Candied Orange Slices

I'm really not one for using other people's recipes at all - I prefer to make my own!

That said, I was surfing Facebook back in 2014ish, and saw a recipe that my favourite magazine - Canadian Living - posted: Candied Orange and Ginger Bark!

I do candied orange slices differently, though.. so decided that I should share my recipe/ method with you.

You know, mostly as an excuse to share gorgeous pictures of these gorgeous orange slices.

Make more than you think - you'll start snacking on them, and they'll disappear in no time.

You can dip this sweet treat in melted chocolate (Especially dark chocolate!) for a simple, sweet snack, just as-is.

This orange slices recipe also works great as a decoration or garnish for many favorite dessert recipes:

Use it as a pretty, edible decoration for a delicious chocolate cake, orange cake or even plain pound cake.

It’s also a pretty garnish or topping for desserts like chocolate pudding, or chopped up and sprinkled over ice cream or a parfait.

You know, just a quick way to bring a sweet, citrusy flavour - and bit of sparkle - to all kinds of desserts!

It’s also an ingredient in my Festive Easy Fudge recipe - another recipe inspired by Canadian Living, interestingly enough!

That one’s a special treat, and one of my favorite recipes for this time of year!

A No Waste Recipe!

This is an easy recipe, and - bonus! - the cooking process can yield 4 different products if you decide to go a no-waste route with it!

You see, when it comes to making candied/crystallized items, I like to avoid wasting anything.

The "byproducts" made in the process are delicious in their own right.

You may remember from an old post that when I make Candied Ginger, I actually end up with 3 separate items: the candied ginger, ginger syrup, and ginger sugar.

When making my candied orange slices for the Canadian Living recipe, I decided to shake things up a bit.

I decided to make my crystalized ginger in the same orange sugar syrup I cooked the tangerines in, and went from there.

I ended up with not only my caramelized oranges, but lightly orange flavoured crystalized ginger, the leftover syrup from that becomes a ginger orange syrup, and - finally - orange-ginger sugar leftover from the candying process.

The orange simple syrup is extremely thick - I call it a ginger orange “honey”, and it’s fantastic in tea.

Instead of a single end product, you can get 4 - all from a very simple process!

Ingredients

This recipe uses only a couple of very simple ingredients, that you’ll be able to find in any grocery store.

If you want to add the ginger, it’s just 3 ingredients total!

Oranges

You can use whatever orange variety you like, I’ve made this with all kinds of oranges - and other citrus fruit, as well!

Valencia oranges and Navel oranges tend to be my defaults, but Cara Cara oranges, tangerines, and blood oranges are fun options.

You can use a less-sweet orange if you like - the extended dip in sugar syrup mellows out any bitter taste that you might worry about.

Aside from that, consider your usage.

Smaller oranges make smaller slices, large oranges make larger slices. This can matter when it comes to being used as a decoration for cakes.

Also, smaller orange slices tend to stay together better through the cooking process, than larger slices - which can break in the middle.

Less into oranges? Try this recipe for candied lemon slices or candied lime slices!

Sugar

You’ll want to use plain white granulated sugar.

Brown or “raw” sugars act a bit differently and will bring other, less desirable flavors and colors to the final product.

If you’re just making the candied orange slices, you’ll only need the amount called for in the recipe.

However, you’ll need more sugar on hand if you’re continuing on to make the syrup, crystallized ginger, etc.

Ginger

If you’re planning to add on the crystallized ginger, you’ll need fresh ginger in addition to that additional sugar.

I like to use big, easy-to-peel roots of ginger.

Not a fan of ginger? You can still make a no-waste recipe of this - more details on that, further down in this post!

How to Make Candied Orange Slices

The full recipe - and a video - is in the recipe card at the end of this post. This is a visual walk-through of the technique, with some additional tips and info.

Get Ready

Use a sharp knife to slice oranges into thin slices. I like to aim for the citrus slices to be around ¼″ thick.

Thinner slices will be more likely to fall apart during the boil, thicker slices will mean a much longer cooking time - and drying time.

Remove and discard all seeds, if applicable, and set sliced oranges aside.

Line your work surface - or a baking sheet - with parchment paper or wax paper.

Cook the Oranges

In a large pot, bring water and sugar to a boil over medium-high heat.

Add oranges slices, gently stirring to separate and coat with sugar water.

Once syrup comes back to a boil, turn temperature down enough to keep it just at a good simmer – NOT a full boil – and simmer for about 45 minutes.

