is a citrus hybrid native to tropical Southeast Asia. It has a spherical fruit, 2.5–5 centimetres in diameter. The Key lime is usually picked while it is still green, but it becomes yellow when ripe.

<i>Osmanthus fragrans</i> Species of plant

Osmanthus fragrans, variously known as sweet osmanthus, sweet olive, tea olive, and fragrant olive, is a flowering plant species native to Asia from the Himalayas through the provinces of Guizhou, Sichuan and Yunnan in China, Taiwan, southern Japan and Southeast Asia as far south as Cambodia and Thailand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Neroli</span> Essential oil of the bitter orange blossom

Neroli oil is an essential oil produced from the blossom of the bitter orange tree. Its scent is sweet, honeyed and somewhat metallic with green and spicy facets. Orange blossom is also extracted from the same blossom and both extracts are extensively used in perfumery. Orange blossom can be described as smelling sweeter, warmer and more floral than neroli. The difference between how neroli and orange blossom smell and why they are referred to with different names, is a result of the process of extraction that is used to obtain the oil from the blooms. Neroli is extracted by steam distillation and orange blossom is extracted via a process of enfleurage or solvent extraction.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Buñuelo</span> Fried dough ball

A buñuelo (Spanish:[buˈɲwelo], alternatively called boñuelo, bimuelo, birmuelo, bermuelo, bumuelo, burmuelo, or bonuelo, is a fried dough fritter found in Spain, Latin America, and other regions with a historical connection to Spaniards, including Southwest Europe, the Balkans, Anatolia, and other parts of Asia and North Africa. Buñuelos are traditionally prepared at Christmas. It will usually have a filling or a topping. In Mexican cuisine, it is often served with a syrup made with piloncillo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Orange (fruit)</span> Citrus fruit

An orange, also called sweet orange when it is desired to distinguish it from the bitter orange, is the fruit of a tree in the family Rutaceae. Botanically, this is the hybrid Citrus × sinensis, between the pomelo and the mandarin orange. There are many related hybrids including of mandarins and sweet orange; these, and the bitter orange, may be described as oranges. The chloroplast genome, and therefore the maternal line, is that of pomelo. The sweet orange has had its full genome sequenced.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fragrance extraction</span> Separation process of aromatic compounds from raw materials

Fragrance extraction refers to the separation process of aromatic compounds from raw materials, using methods such as distillation, solvent extraction, expression, sieving, or enfleurage. The results of the extracts are either essential oils, absolutes, concretes, or butters, depending on the amount of waxes in the extracted product.

<i>Orange Blossom Special</i> (train)

The Orange Blossom Special was a deluxe passenger train on the Seaboard Air Line Railroad connecting railroads between New York City and Miami in the United States. It ran during the winter season only.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Orange flower water</span> Clear, perfumed distillation of fresh bitter-orange blossoms

Orange flower water, or orange blossom water, is a clear aromatic by-product of the distillation of fresh bitter-orange blossoms for their essential oil.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eau de toilette</span> Lightly scented perfume

Eau de toilette is a lightly scented perfume. It is also referred to as aromatic waters and has a high alcohol content. It is usually applied directly to the skin after bathing or shaving. It is traditionally composed of alcohol and various volatile oils. Traditionally these products were named after a principal ingredient; some being geranium water, lavender water, lilac water, violet water, spirit of myrcia and 'eau de Bretfeld'. Because of this, eau de toilette was sometimes referred to as "toilet water".

"Orange Blossom Special" is a fiddle tune about the luxury passenger train of the same name. The song was written by Ervin T. Rouse (1917–1981) in 1938 and was first recorded by Rouse and his brother Gordon in 1939. Often called simply "The Special" or "OBS", the song is commonly referred to as "the fiddle player's national anthem".

<i>Citrus <span style="font-style:normal;">×</span> sinensis</i> Cultivated trees bearing sweet oranges

Citrus × sinensis, a hybrid between pomelo and mandarin, also known as the sweet oranges, is a commonly cultivated species of orange that includes Valencia oranges, blood oranges and navel oranges.

References

  1. Jeff Klinkenberg, Seasons of Florida
  2. "56 Florida Facts". Meet The USA. 2022.