After a failed batch of trying to make apple sauce with apples from my Frankenstein tree, I decided to make a marmalade (a citrus jam made from fruit flesh and peel) using Satsuma oranges. I chose these oranges because they have a relatively smooth skin, the peel is bright orange and it has a nice fragrance. They are also very easy to peel after having been peeled with a vegetable peeler. I made candied orange peels earlier in the day.
After having read Ina Garten's recipe on Food Network, I realized that her no-pectin version had water and sugar as a simple syrup ratio. Her two hour simmering time is to reduce the water in the jam liquid. I halved her water/sugar ratio to just four cups each. The Satsuma oranges are really sweet on their own. And, instead of adding whole lemons, I used just the juice of two fresh lemons.
You can make your own liquid pectin from boiling the peel and pith of oranges or lemons, or green apple peels, in water. Read more about homemade citrus pectin on this link.
Ingredients
3 lbs (6 large) Satsuma oranges, peeled and thinly sliced
4 c simple sugar syrup (4 c water + 4 c sugar)
prepared orange peels (from 4 oranges)
4 tbsp fresh lemon juice (2 large lemons)
Directions
1. Prepare orange peels by using a non-serrated vegetable peeler to remove orange part of peel from oranges. Thinly slice peels with a sharp knife. Put peels in a pot and cover it with enough water to cover the peels. Bring to a boil and boil for 20 minutes. Drain water and set peels aside.
2. In a separate pot, combine 4 cups of water with 4 cups of sugar. Bring to a boil and stir so that all the sugar dissolves. Add sliced oranges and simmer on low heat for 2 hours, or until the liquid volume has reduced by half.
The temperature will drop to 180-200 degrees F while it simmers. Stir occasionally and skim off the foam.
3. Add prepared orange peels, bring to a boil and heat the mixture up to 220 degrees F. Cook for 10 minutes. The peels should turn almost translucent at the soft ball stage. Remove from heat and fill sterilized pint or half pint jars.
4. Process in a hot water bath for 10 minutes.
Makes 3 pints or 6 half pints.
Showing posts with label orange. Show all posts
Showing posts with label orange. Show all posts
Candied Citrus Peels
It seems that all you really need is a dry summer day. Laying the sugared peels on a rack then waiting 24 hours for the peels to dry is nonsense. I was able to make a batch of lime peels and a batch of orange peels in the same day. And, a batch of candied lemon peels the next day. Probably could have made it all in the same day if I had more drying space.
In terms of quantities, the peels of six limes filled an 8 oz jar; one medium mandarin orange filled 1/4 of an 8 oz jar, and two large lemons filled 1/2 an 8 oz jar.
Use a sharp edged (not serrated) vegetable peeler to remove the peel from the fruit. Thinly slice the peel into strips. The less pith (white stuff) that is on the peel, the more translucent the peel will become when it is boiled in the sugar syrup.
I used one batch of sugar syrup for all these fruits. I still have 10 oz of sugar syrup leftover.
Sugar Syrup
2 c organic granulated sugar
1 c water
Combine water and sugar in a small pot and bring to a boil. Stir until the sugar has dissolved. Remove from heat and set aside.
The Process
1. Peel the fruits and slice the peel into strips. Place the strips into a pot and fill with just enough water to cover. Bring to a boil and let boil for 10 minutes. Drain the water.
2. Place the boiled peels into the sugar syrup. Bring to a boil. With a candy thermometer, maintain the heat until the thermometer reads 230 degrees F (syrup stage). The peels should begin to turn translucent. This is best observed with lemon and orange peels. You'll have to make a judgement call when doing lime peels. Boil at 230 degrees F for at least 5 minutes.
3. Remove peels from the syrup using a fork or chopsticks. Lay in a single layer onto a Silpat mat or drying rack. I prefer using a silicone mat for easier removal of the sugared peels. This is just so that the peels cool down a bit.
4. Once the peels have cooled. Fill a shallow bowl with 1/2 c granulated sugar. Transfer peels to the sugar and stir until the peels are coated. Set aside. Every few hours, stir the peels around the sugar. When the moisture has sufficiently evaporated from the sugar-coated peels, remove the peels to a separate container.
I use a canning jar with its inner lid removed and use a square of a paper towel as the temporary lid; using the sealing band to keep the paper towel in place. This way the peels can still dry out and the jar can sit on the counter without bugs getting in.
In terms of quantities, the peels of six limes filled an 8 oz jar; one medium mandarin orange filled 1/4 of an 8 oz jar, and two large lemons filled 1/2 an 8 oz jar.
Use a sharp edged (not serrated) vegetable peeler to remove the peel from the fruit. Thinly slice the peel into strips. The less pith (white stuff) that is on the peel, the more translucent the peel will become when it is boiled in the sugar syrup.
I used one batch of sugar syrup for all these fruits. I still have 10 oz of sugar syrup leftover.
Sugar Syrup
2 c organic granulated sugar
1 c water
Combine water and sugar in a small pot and bring to a boil. Stir until the sugar has dissolved. Remove from heat and set aside.
The Process
1. Peel the fruits and slice the peel into strips. Place the strips into a pot and fill with just enough water to cover. Bring to a boil and let boil for 10 minutes. Drain the water.
2. Place the boiled peels into the sugar syrup. Bring to a boil. With a candy thermometer, maintain the heat until the thermometer reads 230 degrees F (syrup stage). The peels should begin to turn translucent. This is best observed with lemon and orange peels. You'll have to make a judgement call when doing lime peels. Boil at 230 degrees F for at least 5 minutes.
3. Remove peels from the syrup using a fork or chopsticks. Lay in a single layer onto a Silpat mat or drying rack. I prefer using a silicone mat for easier removal of the sugared peels. This is just so that the peels cool down a bit.
4. Once the peels have cooled. Fill a shallow bowl with 1/2 c granulated sugar. Transfer peels to the sugar and stir until the peels are coated. Set aside. Every few hours, stir the peels around the sugar. When the moisture has sufficiently evaporated from the sugar-coated peels, remove the peels to a separate container.
I use a canning jar with its inner lid removed and use a square of a paper towel as the temporary lid; using the sealing band to keep the paper towel in place. This way the peels can still dry out and the jar can sit on the counter without bugs getting in.
Polvorones de Naranja (Orange "Dusts" Cookies)
These cookies aren't quite the same as Mexican wedding cookies and are somewhat more dense in texture. I adapted this recipe from the "Mexico the Beautiful Cookbook", and I must say, 25 minutes is far too long of a cooking time at 400 degrees F for any cookie, which is what the cookbook recommended. Made this for a Halloween/Dia de los Muertos potluck. It's not terribly scary nor is it made to look scary.
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| Orange Tea Cookies |
Ingredients
3 c. all purpose flour
1 c. unsalted butter, chilled and cut into chunks
1/2 c. organic granulated sugar
1/2 c. powdered sugar + more for sprinkling
1/4 c. fresh orange juice
2 large egg yolks
zest from 2 large oranges
Directions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine egg yolks, orange juice, sugar, and zest. On low setting, add flour and unsalted butter. Mix until well combined and there aren't visible chunks of butter.
2. On a lightly floured surface (I used a bit of powdered sugar instead of flour), roll out dough to 3/4" thickness and cut out into 1 1/2" to 2 1/2" rounds.
3. Place cookie rounds on a greased baking sheet, parchment paper, or a Silpat-lined baking sheet. Bake for 7 minutes, or until edges are lightly golden brown.
4. Let cook on a rack before dusting with powdered sugar.
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