ready to be sugared

this was the first year to get a small croppette (could that be a definition for a crop of three?) of grapefruit from my very own tree. they were amazingly wonderful and i had to utilize even the rind for our table.

i have been glacéing fruit for over twenty years. i started back in brooklyn when i wanted to be that misplaced french country girl raising a passel of children just off the F train. glacéing transforms even the pithy rind of citrus fruits into something that i could never afford at dean & deluca.

now, i am a rightly placed texas girl with those bebes raised (and replaced with a passel of garanimals) and now could afford to buy some at dean & deluca. but why buy it when you can make your own?

it is marvelous how translucent the glacéed peels become. and yep, you can read through them, if you ever needed to.

glacéed citrus peel

3 large oranges (or 2 grapefruit, 4 lemons, 4 limes)
3/4 c. water
2 T. light corn syrup
2 1/4 c. sugar

1) cut the peel on each orange into quarters, then remove peel in sections. slice peel thinly.

2) in a nonaluminum saucepan, cover the peels with enough water. bring to boiling and cook, covered, for 15 minutes. drain in a colander.

3) boil water, syrup and 2 cups sugar, stirring until dissolved. add peels. simmer, stirring occasionally, 35-55 minutes, until translucent and tender.

4) remove peels with slotted spoon to large rack (over a cookie sheet. let drain and then separate the peels. dry for another hour.

5) place the remaining sugar in a large bowl. add the peels and toss until they are evenly coated with sugar.

6) airdry for another two hours. store peels in an airtight container or freeze.