Orange and Lemon Sweetmeats

In the 17th and 18th century people used to flavor their baked goods with sweetmeats. Now most people have never even heard the word sweetmeat. So what is a sweetmeat? A sweetmeat is peel that has been boiled several times to soften the texture and then rolled in sugar. It makes the peel like a candy. The lemon peel tastes exactly like lemon heads, if you remember those. You can not only add these in your baking but they are absolutely delicious alongside tea or coffee. Do each one separately of course but the directions are exactly the same so I will only add it once. As you see in the pictures they look almost the same so make sure you label them. The top is lemon and the bottom is orange.

Orange:
5 cups water
4 oranges
 1/4 cup sugar plus more for sprinkling

 Lemon:
5 cups water
10 lemons
1/4 cup sugar plus more for sprinkling

 1. In a 1-quart pan on high heat add 1 cup water, 1/4 cup sugar and peels. Allow to come to a full boil and stay. One water has evaporated add another cup. Continue doing so until all 5 cups are finished.

 2. On a clean surface such as wax or parchment paper dump peels. Sprinkle sugar atop peels. Allow to sit about 1 hour or overnight in refrigerator (covered). On a cutting board carefully cut into small strips. Place in a small bowl and cover with plastic wrap or a small glass jar. Store in refrigerator.

 Yields: 1/2 cup each