Blood Orange Pâte de Fruit

I’m sorry to think that we are probably nearing the end of this blood orange season, but I don’t have many, or really any, regrets. I have used the heck out of them the past few months. Even the kids are into it now, coming up with all sorts of things we should make with them. I figured we needed one last hurrah before they will no longer be reliably found in stores, as citrus fades away from produce sections and displays begin to fill with spring strawberries and asparagus.

These sugar sparkled little gummies have been on my list of things to try in the kitchen for ages and blood oranges seemed like the right fruit to use for the inaugural batch. I was less thrilled about that choice when the first batch failed miserably. (Those were, in fact, that recipe fail I referred to recently.) Wasting six or seven-ish blood oranges hurts, but I learned some things in the process. Like I said, I make the mistakes so you don’t have to. The first time around, I used a seemingly easier version of the recipe – not that they are complicated, but it was…oversimplified. Let me tell you up front, you need a candy thermometer or an instant read thermometer. Like I always say, it takes the guess work out of the equation. The second time around they turned out perfectly and the kids are beyond excited that we made blood orange candies on our own. Till next time, beauties. I’ll just be dreaming up more ideas of what to make with you next.

Looking for more blood orange inspiration for your last hurrah? Here are some of my favorites!

Yield about 6 dozen pieces

Ingredients

1 whole blood orange
1 1/3 cups blood orange juice (from about 6 blood oranges)
2½ cups granulated sugar, plus more for coating
1 tbsp. butter
6 oz. liquid pectin (this is the kind I used)

Directions

01
Line an 8 x 8-inch baking pan with parchment paper. Bring a medium saucepan of water to boil over high heat. Once boiling, add one whole blood orange to the pot and boil for 10 seconds. Immediately remove from the water and let cool briefly. Trim off the ends and discard. Cut the blanched orange into eight segments and place into the food processor. Pulse until it is finely chopped. Add about half of the blood orange juice to the food processor and continue to process until smooth. Strain the mixture through a fine mesh sieve to remove the solids for a smooth texture. (Alternatively, skip this step for a chunkier texture.)
02
In a medium to large pot, combine the orange mixture with the remaining blood orange juice and sugar. Place over high heat. Bring the mixture to a boil and let boil for 2½ minutes. (Lower the heat if needed so that the mixture doe not boil over, but keep it boiling.) Stir in the butter and continue to boil until the mixture reaches 230˚ F on a candy or instant read thermometer. Stir in the pectin and let the mixture boil vigorously for 1 minute more.
03
Pour the mixture into the prepared baking pan and smooth into an even layer. Let cool until completely set, at least 2-3 hours. Carefully use the parchment to lift the candy out of the pan. Slice into squares with a sharp chef’s knife. Coat in additional sugar. Store in an airtight container.

Source

Use Real Butter