I’m a big fan of alternative citrus. I grew up eating regular oranges and grapefruit, and I liked them. But I never tried things like pomelo, blood orange and Meyer lemons. Once I did, I was hooked. I liked their more complex flavor and texture.

Which brings me to blood oranges. They’re in season now and I love putting them on toast and salad. Their flavor is a little deeper and more tart than a regular orange, and they pair well with sweet and salty ingredients. For the toast that I made the other day, I paired them with Greek yogurt and pistachios. I liked the way the cool Greek yogurt tasted with the salty pistachios and tart orange.

The most important thing about making toast though is the bread. Like I always say, it’s the foundation that makes the rest of the sandwich. Try to get the best bread you can find. A good trick is to buy a loaf fresh and then freeze it until you need a piece. The bread will stay for a lot longer this way and then you don’t have to worry about stale toast.

In other news, I met a blacksmith yesterday. I was running through a local park and I wandered into a pioneer village at the side. There was a guy standing in a barn pounding on hot metal with a hammer. I’d never seen anything like it. He explained what he was doing while he worked. I stood there and watched him for a while. I like when people are passionate about a craft; it helps keep the tradition alive. 
Here’s a song for making toast or hammering hot metal, or whatever you happen to be doing this weekend.

Blood Orange Toast (from me, to you)

Ingredients

2 pieces of really good bread
1/4 cup of nonfat Greek yogurt mixed with 1 tbsp honey
2 blood oranges, peeled and cut into thin slices
1 tbsp pistachios and more honey for topping

Directions

Toast the bread until it gets crispy. Spread the Greek yogurt on the bread and then place the blood orange slices on top. Garnish with pistachios and a drizzle of honey. Enjoy!