Directions: |
Directions:Peel:
Peel the oranges by cutting the peel into four wedges lengthwise. Cut the ends off each wedge of peel and cut into about 2-3 inch long strip about ¼ inch wide. Some people like to cut off the peel leaving as much pith behind as possible. I do not do that . I choose oranges with a thick pith as it adds bulk to carry the candying and the bitterness will be removed during the blanching process.
Blanching:
Blanching is very important to make the peels palatable. They are very bitter on their own and the more you blanche them the less bitter they will be. I prefer to blanche them three times. This removes enough bitterness to make them smooth but still retains a little bite. To blanche the peels, add them to a pot of cold water. Heat the water to boiling and then simmer for 5 minutes. Empty the water and rinse the peels in cool water. Then repeat the process at least one more time. I prefer repeating twice more.
Candying:
To candy the peels, combine the sugar and 1½ plus ⅓ cup of water to a stock pot on high heat and cook for about 8-10 minutes until the mixture begins to get bubbly. If you have a candy thermometer it would be at the soft thread stage of 230 - 234ºF. Then add the blanched orange peels reduce the heat to a simmer and simmer for about 45-60 minutes until the pith becomes translucent. Remove the peels from the syrup and place on a drying rack or parchment to dry for 1-2 days at room temperature. Ensure that the peels do not touch while drying or you will not be able to separate them after they dry. Keep the orange syrup for adding to your coffee or tea or other recipes at a later time. At this point you have candied orange peels. You may choose to cover them with chocolate, roll them in sugar, or just eat them as is. They are an excellent dessert in their own right.
Melt the Chocolate:
Working in chocolate can be very difficult. Notice I say working in chocolate like it's an art form. That is because in many respects it is. Creating something great from chocolate can take years to perfect. Don't get me wrong, I am not saying I am an expert in working chocolate. Far from it. My early efforts resulted in some truly spectacular failures. One of the main issues is that in order to make a confectionary a stand alone product, a chocolate shell must be hard, smooth, have a good snap, and must not make too much of a mess if you handle it for a short time. This is called the temper. Tempered chocolate has the cocoa butter crystals aligned so that as it cools, it forms a strong structure creating that signature snap of good quality chocolate. Tempering chocolate takes experience and skill. Do not expect to get it right your first time. The darker the chocolate the better it will temper as there are fewer impurities to interfere with the process. However, there is some grace for novice chocolatier. Almost all chocolate comes tempered. The better the quality, the better the temper in most cases. Chocolate will keep its temper if you melt it very gently and do not let the temperature get above about 95ºF. Some call for using the double boiler method to heat chocolate as the vessel will never get above 212ºF and is guaranteed to heat gently. However, this is dangerous as if any of the water gets into the chocolate it will seize up ruining the chocolate. I take a small amount of the chocolate and heat it, stirring constantly, until the bottom just begins to melt. Then, continuing to stir, remove from the heat and monitor the temperature with an instant read thermometer. I add more chocolate and return the pot to the heat for no more than 10 seconds at a time, then remove from the heat and stir while monitoring the temperature until all of the chocolate is incorporated and completely melted. Continue to stir the chocolate in one direction until the chocolate reduces in temperature to about 84ºF. Shake the pot of chocolate to help remove some of the air bubbles that formed as you were stirring the chocolate. It is now ready to use. If you let the chocolate get too hot, it will not temper or like I like to say, " it will lose it's temper." If it s get above 115ºF the cocoa butter will begin to separate from the Cocoa solids and you will see white streaks in your chocolate. If this happens, you will have to re-temper your chocolate. That is beyond the scope of this recipe but it can be done.
Cover:
Add the peels one at a time to the chocolate and cover each piece liberally. Use a fork or chocolate dipping utensil to remove the peel from the chocolate and shake of the excess. Place the covered piece on some parchment keeping them separated from other pieces enough so that they will not fuse together as they dry. It is important to work fast as the chocolate will begin to cool as you dip. If the chocolate becomes too hot, heat the chocolate back on the stove for no more than 5 seconds at a time until it just become workable again. Continue until you run out of either chocolate or orange peels. If you did it right, the covering will harden within about an hour at room temperature and will have a hearty snap within about 2 hours. If that does not happen, just chill them in the fridge and keep them refrigerated until ready to eat. |
Personal
Notes: |
Personal
Notes: This recipe has a long story and begins in a small chocolate shop in Paris called L'Etoile d'Or. It is owned by the famous French chocolatier Denise Acabo. Denise was the chocolate consultant for the movie "Chocolat." and a French national treasure. I met Denise in 2001 in her shop on Rue Fontaine about a block from the Moulin Rouge. She was an elderly lady (about 65 at the time) wearing her signature braided pig tails, tartan, and blue sweater with a red tie. I hear that she has since loosened up a bit and now sometimes does not wear the tie. Either way, Denise is a force. She moves through her shop like a whirlwind with infectious glee and a true love for her work. If you visit come prepared to speak French. She does not speak English and she speaks French machine gun fast, flitting around the shop energetically showing her delightful products. My two years of high school French was not enough. Going to her shop is an experience of it's own and worth the plane ticket in an of itself. We never miss a chance to visit her shop every time we are in Paris.
I love it when I learn something by eating and this was the first time that it happened to me. Visiting her shop inspired me to begin working in chocolate and a lot of that had to do with not only her amazing product but her infectious love of le chocolat. The confectionary that truly inspired me was her chocolate covered orange peels. she had to really encourage me to try them as eating an orange peel did not seem all that appealing, that is until I bit into it. I was amazed that almost all of the bitterness was gone, and it had a clean fresh taste that was not like anything I had ever tried. the smooth dark chocolate covering was the perfect companion to the strong but fresh orange flavor underneath. I had never experienced anything like them ever anywhere around the world. I have since found some that try to imitate them but in all honesty, they do not compare. I took me 7 years of trial and error (mostly error) and several trips to Paris to get it right, but this recipe is as close as you can get to Denise's without paying for a plane ticket to France. Denise would probably be appalled that I use Callebaut chocolate to cover the orange peels but it is the highest quality chocolate that is readily available in the United States and is the U.S. industry standard for confectioners and restaurants here in America. It can be found at most Wholefoods markets. You can get better quality chocolate online but it can only be shipped in the cooler months and is not easy to get.
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