As devotees of the sweet, delicious Honeybells know, you need to place your order well in advance if you truly want to enjoy the sweetest fruit of January. The Honeybell orange is a tangerine-grapefruit hybrid also known as a tangelo, or Minneola tangelo, that peaks in January and is gone by February. Easy to peel and gobble right out of your hand, the Honeybell orange is known for being so lusciously juicy and sweet, but without bitterness, you might actually need to eat it with lots of napkins over the sink!
Since
honeybells only have 70 calories per serving and incredible health benefits, it’s one of nature’s most perfect foods. It’s packed chock full of such essential vitamins and minerals such as vitamin B6, beta-carotene, magnesium, potassium and calcium. Honeybell oranges have a high fiber content which helps improve cholesterol ratios in the body, which in turn helps in controlling diabetes. But the main nutritional ingredient of a Honeybell orange is the antioxidant
vitamin C, known world over for helping to keep the immune system strong, heal wounds and even prevent heart disease.
With its round bell shape and deep, fiery red orange color, the Honeybell orange also has a rich history. Developed as a spur of the moment experiment by a Florida horticulturist in 1931, the Honeybell orange was spawned by planting the buds of a Dancy tangerine and a Duncan grapefruit together inside a young orange tree. The result a few weeks later caused a sensation in the
citrus fruit growers industry as a new citrus tree unlike any other had taken life and created a fruit with a taste that was worthy of the gods.
Honeybell oranges aren’t just for juicing and drinking or eating off the peel — although that is perhaps the best way to get their full nutritional value. Honeybell oranges are also major ingredients to many delicious dishes from top chefs all over the world, whether raw or cooked. But it’s important to pick the right Honeybell orange to take full advantage of all that it offers. For instance, when choosing your Honeybell oranges, make sure that they have shiny, healthy peels with no bruises or blemishes and that the color is dark orange. The size of the fruit should be medium to large and firm but yielding to the touch. There should be only a small amount of white pith inside your Honeybell orange and few, if any seeds.
Taste the Sunshine with Hale Groves
At Hale Groves, we believe the best gifts come from the land, not a factory. For generations, our fruit has been grown slowly under the Florida sun, picked at its peak, and delivered fresh to your door. From sweet Navel Oranges to rare Honeybells, every gift shares the simple joy of real flavor—perfect for holidays, milestones, or everyday moments worth celebrating.
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