Sliced Fruit With Sugared Lime Zest Food

SLICED FRUIT WITH SUGARED LIME ZEST

Steps:

• Grate zest from limes. Squeeze 2 teaspoons juice from one of the zested limes into a bowl. Process lime zest, sugar, and salt in a food processor until zest is coarsely ground.
• Core apple, then cut in half and slice thinly. Add to lime juice, and toss. Peel mango; cut flesh away from pit, and slice thinly. Halve papaya, remove seeds, and slice thinly.
• Arrange apple, mango, and papaya on a serving platter or plates. Sprinkle with some of the sugared lime zest, and serve remaining zest mixture on the side.

LIME SUGAR

Steps:

• Remove zest from limes in strips with a vegetable peeler and cut away any white pith from zest (pith imparts a bitter flavor). Chop zest (about 1/2 cup), then grind in a food processor with sugar until mixture is pale green with bits of zest still visible.

HOW TO DRY CITRUS ZEST (LEMON/ORANGE/LIME/GRAPEFRUIT)

Steps:

• If at all possible, start with an organic orange, lemon or other citrus fruit. While organic is ideal, thoroughly washing and drying store-bought citrus fruit should make the fruit safe to eat. I listed 4 fruits, but would zest, dry and store separately.
• Using a microplane or zester, pull the zest across the surface of the fruit, working around any discolored or bad spots. Only pull off the colored portion leaving the white, bitter pith behind.
• Spread it in a single layer on a plate or waxed paper and leave it exposed to the air until it is dry enough to be brittle (a couple of days).
• Store the dried zest it in a sealed jar in a cool, dry place.
• Some Tips:.
• Zest prior to cutting into the fruit. It's easier to handle and less messy. Make it a habit to zest prior to using the fruit to have a supply on hand.
• Rubbing between two fingers will release the oils prior to adding to a recipe.
• For an alternative process, use the zesting process over waxed paper, fold several times and freeze in a zip locked bag.
• Take advantage of fruit when it's highly available and low in price.
• Be careful while zesting. Tools are sharp.

CANDIED LIME SLICES

Steps:

• Slice limes into thin rounds, blanch in a pot of boiling water for 2 min & drain.
• In the same pot, combine water & 1 cup sugar. Bring to a simmer & add lime slices. Simmer for 10-15 min, till white pith of limes looks translucent (May take longer if pith is esp thick or dense).
• Drain & spread out on a cooling rack to dry for at least 1 hour.
• Put 2 tbsp sugar in shallow bowl or saucer. When limes are dry, coat both sides of the lime slices by pressing them into the sugar (May need more sugar for good coverage).
• Store in an airtight container & layer between parchment paper or plastic wrap till ready to use. I freeze these when I make a batch & then just take out what I need to use.

CRUDITéS WITH CHILE-LIME SALT

Steps:

• Finely grate lime zest into a small bowl. Stir in salt and chile powder. Cut lime into wedges.
• Arrange crudités on a platter. Squeeze lime juice over, then sprinkle with some spiced salt mixture. Serve remaining spiced salt mixture alongside.

SUGARED LEMON ZEST

Steps:

• Using a paring knife, remove zest from lemons in wide strips. Trim away white pith from underside of zest. Slice zest into 1/4- to 1/8-inch-thick strips, each about 2 inches long.
• Place zest in a saucepan, and add enough water to cover. Bring to a boil, and then strain, reserving zest. Repeat boiling and straining two more times.
• Return zest to pan, and add granulated sugar and 1 cup water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer until zest is almost translucent, 15 to 20 minutes. Strain, gently shaking zest to remove as much syrup as possible.
• Place sanding sugar in a medium bowl. Toss zest in sugar to coat. Shake off excess sugar, and carefully transfer zest to a wire rack to dry for 5 minutes. Shake off any remaining excess sugar, and continue to dry on rack for 25 minutes more.

CANDIED CITRUS ZEST

Steps:

• Cut the citrus into wedges and remove the flesh. Use a sharp paring knife to remove as much white pith as possible from the peels. Reserve and use the insides of the fruits for juice or another use.
• Place all the peels in a 2-quart saucepan. Cover the peels with water and bring them to a boil. Boil for 1 minute, then remove from the heat and drain. Set the peels aside.
• Add the sugar, honey, and 1 1/2 cups (354ml) water to the empty pan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Cook to dissolve all the sugar, stirring frequently, about 7 minutes. Add the reserved peels to the sugar syrup and reduce the heat to low; gently simmer until the syrup registers 220 degrees F on a candy thermometer or until the peels are bright and translucent looking. Stir the peels frequently. This should take about 1 hour. You do not want to caramelize the sugar at all, so keep the flame low and cook slowly. If the syrup begins to thicken before the peels have cooked through, you may need to add a touch more water to the pan during the cook time to slow down the candying process a bit.
• Cool the peels in the syrup until they reach room temperature. From here you can go in two different directions: you can store the candied peels in an airtight container in the syrup to keep it soft and hydrated. Alternately, you can dredge the peels in granulated sugar and set them on a wire rack overnight to create a dried candied zest confection. The sugared zest can then be stored at room temperature for months and months.