I think oranges were always a bit of a luxury for my mom. Part of that may have been five war years of not being able to enjoy them. The Dutch with their long history in what was known as The Dutch East Indies, Indonesia today, had been importing the fruit from as far back as the 15th Century. The name sinaaspple, begins with Sina, or an early Dutch form of China, likely, China Apple. When I was a kid, I fell for the Mandarin Orange for a time but it doesn’t stand up to the tastes, aromas and textures of the Sinaasapel nor does it stand up to ritual or nostalgia or sharing of a navel orange on a Monday evening at the kitchen sink.
I love navel oranges and for me they have a sort of ritual and nostalgia attached, mostly because of my mother I think. Jenny and I were standing at the kitchen sink together yesterday evening enjoying a navel orange and it got us thinking about my mom. I can well remember her doing the same. This is the ritual. Begin by first vigorously rolling the orange between your hand and the kitchen counter, supposedly to separate the white membrane inside from the fruit. Then take a sharp paring knife, or if you are lucky and have one of those tools that looks a bit like a crochet needle, you cut just under the skin into four quarters. Peel off the skin and divide the juicy fruit equally between the two of you. The reason for standing by the sink is the fact that by this time your hands will be sticky with juice and it might even be running down your chin.
I think oranges were always a bit of a luxury for my mom. Part of that may have been five war years of not being able to enjoy them. The Dutch with their long history in what was known as The Dutch East Indies, Indonesia today, had been importing the fruit from as far back as the 15th Century. The name sinaaspple, begins with Sina, or an early Dutch form of China, likely, China Apple. When I was a kid, I fell for the Mandarin Orange for a time but it doesn’t stand up to the tastes, aromas and textures of the Sinaasapel nor does it stand up to ritual or nostalgia or sharing of a navel orange on a Monday evening at the kitchen sink.
2 Comments
Margo DeMoor
4/14/2020 08:20:28 am
Dennis, I was taught to peel an orange exactly the same way...maybe because my parents were Frisian as well! Thanks for the picture of sharing and caring you provided when I opened my email this morning. I have new appreciation for simple food shared!
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Martin Contant
4/15/2020 10:26:25 am
Thanks Dennis. I'm not Frisian, but peeling an orange the way you described yesterday is also part of my heritage. Thanks for the reminders this morning about seeing blessings and experiencing gratitude in the simple things of life. So true.
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