Many of our most beloved Christmas traditions were handed down to us by the Victorians: Christmas cards, caroling, twinkling lights and lavish decorations. But there is one Victorian Christmas tradition that has not survived the passage of time: placing nuts and oranges in a Christmas stocking. Today, there is no scenario more certain to disappoint and confuse the modern American child – so filled with hope and anticipation on Christmas morning -  than for them to tip their overflowing stocking upside down and watch fruit and nuts come raining down instead of chocolate and other candies. It might as well be coal.

There was a time – long ago – before goods could be traded over great distances with ease – when everyone was a locavore and everyone ate seasonally. At that time, in the dead of winter, when most were subsisting on hearty root vegetables stored in the cellar, finding a fragrant, juicy and highly perishable orange in your Christmas stocking would have been an exotic treat, a postcard from a foreign land where the sun is always shining. Not anymore.

Walk into any grocery store in the U.S. during December, hell, walk into any 7-11, and you will find bananas from Central America, canned pineapple from Hawaii, and, of course, oranges from Florida or Southern California. Now, if you want to serve something as ubiquitous as an orange during the holidays, you need to dress it up first. You need to make it special. And one way to do that is to candy its peel and roll it in sugar. You can even dip it in chocolate.

Simple to make, pretty to look at and sweet to taste, our candied orange peels continue the tradition of oranges at Christmastime, updated for the modern American palate that simply expects more.

Ingredients:

• 4 thick-skinned oranges (Valencia or Navel)
• water per directions
• 4 cups vegan sugar, divided

Optional:

• 2 cups melted vegan chocolate chips

To Prepare:

1. Cut tops and bottoms off oranges and cut the orange into quarters.
2. Peel the skin and pith off the orange segments.
3. Cut the peel into ¼ inch wide strips.
4. Place peels in a large saucepan with cold water to cover, then bring to a boil over high heat.
5. Drain. Repeat above step twice, then drain again.
6. In a medium saucepan, heat  3 cups sugar with 1 ½ cups water to boiling, stirring until the sugar is dissolved. Reduce heat to medium-low, add peel and cook for 1 hour, until strips are translucent.
7. Let peels cool in syrup, then drain.
8. Place 1 cup sugar in a low dish.
9. Wipe excess syrup off of peels with paper towel, then roll the peels in sugar and dry on a rack or a parchment paper-lined baking sheet for an hour.
10. If desired, coat peels in melted chocolate: Grasp peel by one end and dip in chocolate (except the end you are holding). Gently shake off excess and place on parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Allow chocolate to set before serving.

For a PDF of this recipe, click here.