Squeeze in a visit the Lakeland Public Library’s main branch to see what’s fresh inside the Lakeland History & Culture Center. Its second exhibit, “From the Groves: Lakeland’s Citrus Story,” is now on view daily.
The 1,400-sqft center first opened in 2022 with a look at Lakeland’s early years. Now, you can go learn how the citrus industry shaped local agriculture + enterprise as our town became the “World Citrus Center.”
It’s free to pop in and browse the interactive exhibits that make it fun for visitors of all ages. You can tap on touchscreens to learn about vintage citrus labels or current research, flip through a decades-old tourism booklet, and even listen in on a citrus grower’s story.
You can also make your own mark on the exhibit. Right behind the intro sign, write a memory that involves Florida citrus and vote for your favorite type of citrus — we went for tangerines, sorry grapefruit lovers.
Don’t skip the orange juice stand near the History Room where you can take a slice of the past with you. Here you’ll find orange-filled, nostalgic recipes that we probably won’t make any time soon (think: grapefruit beef pie + Florida chicken aspic). However, there are also recipe cards for more appetizing dishes that you can enjoy after you leave.
Here’s a 1994 recipe for orange sweet potatoes from “Treasured Recipes from the Kitchen of Peggy Brown” that we brought back to our own kitchens.
Ingredients:
- 2 sticks melted butter
- 6 sweet potatoes
- 1 cup marshmallows
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup orange juice
- 1/2 cup orange marmalade
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon + nutmeg
Directions:
Boil sweet potatoes in water until tender. Drain, peel and mash. Add melted butter, brown sugar, orange juice, marmalade and cinnamon/nutmeg. Place in baking dish. Bake at 350° for 15 minutes. Cover top with marshmallows. Bake until light brown.
