I haven’t been able to get that silly knock-knock joke out of my head. I hope you know which one I’m talking about. I have nothing against bananas; I’ve just been eating oranges ALL morning.

Oranges are in season right now. Juicy and sweet and well known for their high concentration of vitamin C. Oranges make a great low calorie snack. I was over at the Dekalb Farmers Market on Monday evening. Have you ever been? They have a ton of different types of oranges right now. I decided to try out a few different varieties. I picked 5 to sample: Satsuma Mandarin, Clementine, Hamlin, Minneolos and Navel. Here they are in order from my personal favorite to least favorite (but still very tasty and good!)

I thought that these might be rotten because they were quite squishy. Not firm like a navel orange. Much to my surprise they were super sweet! Very easy to peel and pop in your mouth and no seeds.

These were very good and very sweet! Also very easy to peel and pop in your mouth.

I had never heard of this variety before. They were very juicy! These would be great for making juice. They had a nice sweetness and had a thicker peel.

You really can't go wrong with a navel orange. A very common variety. These were great - super sweet and no seeds.

Another variety that I had never heard of before. These were very good just not as sweet and not as juicy as the other varieties.

Oranges don’t have to just be for snacking. They are great decoration this time of year. Just place them in a fancy bowl. Your guests might even like to enjoy one or two.

Also – don’t throw away the peel. Use them along with cinnamon sticks and whole cloves to make a festive hot apple cider.

Boost your immune system and try some new varieties of oranges this holiday season!! Cheers.