Start by slicing your citrus in thin, uniformly-sized slices.
Place this in a pan with some simple syrup. Simple Syrup is just a mixture of water and sugar that’s been boiled into a nice thick syrup.
Let the the lemons simmer gently in the syrup until the rinds appear softened and the centers are translucent. You want them to get cooked enough that the rinds get fully candied, but not so much that the lemon slices disintegrate! Usually about 15-18 minutes does it for me. Obviously if you slice them thinner they’ll cook faster and thicker slices will take longer.
When they’re done, gently remove each slice, letting excess syrup drip off, and lay them on a piece of parchment paper.
I like to let mine sit for a full 24 hours, but if you refrigerate them to speed the drying process, you could use them a few hours after you take them out of the syrup. I like the drier texture and feel after they’ve sat out for a day so I just leave them on my counter overnight.
At this stage, you can eat the lemon, rind and all! It’s still slightly bitter, but since it’s absorbed all of the sugar, it actually tastes pretty yummy. When I use these to garnish desserts, I like to dip them (either entirely, or half-way like you see in these photos) in sugar to make them sparkle.
Then you can use them for your recipes, like this Lemon Cream Pie!
Hope you enjoy these candied lemon slices. Let me know what you make with them, or better yet- snap a pic and tag me on Instagram so I can see!
