Chocolate Fondue With Clementines Candied Grapefruit Peel And Glaceed Orange Slices Recipes

GLACEED ORANGE SLICES

Steps:

• Leaving peel on, cut oranges into 1/4-inch rounds, then cut each round into a half-moon.
• Bring sugar and 2 cups water to a boil in a large pot, stirring occasionally, until sugar dissolves. Wash down sides of pot with a wet pastry brush to prevent sugar crystals from forming. Add orange slices to boiling syrup; reduce heat. Cover with parchment, and gently simmer until orange slices are soft and glazed, about 1 hour and 45 minutes.
• Using a slotted spoon, transfer peel to a wire rack set on a rimmed baking sheet. Let dry until just slightly tacky, about 5 hours. Store in an airtight container for 2 days.

EASY CANDIED GRAPEFRUIT PEEL

Steps:

• Quarter grapefruit and remove rinds; use interiors for another purpose. Slice each rind lengthwise into strips, approximately 1/4 inch at the widest point.
• Cover rind with 2 inches of water in a heavy saucepan. Bring to a boil; boil for 3 minutes. Drain. Repeat 3 more times with fresh water. Drain.
• Place boiled grapefruit rind, 1 3/4 cups sugar, and 1 cup of fresh water into the saucepan. Let simmer slowly, increasing heat as needed, until water is absorbed or evaporated, about 1 hour.
• Place remaining 1 cup sugar in a large bowl and toss peels in it. Cool and allow to dry on wax paper or a wire rack. Dust with more sugar as preferred.

CHOCOLATE FONDUE

Steps:

• Heat the cream in a saucepan over low to medium heat until warmed through but not bubbling; add the bittersweet chocolate, semisweet chocolate, amaretto and vanilla and stir until the chocolate is melted. Pour the mixture into a fondue pot.
• Arrange your dipping ingredients on a platter and serve!

CANDIED GRAPEFRUIT PEELS

Steps:

• Using a sharp knife, cut each grapefruit into quarters. Remove the fruit from the peel, leaving the white membrane or pith attached to the peel. Save the fruit for another use. Slice each quarter peel on a diagonal into strips about 1/2-inch wide. If you cut them evenly, they will look nicer when displayed.
• Place the sliced grapefruit peels in a nonreactive 4-quart heavy-bottomed saucepan and add enough water to cover the peels by about 1-inch. Place over high heat and bring to a rolling boil. Remove from the heat and strain. Return only the peels to the saucepan, cover again with fresh water, and repeat the boiling and draining process three more times. It is really important to change the water because it retains the bitterness of the peel.
• After the fourth boil, drain the water as before and return the peels to the saucepan. Add the sugar and enough water to cover the peels by 1-inch. Place over low heat and let simmer for 2 hours. During this time, the sugar will sweeten and preserve the natural flavor of the peels. After 2 hours, they will be soft and translucent and the syrup will be thick. Let the peels cool in the syrup and keep them stored in the syrup, refrigerated, in an airtight container until you are ready to serve. They will keep this way for up to three weeks.
• When ready to use, allow the peels to drain on a wire rack for a few hours to remove the excess syrup. Put the rack over a baking sheet so the syrup does not drip all over the work surface.
• Once fully drained, you have three options for serving: First, you can serve them as they are. Second, you can place the peels in a medium-sized bowl filled with granulated sugar. Roll the peels around in the sugar until they are well coated. Third, you can dip the sugared peels into the bittersweet chocolate. Dip two thirds of each sugared peel into the bittersweet chocolate. Gently wipe the excess chocolate from the end of each peel before placing on parchment paper. The chocolate should set in a few minutes if it is tempered and the kitchen is not too hot.
• Whatever variation you choose, present the peels on a plate or in a small bowl or in petits fours cups.
• Once the peels have been sugared and dipped in chocolate, they can be stored at room temperature in an airtight container for up to three days.
• How to Temper Chocolate(From Dessert Circus, Extraordinary Desserts You Can Make At Home by Jacques Torres):
• Chocolate is tempered so that after it has been melted, it retains its gloss and hardens again without becoming chalky and white (that happens when the molecules of fat separate and form on top of the chocolate). There are a variety of ways to temper.
• One of the easiest ways to temper chocolate is to chop it into small pieces and then place it in the microwave for 30 seconds at a time on high power until most of the chocolate is melted. Be very careful not to overheat it. (The temperature of dark chocolate should be between 88 and 90 degrees F, slightly warmer than your bottom lip. It will retain its shape even when mostly melted. White and milk chocolates melt at a temperature approximately 2 degrees F less because of the amount of lactose they contain.) Any remaining lumps will melt in the chocolate's residual heat. Use an immersion blender or whisk to break up the lumps. Usually, chocolate begins to set, or crystallize, along the side of the bowl. As it sets, mix those crystals into the melted chocolate to temper it. A glass bowl retains heat well and keeps the chocolate tempered longer.
• Another way to temper chocolate is called seeding. In this method, add small pieces of unmelted chocolate to melted chocolate. The amount of unmelted chocolate to be added depends on the temperature of the melted chocolate, but is usually 1/4 of the total amount. It is easiest to use an immersion blender for this, or a whisk.
• The classic way to temper chocolate is called tabliering. Two thirds of the melted chocolate is poured onto a marble or another cold work surface. The chocolate is spread out and worked with a spatula until its temperature is approximately 81 degrees F. At this stage, it is thick and begins to set. This tempered chocolate is then added to the remaining non-tempered chocolate and mixed thoroughly until the mass has a completely uniform temperature. If the temperature is still too high, part of the chocolate is worked further on the cold surface until the correct temperature is reached. This is a lot of work, requires a lot of room, and makes a big mess.
• A simple method of checking tempering, is to apply a small quantity of chocolate to a piece of paper or to the point of a knife. If the chocolate has been correctly tempered, it will harden evenly and show a good gloss within a few minutes.

CANDIED CLEMENTINES

Steps:

• In a saucepan combine the sugar with 2 cups water and bring to a boil. Add the clementine slices, reduce heat to simmer, and place a piece of parchment paper over top of liquid to keep clementines submerged. Simmer 2 hours, then remove from heat and allow to cool to room temperature.
• Heat oven to 250 degrees. Lay a Silpat mat or parchment paper on a baking sheet, place clementine slices in a single layer on top (making sure they lie flat), then cover with a second mat or layer of parchment and top that with a second baking sheet. Put in oven and bake for 1 hour, then remove from oven. (Reserve citrus-infused syrup in refrigerator for cocktails or other uses.)
• When cool enough to handle, remove top baking sheet and carefully peel away top mat or parchment. Carefully lift and peel the candied citrus slices and set aside until ready to use.

CHOCOLATE TART WITH CANDIED CLEMENTINE PEEL

Steps:

• Make crust:
• Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly oil tart pan.
• Stir together biscuit crumbs, sugar, and butter in a bowl, then press crumb mixture evenly onto bottom of tart pan. Bake crust 10 minutes, then cool completely in pan on a rack.
• Make filling:
• Lightly beat yolks in a small bowl. Bring cream to a simmer in a 2-quart heavy saucepan and remove from heat. Add about one third of hot cream to yolks in a slow stream, whisking constantly, then pour yolk mixture into remaining cream, whisking.
• Cook custard over moderately low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until it is thick enough to coat back of spoon and registers 170°F on thermometer, 1 to 2 minutes (do not let boil). Remove from heat and add chopped chocolate, whisking until smooth, then whisk in chopped candied peel.
• Pour filling evenly over crust and chill tart, uncovered, until firm, at least 2 hours. Remove side of pan and serve tart chilled or at cool room temperature.