candied grapefruit peels

Grapefruits are probably the best fruit. They're super healthy and not very messy, and on top of that they're practically always in season. But why throw away the peels when you're done? Here's how to make something sweet with just two simple ingredients.

What you need:

one large grapefruit and at least one cup of sugar

Remove the peel

cut the grapefruit TOP TO BOTTOM (rather than through the middle like you would do to eat it normally) and use either a knife or your fingers to ease the fruit out of its skin. try to leave behind most of the white pith, but not so much that you end up with super thin pieces of peel.

Cut the peel into pieces

you can do strips or triangles or whatever shape you want. I did a combination of shapes. I think it'd also be cute to cut them so they look like little grapefruit slices.

Boil twice

fill a saucepan with just enough water to cover the peels, and bring to a boil. drain. repeat the whole process.

Boil with water and sugar

once you've done that last step twice, use the same saucepan to bring the peels, 1/2 cup sugar, and 1/2 cup water to a boil. bring it down to a simmer until the peels are translucent.

Drain and move to wire racks

let them cool, then dip each peel in sugar.

Let them cool some more

give the sugar time to crystallize. they should end up stiff and not wet/sticky. I let them sit out over night to ensure that they would dry out. dip them in sugar one more time after about an hour.

Enjoy!

garnish drinks, add to trail mix, dip in chocolate, or just eat the peels plain. store them in a mason jar.

with love,

Julia