Small Batch Pomegranate Orange Butter Recipe

It’s Fall, and Pomegranate recipes are showing up! My pomegranate orange butter was inspired one day a co-worker brought in a large bowl of organic pomegranates fresh from her tree, so ripe and ready to eat.  I had recently cooked up a batch of pumpkin butter, apple butter, and strawberry rhubarb jam so I was in a condiment mood.  With the holidays quickly approaching,  I thought a nice sweet pomegranate butter would be the perfect treat to slather homemade biscuits, toast quarter, or hunks of baguette on Thanksgiving morning.

How to Cut a Pomegranate and remove the seeds

Remove the stem with a paring knife by cutting around the stem, being careful not to cut too deep into the flesh. You want o cut in at an angle to remove the cone.  

With your paring knife, start at the top area where you removed the stem and score the fruit going down the ridges toward the bottom.  Cut through the rind of the fruit and almost through the white pith.   Do not cut into the seed. 

To crack the Pomegranate open, place your thumbs on the top of the fruit and press, then gently pull it apart.  The Pomegranates should crack open and expose the juicy seeds within.

To remove the seeds, gently pry them out with a small spoon.  I suggest laying down a sheet of parchment paper when working with the pomegranate.

One medium pomegranate should provide you with two (2) tablespoons of seeds. 

Preparing the ingredients

Place the butter in a small bowl and let it soften while prepping the orange and pomegranate.

Use a Microplane grater to zest the orange easily,  then cut it in half and juice the orange for the two tablespoons.  Navels oranges are very juicy, and I only needed to use half one large orange. 

In a small bowl, mix the pomegranate seeds, orange juice, orange zest, and honey.  Use an immersion blender to break up the seeds into a chunky paste.  If you have too much juice from the seeds, drain a little bit.

Add the pomegranate mixture to the butter bowl and mix it up with a wooden spoon.

When are Pomegranates in season?

Pomegranates are a Fall fruit and the season runs from September and goes through the end of November. 

How to select a ripe Pomegranate?

Look for a round, heavy fruit heavy for their size fruit. Ideally, the flesh should be free from bruises or cuts.

How to store Pomegranates.

Store the whole fruit in a cool, dry area for up to a month.  The seed, called pips, can be frozen for up to one year in an airtight container or freezer bag.    

What does a Pomegranate taste like?

The seeds are the edible part of the fruit, and they have a sweet and tart flavor. 

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