Candied Orange Slices in Spiced Chocolate

Father's Day was not too long ago and I was contemplating what to give my dad. He's always loved chocolate and fruit; and since cooking happens to be my specialty, I  decided to make him something special! Here are the instructions for making delicious candied orange slices dipped in spiced chili chocolate. (NOTE: these take about 1-2 days to dry out.)

You will need:

Organic oranges (I used about 2 & 1/2 small oranges.)

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar + extra for coating

1 cup water

Chocolate (I used semi-sweet chocolate baking chips.)

Powdered chili

Small or medium pot (depending on how many orange slices you're making.)

A note: I doubled the sugar syrup because I had a lot of orange slices to candy.

To start:

1. Wash the orange(s) thoroughly with warm water and dry. Slice your orange(s) into 1/4 inch discs. You can even cut these circles in half if you want smaller candies.

2. Next, you're going to blanch these slices. Put them in a pot of cold water and bring it to a boil. Strain them using a fine mesh sieve and put them aside. Repeat the blanching process, except this time, put the slices into an ice bath when they're done.

3. Now its time to make the sugar syrup! Put the sugar and water into the pot and set it on medium heat and stir until the sugar is dissolved. Once the syrup begins to bubble, stop stirring it. 

4. Put the oranges in the syrup and let them candy uncovered for approximately 1 hour.

5. After 1 hour, place the oranges on a cooling rack for about 15-20 minutes. Once this time has elapsed, coat both sides of the slices in sugar and place them back on the rack. 

6. Let the slices dry out for 1-2 days (or until you just can't stand to wait anymore.) 

7.Melt your chocolate in a double boiler or the microwave. I always use the microwave to avoid my chocolate seizing. Stir in a pinch of chili powder and begin dipping! 

8. place the orange slices on a cookie sheet lined with wax paper and refrigerate for 1-2 hours.

I really loved making these delicious angels! The chocolate with the chili and the citrus was such an amazing combination! You could even substitute oranges for grapefruit or blood oranges! I used World Markets autumn colored single serve pie boxes to wrap these beauties up! I hope you enjoy making these and have fun sharing them! 

                                           

Peace and love. XXX.