Note: What setting this is will depend on your stove, keep an eye on it.

It’s not unusual for me to have to vary between medium heat, medium-low heat, and even the lowest setting, to keep it at the simmering level!

I like to gently stir every 10-15 minutes or so, to ensure all of the slices are getting full exposure to the syrup.

As you wait for the simmering oranges, spread a good amount of sugar over the parchment paper – a cup or two, enough to get a nice layer of sugar.

Set up a drying / cooling rack over the sugar pan.

Finish Candying the Orange Slices

Once the 45 minutes are up, remove pan from heat.

Use a fork or slotted spoon to gently remove orange slices from the syrup, allowing excess syrup to drip off into the pan.

Arrange drained slices in a single layer on the wire rack, allow to drip and cool for 30 minutes or so.

Once time is up, flip them and allow to sit for another 30 minutes or so.

Gently dredge orange slices in sugar from the parchment paper, making sure both sides are evenly crusted with the sugar coating.

Arrange on the drying rack once again, allow to dry overnight.

Transfer to an airtight container, store at room temperature.

For best results, eat within a week or two.

Additional Steps - With Ginger

Going a few more simple steps will yield you up to 3 more tasty items, depending on where you decide to stop.

Orange Syrup Crystallized Ginger

Use a vegetable peeler to peel all of the skin (rind?) off of the ginger, carefully slice it all into uniformly thin pieces. (I like to aim for between ⅛″ and ¼″ thick).

Place into the pot of orange sugar water, after removing the orange slices.

Bring syrup back up to a boil, turn temperature down enough to keep it just at a good simmer – NOT a full boil – and simmer for about 45 minutes. I like to gently stir every 10-15 minutes or so, to ensure all of the slices are getting full exposure to the syrup.

As you wait for the ginger to cook, top up the sugar in the parchment lined baking sheet. You’ll want a good solid layer.

Once the 45 minutes are up, add 1 cup of sugar to the pot, and stir well. Simmer for 10 more minutes.

Use a slotted spoon to remove ginger from the syrup, allowing excess liquid to drop back into the pan.

As you strain liquid off, put ginger directly into the sugar lined baking pan, tossing to coat.

Allow ginger to cool and dry for a few hours.

After the few hours, transfer the ginger pieces to an airtight container, gently knocking them against each other (I’ll roll them in my hands) to dislodge any loose, excess sugar.

Cover tightly, store at room temperature.

Orange-Ginger Sugar

You’ll be left with a fair amount of excess sugar, mostly clumpy.

Run all of that through a food processor until it’s as fine as you’d like it – this will depend on your desired uses for it.

Transfer to an airtight container, store at room temperature.

Use it to add a bit of extra flavor to your baking in place of plain sugar. It’s also a great way to sweeten to coffee or tea, or to rim your cocktail glasses!

Orange-Ginger “Honey”

Once you’ve transferred the ginger to the sugar pan, you will be left with a golden coloured, very thick syrup.

You can add a little hot water to thin it out, if you like.

Transfer to a clean mason jar, store in the fridge. (It may thicken / harden – it will liquify when warmed up!).

Use in tea, or as a replacement for honey in most recipes.

Additional Steps - Without Ginger

Not a fan of ginger? No problem, you can still end up with two extra products with very little effort!

Orange Simple Syrup

Once you’ve removed the orange slice from the pot, measure the remaining syrup and transfer it to a medium saucepan.

Whatever you measured it to be, add the same amount of sugar to the pot.

Bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar.

Once dissolved, cool to room temperature and transfer to a clean jar.

Will keep well in the fridge for several weeks.

Orange Sugar

After your orange slices have fully dried, knock off any excess sugar into the pile of sugar under the drying rack, before placing them in baggies.

Transfer any fallen sugar to a mini food processor, blitz until well blended.

Spread out on a parchment lined baking sheet, allow to air dry until completely dried.

Run through the food processor again to break up any lumps, then transfer to an air tight container.

More Holiday Treats

Looking for more inspiration for your holiday goodies tray? Whether Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter, or any of the other holidays, here are a few ideas for you!

Boozy Chocolate Haystack Cookies
Candied Orange Slices
Creme de Menthe Nanaimo Bars
Festive Easy Fudge
Fruitcake Cookies
No-Bake Gingerbread Pie
Noelles
Pecan Pie Cookies
Peppermint Patties
Ultimate Cowboy Cookies

Share the Love!

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