‘Tis the season for Blood Orange
To celebrate the first pick of this year’s blood orange crop, Redbelly Citrus partnered up with Sydney restaurant institution Lucio’s Italian Restaurant to host a special lunch. From cocktails to dessert, the crimson-coloured fruit was the star ingredient.
Originally from Sicily, the Mancini and Barbagallo families introduced the blood orange to rural NSW. The rich and fertile land of the Riverina proving to be the perfect climate for the fruit to grow and thrive. It was not long before Redbelly Citrus was born. Roughly the same size as your average orange, blood oranges have strong and intense taste and aroma with distinct raspberry notes, making it a versatile flavour. In keeping with Restaurateur Lucio Galletto’s passion for fresh, seasonal produce, Lucio’s crafted a custom menu to highlight this year’s crop, pairing the courses with colourful cocktails.
Solerno Blood Orange Liqueur was created by Leslie Gracie, Master Distiller of Hendrick’s Gin. This bright and zesty spirit bursts with Sicilian blood orange, orange blossom, red berries, and lemon. And yields a velvety sweetness, balancing tartness, and lasting, dry finish on the palate.
Solerno Serata
- 45ml Solerno Blood Orange Liqueur
- 2 dashes of orange bitters
- 30ml pink grapefruit juice
- Topped with 60ml of sparkling water
- Slice of blood orange for garnish
1. Build in a stemless wine glass filled with ice and stir well.
2. Garnish with a blood orange slice and sprig of rosemary.
Blood Orange Espresso Martini
- 30ml Solerno Blood Orange Liqueur
- 1 shot of fresh coffee (approx 30ml)
- 10ml sugar syrup
- Slice of blood orange for garnish
1. Shake and serve in a martini glass or coffee cup.
2. Garnish with a slice of blood orange.
Lucio’s Blood Orange Negroni Sbagliato
- Juice one small (or half a large) blood orange
- 30ml Campari
- 30ml red vermouth
- Dash of Prosecco
- Slice of blood orange for garnish
1. In a tumbler place a slice of blood orange then fill the glass with ice.
2. Pour in Campari, red vermouth and blood orange juice, stir to chill.
3. Top with a dash of Prosecco.
If all these drinks are making you hungry, why not pair a cocktail or two with…
Lucio’s Kingfish Carpaccio, Blood Orange, Fennel and Black Olives
- 600g kingfish sashimi grade
- 3 blood oranges
- 2 baby fennel or 1 large Fennel, remove the fibrous outside layer and wash.100g black olives, pitted
- 40ml Verjus
- 160ml olive oil
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- sea salt
- cracked black pepper
To make the dressing
1. First segment the blood oranges and set aside, then with your hand squeeze the juice from the segmented core.
2. In a small saucepan reduce 80ml of the blood orange by half, transfer into a bowl with 1 small pinch of sea salt, lemon juice, verjus and olive oil. Emulsify together using a whisk, set a side.
Method
3. Remove the skin from the kingfish, cut out the blood line lengthways, releasing both the loin and belly fillets. Slice each fillet thinly and spread over the surface of a flat plate.
4. Shave the fennel thinly using a mandolin, and leave in iced water (to stop oxidization) whilst cutting the pitted olives into rounds. Strain off the water from the fennel, and pat dry using absorbent towel.
5. Season the kingfish with salt & pepper, arrange both the shaved fennel, blood orange segments and black olives over the kingfish slices, just before serving dress the kingfish generously with the dressing. Best served 5 minutes after dressing.
Lucio’s Italian Restaurant
47 Windsor Street
Paddington
Telephone: (o2) 9380 5996
Hours: Tues – Sun 12.30pm – last orders 2.45pm, 6.30pm – last orders 10.15pm
In the mood for mixing cocktails? Check out theme Appleton Rum recipes for more inspo.