Brighten your winter days, kitchen aromas, and taste buds with candied citrus– it is surprisingly easy! I used cara cara oranges, blood oranges, clementines, and miniature lemons for this batch, but any citrus will be delicious if you are able to slice it thinly.

Ingredients:

Assorted citrus (the equivalent of 4-6 medium oranges), sliced no thicker than 1/8 inch

Pot of water, halfway filled

Large bowl of ice water

4 cups white sugar

4 cups more water

Instructions

1. Boil pot of water. Add citrus and let simmer for 1 minute.
2. Using a slotted spoon, transfer citrus to ice water. This boiling and icing process is called blanching and cooks the fruit without damaging the tissues severely.
3. Heat white sugar and water together over medium heat until it is dissolved. I like to divide the mixture into 2 saucepans or pots for more space. **You can adjust the amount of sugar water you use depending on the size of your batch, just make sure the sugar/water ratio is 1:1**
4. Add citrus to the sugar water in a single layer. Simmer for 45 minutes to an hour, flipping every 15 minutes using a fork.
5. When the rinds of the citrus begin to turn translucent, remove the citrus from the syrup. Lay to “drip dry” on a wire rack with parchment paper underneath for several hours. **You can coat your citrus in additional white sugar at this stage if you want a “sugared” appearance.**
6. Enjoy!