Author: Susan Murray, www.awomancooksinasheville.com
Ingredients
3lemons
3limes
2oranges
2grapefruit
4 ½csugar
Instructions
Wash the fruit well to remove any wax or chemicals on the peels.
Use a knife to cut the rind off the fruit. It is okay if some of the white pith comes with it.
Cut the peel into ¼” – ½” strips.
Fill a large pot with water and add the fruit peel. Bring it to a boil and simmer for ten minutes. Drain the peel and repeat 4 times.
After the final blanching, drain the fruit and set aside. Put 2 cups of water and 2 cups of sugar in the pot and bring to a boil, stirring until the sugar is dissolved. Add the peel to the boiling syrup, cover and turn off the heat. Allow the peel to steep in the liquid for at least ten hours or overnight.
After the peel has steeped, drain it. (You can save any remaining syrup in the refrigerator. Use it in cocktails or as a soak for layer cakes. It will keep for a month or more.)
Combine a further 2 cups of sugar with two cups of water. Bring to boil and add the peel. This time, reduce the heat and simmer the peel in the syrup for an hour or until the peel is translucent and shiny.
Drain the fruit and spread it on wire racks to cool and dry. This will take 12 to 24 hours or more.
When the fruit is just barely sticky to the touch toss it in ½ cup of sugar and return it to the racks to finish drying.
Store the candied peel in a dark place in an airtight container.
Recipe Notes
Note: squeeze the juice and save for other uses. It freezes well