Candied Orange and Lemon
Candied Orange and Lemon Peel is a delicious part of Christmas Cake tradition or a great snack to nibble on! It is also an amazing palate cleaner.
Bake up a storm this festive season with some xmas cakes.
Last year when I was shopping for dried fruits & nuts for soaking in Brandy, I scoured the neighborhood thoroughly looking for some candied orange and lemon peel.
I didn’t find. I found it in a gourmet store for exorbitant prices. I bought little to just add the jazz to my Eggless Christmas cake.
This year I realized that I am dumb and I can easily make it at home.
I set out to prove myself less dumb than projected. :)
I started with making Candied Lemon Peel and ended up caramelizing it. Again dumb! But it still tasted good… very good!
So I made the second attempt at Candied Orange Peel – I got perfect result. So much so that I had to keep out a whole cup of Candied Orange Peel for V to snack upon.
In his words, it leaves a very good aftertaste and he loves munching on 1-2 peel every night before sleep to leave great taste in his mouth.
When he praises something with so many words, I bow down as he is very hard to please!
You can use the same recipe or process to candy any citrus peel. Though the timing will vary upon thickness of the peel and quantity.
Candied Orange and Lemon Peel
Ingredients
| 3 | oranges |
| 1½ | cup of sugar |
| 1½ | cup of water |
| castor sugar or powdered sugar for rolling the peel |
Preparation
| 1. | Wash and pat dry the oranges. Peel them and for neat long peel, quarter the oranges. |
| 2. | Remove any pith or pulp that is attached to the skin using a small paring knife. Cut the peel into thin stripes. |
| 3. | Add the stripes in a pan and cover with cold water. Bring it to a boil. Simmer the heat for 2 minutes. Strain and discard the water. Repeat the process 2 more times. Boiling and draining repeatedly in water helps in removing most of the bitter taste of peel/ pith. |
| 4. | Heat water and sugar in a pan. When it comes to a boil, reduce the heat and let it cook for 5-6 minutes. Add the orange peel. Cook for 45-50 minutes till the peel turns translucent. Do not stir during this process otherwise their will be crystallization. |
| 5. | Strain the syrup and store it for future use (Iced Tea or use it as soaking syrup for a cake). Roll the peel in castor sugar. Arrange on a wire rack and let dry for 6-8 hours or overnight. It took about 40 hours for the peel to dry completely for me. Store in an airtight container. |
Notes
Source: adapted from Everyday Musing
Use candied peel as a snack by dipping in melted chocolate.
You can add cinnamon powder to the castor sugar for rolling.
Boiling and draining repeatedly in water helps in removing most of the bitter taste of peel/ pith.
The timing of cooking the peel will vary upon thickness of the peel and quantity.
