Citrus, when you live in Minnesota, is winter’s solace, a blast of sunshine in January.

Clementines, satsumas, mandarins, Halos, Cuties, whatever you want to call them, they’re all in season now.

Heavily marketed to parents and kids (usually in 5-pound bags or larger) they’re super sweet, mostly seedless, easily portable and usually easy to peel.

Try this sensational snack-meets-dessert recipe the next time you buy too many!

Chocolate-dipped clementines

Ingredients

8 medium clementines

4 ounces dark chocolate, finely chopped

Course-grain sea salt

Directions

Peel the clementines and carefully separate the slices, removing any stringy pulp.

Heat the chocolate in a small bowl in the microwave in 1-minute intervals until melted, stirring in between heating.

Dip the slices halfway into the chocolate.

Lay the slices on a parchment-lined cookie sheet.

Sprinkle immediately with sea salt before the chocolate begins to tool. (Take it easy on the salt and taste as you go. A little goes a long way.)

Place the slices in the freezer until the chocolate sets, about 5 to 10 minutes.

Serve at room temperature.

Source: This recipe and photo were adapted from Lunds & Byerlys Good Taste blog at LandB.mn/dipped-clementines.

What exactly are clementines?

Go to tinyurl.com/tangerine-mn to find out — and to discover the fascinating story of how these orange cousins came to (almost) overtake sweet navel oranges in popularity in the U.S. during the past two decades.