Hello M&M family! Do you all remember when quarantine started and we thought summer was going to be the season when everything went back to normal? I sure do. I’ve been home with a pregnant belly finding ways to entertain a 5-year-old and manage my businesses from home. The kitchen continues to be my safe space and a time for me and my son to bond and sneak in an ‘activity’ in between my work and his screen time. This week, he and I made paletas, a regimen we started a couple of months back. It started off by experimenting with different aguas frescas recipes and as the temperatures began rising, we just thought why not just kill two birds with one stone and turn half of the already made batch into paletas. During the process I found two new hacks that will help you out.
To turn any agua fresca recipe into a paleta one, just up your sugar content by half.
To properly blend your water and sugar, use a blender instead of stirring it in like our moms used to (or at least mine did). This will automatically turn your water into a syrup-like consistency that will work wonders for your agua and paletas recipe
This week's paleta flavor was inspired by a partnership with the Citrus Pest & Disease Prevention Program. When they reached out about a partnership, I had to say YES. I had no idea that our citrus in California are actually in jeopardy because of a pest called the Asian citrus psyllid, which can infect citrus trees with a deadly citrus tree disease called Huanglongbing or HLB. Once the tree is infected there is no saving it, so it’s crucial that we keep an eye out for signs of the disease and comply with local agriculture officials who are inspecting citrus trees here in Southern California. The University of California has recommendations on how to keep your citrus trees healthy.
I, like many people, have really been investing in my garden. One of the trees I potted back in spring was a lemon tree, so learning about this pest threatening our trees was eye opening. Of course, the best way to protect citrus trees from HLB is to stop the tiny pest that can spread the disease, the Asian citrus psyllid. The University of California has recommendations on how to keep your citrus trees healthy.
Also, check for symptoms of HLB on the tree whenever watering, spraying, pruning or tending your citrus trees. Here are a few symptoms you should be aware of when checking your own citrus trees at home:
Blotchy, yellowing leaves
Fruit drop
Lopsided fruit
Rancid-tasting fruit
If you spot HLB in one of your trees, please call the California Department of Food and Agriculture hotline at 800-491-1899 as soon as possible.
Naranjas & limones are an essential part of my diet these days. You all have no idea how much I’ve been craving citrus during this pregnancy, and having lemon and orange trees at home has always been a dream of mine. Of course, aside from the high vitamin C levels and antioxidants, I think it reminds me of my childhood. I still remember my mom buying me my daily jugo de naranja inside that little plastic bag with a straw at our mercado trips in Oaxaca.
I hope you all enjoy and remake this recipe. It has been one of my favorites to create, and I have a feeling my boy and I will be making A LOT of these this summer! Also, please do remember to always, always properly clean the citrus fruit before using it by removing all leaves and stems and rinsing with water. This is also important when sharing fruit with family or neighbors, so you don’t accidentally spread ACP or HLB to other areas. For a deeper clean, scrub the fruit with a vegetable brush, rinse well, and pat dry.
Remember If you happen to find yourself with an abundant supply of oranges and lemons (or you’re just craving something citrus-y and sweet) don’t think twice about making this recipe. I suggest you double it to have it both as an agua fresca AND paletas. If you do remake it, please don’t forget to tag me on the gram!
For more information on how you can help save citrus trees, visit: californiacitrusthreat.org or peligrancitricosencalifornia.org
INSTRUCTIONS:
Blend water and sugar in a blender until sugar has completely dissolved. Mix in the orange juice, lemon juice and chopped orange bits.
Pour into popsicle molds and allow to freeze overnight.
Remove popsicles from mold, one at a time. Add a tablespoon of chamoy to the bottom of each mold and returning frozen paleta to mold. Return to freezer and freeze for at least one hour.
You can sprinkle your fave chile powder on top or sea salt before serving!
Paletas de Naranja con Chamoy
Makes 12 paletas
INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup sugar
3 cups filtered water
1 cup (8oz) fresh-squeezed orange juice
¼ cup (2oz) lemon juice
2 oranges, washed, peeled, sliced and chopped
½ cup chamoy
Items used in this post:
ONYX STAINLESS STELL POPSICLE MOLD - https://amzn.to/3iin2PY
TOVOLO SILICONE MONSTER POP MOLDS - https://amzn.to/31Co8QD
VITAMIX 750 BLENDER PROFFESIONAL GRADE - https://amzn.to/2ZyC3oe
IMUSA CITRUS SQUEZER - https://amzn.to/2YV0f5b
GLOBAL CHEFS KNIFE - https://amzn.to/2BWysbw