Homemade Candied Blood Orange Slices

These jewel-like candied blood orange slices have a gorgeous, stained glass appearance, making them the perfect decorations for desserts or drinks, and a sweet and chewy texture that makes for a delicious snack all on their own, or (better yet) dipped in dark chocolate.

While candying oranges does involve a good chunk of time to achieve that perfect chew and glass-like appearance, the result is well worth it. Not to mention the delicious candied orange syrup that’s leftover at the end which as good or better as the orange slices themselves! All you need to make this impressive homemade confection are sugar, water, and oranges (and a bit of powdered citric acid to preserve the leftover syrup at the end).

Hello, gorgeous!

Really though, is there anything prettier than a slice of candied blood orange, shiny and translucent in the winter sun?

They’re basically like edible stained glass, deliciously chewy and bursting with sweet orange flavor. And yes, the entire thing is edible! The ‘candying’ process, wherein the orange slices are simmered in a sugar syrup, softens the rind and infuses it with sugar syrup.

Not to mention that the ‘byproduct’ of the entire process is a truly fantastic candied orange syrup that’s almost better than the oranges themselves. It’s like a recipe two-for-one!

I used these candied blood orange slices as a garnish on some chocolate blood orange cupcakes. Cut into half moons and nestled in a swirl of pale pink blood orange buttercream, they provided the perfect finishing touch to the already gorgeous cupcakes, both adding visual impact and hinting at the flavors to be found inside. Rather than try to tack this on as a part of the cupcake recipe (which already had cake and frosting parts), I figured they were pretty enough (and finicky enough) to warrant their own post.

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from Love and Olive Oil https://ift.tt/8ByvsPV