Sugared Lemon Zest Food

CANDIED LEMON ZEST

Steps:

• Remove zest from lemons with a vegetable peeler, keeping pieces long. Remove white pith using a paring knife. Cut into a fine julienne using a very sharp knife. Place julienned zest in a small bowl; cover with boiling water. Let stand 30 minutes; drain.
• Bring sugar and the cool water to a boil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. When sugar is completely dissolved, add julienned zest, reduce heat to medium low, and cook 10 minutes. Remove from heat, cover, and let stand overnight.

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 LEMON ZEST

Steps:

• Use a vegetable peeler to remove the zest from the lemons, keeping the strips as long as possible. Use a paring knife to remove the bitter white pith from the zest, and discard. Using a sharp chef's knife, finely julienne the strips of zest, and then place them in a small bowl. Cover the zest with boiling water; let stand for 30 minutes, then drain.
• Heat the sugar and cool water in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring the mixture to a boil, stir until the sugar is completely dissolved, then add the julienned zest. Reduce the heat to medium-low, and cook for 10 minutes. Remove from the heat, cover, and let stand at room temperature overnight. Remove the zest, and drain on wire rack. Roll the zest in the sugar. Dry on a wire rack. The zest can be stored in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.

CANDIED LEMON PEELS

Steps:

• Use a vegetable peeler to remove the peel from the lemon in vertical strips. Try to remove only the yellow zest, avoiding as much of the white pith as possible. Save the lemon for another use.
• In a small saucepan, combine the peels with 2 cups cold water. Bring to a boil, then drain off the water. Again add 2 cups cold water, bring to a boil, and drain. Repeat the process a third time, then remove the peels from the pan and set aside.
• Measure 2 cups of the sugar into the pan and add 1 cup water, whisking until the sugar dissolves. Add the peels and bring to a boil over medium heat. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, until the peels are tender and translucent, 10 to 15 minutes. Drain the peels and let cool.
• Measure the remaining 1/2 cup sugar into a medium bowl and add the peels. Toss to coat. Using a fork or your fingers, remove the peels one at time, gently shaking each to remove excess sugar. Store in an airtight container. The peels will keep for several weeks.

CANDIED CITRUS PEEL

Steps:

• Cut the fruit into 8 wedges, then cut out the flesh, leaving about 5mm thickness of peel and pith. Cut each wedge into 3-4 strips.
• Put the peel in a pan and cover with cold water. Bring to the boil, then simmer for 5 mins. Drain, return to the pan and re-cover with fresh water. Bring to the boil, then simmer for 30 mins.
• Set a sieve over a bowl and drain the peel, reserving the cooking water. Add 100g sugar to each 100ml water you have. Pour into a pan and gently heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Add the peel and simmer for 30 mins until the peel is translucent and soft. Leave to cool in the syrup, then remove with a slotted spoon and arrange in 1 layer on a wire rack set over a baking sheet. Put in the oven at the lowest setting for 30 mins to dry.
• Sprinkle a layer of sugar over a sheet of baking parchment. Toss the strips of peel in the sugar, a few at a time, then spread out and leave for 1 hr or so to air-dry.
• Pack the peel into an airtight storage jar or rigid container lined with baking parchment. Will keep for 6-8 weeks in a cool, dry place.
• To make into a delicious gift, melt the chocolate in a small bowl. Dip the candied orange peel into the chocolate to half-coat them, shaking off the excess. Put them on baking parchment to set, then pack into small cellophane bags tied with ribbon or pretty kitchen string.

CANDIED LEMON PEEL

Steps:

• Cut lemons into slices about 1/4 inch thick and remove the fruit pulp. Cut the rings in half so the peels are in long strips.
• Bring water and lemon peel to a boil in a small pan. Drain water, and repeat with fresh cold water. Repeat the boiling step three times (see Editor's Note). Drain and set peels aside.
• Combine 2 cups fresh water with 2 cups sugar. Bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Reduce heat to low and stir in citrus peels; simmer until the white pith is translucent. Store peels in syrup, refrigerated, to keep them soft, or allow them to dry. Toss dry candied peels in additional sugar and store airtight at room temperature.

CANDIED LEMON, ORANGE OR GRAPEFRUIT PEEL

Steps:

• With sharp knife, score the skin of the fruit (use only one type for a batch) into quarters,then peel it off with your fingers, keeping the pith attached.
• Lay each quarter of skin on a cutting board and cut to make uniform strips from 1/8 to 1/4 inch wide, according to your preference; you should have about 3 cups of strips.
• Cover peels with water in saucepan and bring to boil over medium heat. Boil for 1 minute,then drain, cover with water again and repeat two times (total of three times).
• Then, cover again and simmer the peel for 20 minutes. Drain and set aside.
• In the saucepan, make the syrup with sugar, water and corn syrup. Boil for about two minutes, then add the peel.
• Simmer briskly stirring occasionally, until the syrup is considerably reduced, then watch closely.
• The point of decision:.
• If you want a tender candied peel, cook until perhaps 3 tbsp syrup is left, and drain the peels (you can save the syrup).
• Medium-firm, leave only a spoonful of syrup, then drain.
• For candy-like crisp peel, watch closely until the syrup is on the point of hardening and has almost vanished.
• Arrange the peel on a bed of sugar on a jelly roll pan at whatever stage you have stopped cooking. Straiten the strips while hot if you want them symmetrical, or crumble them if you like a kinky tangle.
• Sprinkle more sugar over the strips and toss them occasionally as they cool.
• When cool enough to handle, put the strips onto cake racks and let them dry. The consistency of the finished candy will depend partly on the point at which the cooking stopped, but also on how long the strips are left to dry. They will keep indefinitely if candied 'hard'; not quite as long if left translucent and flexible. The choice is yours.

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.

HOMEMADE CRANBERRY SAUCE - WITH ORANGE & LEMON ZEST

Steps:

• Put washed cranberries into pan with water.
• Add orange and lemon zest.
• Simmer 10 minutes until berries soften.
• Sweeten to taste with sugar.
• Add gelatin to the orange and lemon juice. Mix together and add to the cranberries.
• Pour cranberry sauce into a bowl and chill completely before serving. Watch the video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2WRdEnbdSEs.
• Optional: Have a molded salad bowl? Spray with cooking spray, then pour the cranberry sauce into the bowl to chill and set. Invert the bowl on a plate to serve.