There are a number of early 18th century Scottish manuscripts that have the same recipe for preserving oranges whole.

I first came across the practice of preserving immature green bitter oranges in the 1970s when I lived on Crete. In eighteenth century England, many wealthy estates had orangeries and it is likely that in poor years they had a large number of immature fruit to deal with. When exposed to the spring and summer sun, their rinds start to reabsorb chlorophyll and turn green. Regreening can also be caused by the position of individual fruits on the tree—fruit tucked in among the leaves tends to have more green, as it’s trying to maximize its reach for the sun’s rays.The green is due to chlorophyll produced on the peel of orange citrus to protect itself from sunburn. The process is similar (at the end) as making stem ginger which I have successfully done as I couldn’t find it here in Portugal where I live.

The sweet orange trees ( Citrus sinensis) familiar to us all are hybrids descended from Moroccan tangerine trees ( Citrus tangerina) and Malaysian pomelos ( Citrus maxima).

I run practical courses on all aspects of British and Italian food history at my home in the English Lake District.

Cold nights cause the fruit to lose the green pigmented chlorophyll and develop their deep orange color, similar to leaves on a tree in autumn.After working for two years in New Zealand, she became a GP in York and then set off for two years in Sierra Leone with Voluntary Service Overseas – just in time for the outbreak of civil war. Surprisingly, the green peel doesn't harm the orange and may actually make its fruit even sweeter, if that is possible. Take Bar-Mauda orranges if you can get ym, but not your high-colloured orranges, and pair ym thin as possible you can get ym, and rub ym well wt Sault. He wasted no time in asking about our jobs, destinations or worries, as obviously British High Commissioners have much better things to do. Dr Emily Joy started life as an Airforce daughter in the Outer Hebrides, then moved to Singapore and back to the UK after her father crashed his aeroplane into a water buffalo.