Candied Orange Peels are a great homemade gift at Christmas, especially dipped in chocolate, but they are also wonderful in both hot and cold drinks and in your baking all year.
Ingredients
- organic oranges
- water
- white granulated sugar
Honestly – that’s all.
You do need to use ORGANIC oranges in this because you’ll be eating the peel.
And even if you don’t normally use white granulated sugar, you’ll have to for this recipe to turn out properly.
A Great Christmas Food Gift
It’s been a long time since citrus was an expensive, only-at-Christmas luxury here in the north. Candied orange peels date from those days – a way to keep that orange splendor on hand all year.
There must be a bit of collective memory going on, because candied orange still gives people a cheery, bright lift – even now when we can access citrus all year.
For best results, leave some of the white pith on each orange peel. If the pith is too thick, carefully remove some of the excess with a sharp knife prior to boiling.
What can I do with my Orange Peels?
- Eat them like candy. It’s even better if you dip them in melted dark chocolate first.
- Chop them up finely and add them to baking – cake, bread, cookies, muffins …
- Or on baking. They look amazing sprinkled over chocolate frosting.
- Put one in your hot chocolate … or coffee … or sparkling water. Basically any drink that would taste great with a bit of sweetened orange
- Serve them after a meal that’s full of garlic – the orange is a nice contrast
- Chopped up, they work well in many savoury dishes – roasted vegetables, rice pilaf, or chicken roast, for example
- Add chopped candied peels to hot water (about 1 teaspoon peels to 1 cup water) and bring to a full boil. Turn off the heat and cover. Let it steep 10 minutes and then strain into a mug for delicious orange peel tea.
- Don’t toss the syrup! Add it to drinks, or pour it on waffles or pancakes.
How Do I Store Candied Orange Peel?
They do not need to be refridgerated for short-term use. You can keep your candied orange peels in an airtight container at room temperature for about a month.
Store them IN THE SYRUP for up to six months in the refrigerator.
If you want to keep them all year, freeze them. Yes, they can be frozen.
You’ll likely use them up long before that, though.
Is Candied Orange Peel Good For You?
Doesn’t seem like a health food, does it? Certainly there’s a lot of sugar, but the peel has more vitamin C than the actual orange. It also has lots more vitamin A, B-complex vitamins, and minerals.
Can I Use Other Citrus Peel?
Definitely! Don’t limit yourself to oranges when the range of citrus fruit is open to you! Some good substitutes are lemons, limes, tangerines, or even grapefruit. You might need to grow citron yourself, since they’re hard to find, but you can do citron peel, too.
How Do I Make Candied Orange Peels?
Step One – Get Them Ready
Thoroughly wash and dry the oranges, then cut off the tops and bottoms of each.
Score the orange peel from top to bottom with a sharp knife to create 4 or 5 large sections.
Carefully remove each section with some (just a little) of the pith and cut into ¼ inch-wide strips. You can use a knife or a vegetable peeler. Whatever works for you. Set aside.
Step Two – Cooking
Bring five cups water to a rapid boil in a large saucepan.
Add the orange peels and return to a boil for 15 minutes. This helps reduce the bitterness. Drain and rinse the peels thoroughly before shaking out the excess liquid. Set aside.
Add one cup water and two cups sugar to the same pot and set it to medium heat. Stir the mixture occasionally until the sugar is thoroughly dissolved.
Add the boiled orange peels and increase heat to medium-high to boil.
Once boiling, immediately reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, for 40-45 minutes.
Remove from heat and drain, reserving both the orange-flavored syrup and the orange peels.
Using a slotted spoon, transfer the peels to a wire cooling rack set over a rimmed baking sheet (line it with parchment paper to reduce cleanup).
Step Three – Storing
Set aside to dry for 12 hours to overnight.
Tip: Store the reserved orange sugar syrup in the refrigerator to add flavor to your favorite beverages and cocktails, such as iced tea, club soda, or mixed drinks. It is a flavoured simple syrup, which you’ll find in a lot of recipes.
Once the peels are mostly dry, but still a bit tacky, add the remaining sugar to a large Ziploc storage bag and add the peels a few at a time.
Seal and shake the bag carefully until the peels are uniformly coated in sugar. Repeat this process with the remaining peels until all are uniformly coated in sugar.
Step Four – Storing Your Candied Orange Peels
Serve the candied peels immediately as a snack, or use as a delicious garnish for ice cream, cupcakes, or cakes. They also make a wonderful addition to homemade cannoli filling.
Unused orange peels can be stored in an airtight container for up to a week. Enjoy!
PrintCandied Orange Peels
- Total Time: 25 hours 20 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
Description
Candied Orange Peels are a great homemade gift at Christmas, especially dipped in chocolate, but they are also wonderful in both hot and cold drinks and in your baking all year.
Ingredients
- 4 large organic oranges
- 6 cups water (divided)
- 2 1/2 cups granulated sugar (divided)
Instructions
- Thoroughly wash and dry the oranges, then cut off the tops and bottoms of each.
- Score the orange peel from top to bottom with a sharp knife to create 4 or 5 large sections.
- Carefully remove each section with some of the pith and cut into ¼-inch sections. Set aside.
- Bring five cups water to a rapid boil in a large saucepan.
- Add the orange peels and return to a boil for 15 minutes. Drain and rinse the peels thoroughly before shaking out the excess liquid. Set aside.
- Add one cup water and two cups sugar to the same saucepan and set the heat to medium. Stir the mixture occasionally until the sugar is thoroughly dissolved.
- Add the boiled orange peels and increase heat to medium-high to boil.
- Once boiling, immediately reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, for 40-45 minutes.
- Remove from heat and drain, reserving both the orange-flavored syrup and the orange peels.
- Transfer the peels to a wire rack set over a rimmed baking sheet.
- Set aside to dry for 12 hours to overnight.
- Tip: Store the reserved orange syrup in the refrigerator to add flavor to your favorite beverages and cocktails, such as iced tea, club soda, or mixed drinks.
- Once the peels are mostly dry, but still a bit tacky, add the remaining sugar to a large Ziploc storage bag and add the peels a few at a time.
- Seal and shake the bag carefully until the peels are uniformly coated in sugar. Repeat this process with the remaining peels until all are uniformly coated in sugar.
- Serve the candied peels immediately as a snack, or use as a delicious garnish for ice cream, cupcakes, or cakes. They also make a wonderful addition to homemade cannoli filling.
- Unused orange peels can be stored in an airtight container for up to a week. Enjoy!Â
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Stovetop
Nutrition
- Calories: 570
- Sugar: 142
- Sodium: 19
- Fat: 1
- Saturated Fat: 1
- Carbohydrates: 147
- Fiber: 4
- Protein: 2
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