I grew up in Florida and had never heard of this pie, which sounds delicious! Thank you for sharing this. I used up all but one my Seville oranges this winter....one left!! I may try to make this. I’m excited to learn one more use for these oranges. Actually, I have two chinotto oranges that may go well in this pie also. You’ll just have to dig up another rose bush ;)

Oh, Laura, I think I might have to! I wonder if sour oranges need less heat than grapefruit, in which case this might be the way to go!

KC

I think they do. Mine tasted the way I remember them growing up in Florida. They produce well also. You can also use them to marinade meat of all sorts.

Seville goes down to just below 18 F then die. Mine did

Steve

Steve, it's the other way that I'm worried about. Cool nights in the 50s year round, though we do get a few weeks of 80s and 90s around August. Warm enough for sour orange?

KC

K, I think that should be enough heat, but am not positive. Is there anyone near you who grows them? Why don’t you call FW and ask them?

I have a rare variety called Natsumikan, from Japan, which basically translates as "Summer orange". I'm sure that variety could be used for everything that sour orange is and more. It's also pretty cold hardy, the tree and its fruits can survive down to 18 F.

Flavor-wise it's like somewhere between a regular orange, a sour orange, and a grapefruit.

That sounds amazing!!

KC

Did you ever ask FW about the heat? I’m sure Steve is right that they need heat, but I wonder if you have enough where you live.

No, but I did ask a the master gardener at our local demo garden. She said don't even bother with grapefruit, it just won't ripen. She said the Chinotto sour orange might be doable if I can find a spot that collects heat. However, she did say that my Rangpur lime (the other uncooperative citrus I'm struggling with) is actually a rather fragrant sour mandarin, and it might be worth digging it up and moving it to a sunnier location, and that it might do as a sour orange substitute!

So that might be the way to go. (She said a Moro blood orange might be worth trying, btw!)

KC