The bitter sweetness of dark chocolate combines delightfully with the tangy sweetness of candied orange and lemon peel, and these chocolates are wonderful as snacks, though you can also serve them at the end of a substantial meal, to give those who would be prostrated by a richer dessert a tasty alternative. They're easy to make, too, and therefore are an ideal stocking stuffer. Just make a lot, and don't nibble, because if you do you won't stuff many stockings. To serve (optimistically) 8:
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Ingredients:
- 1 large organically grown, fairly thick-skinned orange
- 2 large organically grown lemons
- 2 3/4 cup (600 g) sugar
- 1/3 pound (150 g) baking chocolate
Preparation:
Wash the fruit and dry it. Cut the orange into 8 sections and remove the skin from the sections without tearing it. Eat the orange (if you want). Peel the lemons the same way. You will now have 24 sections of citrus peel. Cut each one lengthwise into three thinner strips. When you have finished cutting the strips, flip them skin-side down and carefully remove the white pith with a sharp, thin-bladed knife. The finished strips will be about 1/8 of an inch (2 mm) thick.
Put the strips in a small pot with cold water to cover, and bring them to a boil over a brisk flame. Boil them for 30 seconds, and drain them, discarding the water, which will be bitter.
Set the sugar to heat in a saucepan with one cup of water. Stir as it dissolves, and once it has dissolved let it come to a boil without stirring further. When it has become transparent (figure a cooking time of at least 20-25 minutes over low heat, to keep the sugar from caramelizing), reduce the heat to a simmer and add the citrus peels. Simmer another 30 seconds without stirring, turn off the burner, and let the peels steep in the syrup for at least 6 hours.
Next, cover a dish with a sheet of aluminum foil. Remove the skin that will have formed on the syrup without stirring the syrup, and remove the strips of peel one at a time, letting them drip dry and putting them on the foil.
Shred the chocolate and heat it over a double boiler while stirring gently. When it is well melted and creamy, dip the strips a bit more than half way into it, it one at a time, and return them to the aluminum foil to cool. When they have cooled transfer them to a more elegant dish and serve.
Put the strips in a small pot with cold water to cover, and bring them to a boil over a brisk flame. Boil them for 30 seconds, and drain them, discarding the water, which will be bitter.
Set the sugar to heat in a saucepan with one cup of water. Stir as it dissolves, and once it has dissolved let it come to a boil without stirring further. When it has become transparent (figure a cooking time of at least 20-25 minutes over low heat, to keep the sugar from caramelizing), reduce the heat to a simmer and add the citrus peels. Simmer another 30 seconds without stirring, turn off the burner, and let the peels steep in the syrup for at least 6 hours.
Next, cover a dish with a sheet of aluminum foil. Remove the skin that will have formed on the syrup without stirring the syrup, and remove the strips of peel one at a time, letting them drip dry and putting them on the foil.
Shred the chocolate and heat it over a double boiler while stirring gently. When it is well melted and creamy, dip the strips a bit more than half way into it, it one at a time, and return them to the aluminum foil to cool. When they have cooled transfer them to a more elegant dish and serve.
