When it’s cold and grey outside, we get to enjoy a little burst of summery sunshine in the form of the mightiest member of the citrus family, the grapefruit, which reaches its peak season in the winter months.

Named for the way they grow in bunches like grapes, grapefruits are highly nutritious. They’re an excellent source of vitamin C and A, and deliver small amounts of calcium, magnesium, vitamin E, thiamin, riboflavin, folate and potassium. In addition to these essential nutrients, grapefruits are packed with powerful antioxidants including lycopene and beta-carotene.

With their distinctively tart and sweet juiciness, grapefruits work well in a variety of recipes. Try these tasty ideas and get a few more pinkish-hued beauties into your life.

The Classic Grapefruit Breakfast: Start your day with an eye-opening burst of citrusy goodness with the classic baked grapefruit recipe. Simply cut the grapefruit in half, remove the pithy center, loosen the fruit sections with a knife for easy scooping, sprinkle the halves with a little brown sugar and cinnamon, and bake on a cookie sheet at 375° F for 15 minutes.

The Salad Booster: Grapefruit works really well in salads, particularly alongside red onions, spinach and avocado. Cut the fruit into bite-sized sections and toss into your next freestyle salad creation, or try this recipe for Spinach Salad with Citrus and Roasted Beets.

The Margarita’s Cousin: I once ordered a margarita at a Mexican restaurant and the server suggested I try something that was, in his opinion, a much better choice. He was right. The paloma is a tequila-based cocktail made with fresh grapefruit juice and soda, served on the rocks with a lime wedge. Try it and you may never go back to margaritas (yeah, I said it).

The Zesty Marinade: Citrus fruit goes really well with white fish and chicken, and this recipes for Grapefruit Grilled Chicken sounds like a taste of summer that will rejuvenate the coldest winter hearts.

The Healthier Pound Cake: There’s no doubt lemon pound cake is a classic recipe, but this lighter take on it from The Smitten Kitchen uses grapefruit instead of lemon and sounds just as delicious without needing that pound of butter. Zesty citrus glaze is always a good thing, too.

What’s your favourite thing to do with grapefruits? Share in the comments or over on Twitter at @luvoinc.