Glaceed Fruits Recipes

FRESH FRUIT GLAZE

Steps:

• Combine fruit juice and cornstarch in a 2 cup microwave-safe measuring cup.
• Stir in sugar and crushed fruit or rind.
• Microwave for 2-2 1/2 minutes at High, stirring once, until thickened.
• Stir in flavoring.
• Cool.
• Serve.

BALSAMIC GLAZED FRUITS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F.
• Measure 2 tablespoons lemon juice into a large non-reactive bowl. Add the fruit to the bowl and toss to coat.
• Melt the butter over medium heat in a non-reactive roasting pan or rimmed baking sheet. Cook until it stops foaming and turns light brown. Add the rosemary, bay leaves, vinegar, remaining lemon juice, and brown sugar. Bring to a boil, stir well until the sugar has melted, and simmer until slightly reduced.
• Season the cut fruit with a pinch of salt and pepper and pour into the roasting pan. Stir well until evenly coated.
• Spread the fruit into a single layer and place in the oven. Let cook slowly about 6 hours, turning the pieces over every hour for at least the first 3 hours. To test whether the fruit is ready, remove a piece after 2 hours and let cool for a few minutes. Taste to see if the flavor is intense enough for your palate. Do not let the fruit get as dry as a fruit leather. It should still be moist and flexible. Remove any pieces that are done before the rest. Remove from the oven, let cool completely, and store in a tightly sealed container.
• Refrigerate, if not consumed within 2 days. Let come to room temperature or warm gently before serving, if refrigerated. The fruit will keep a week or more in the refrigerator.
• Cook's Note: Oven-drying is a technique for intensifying flavor. If the fruit is watery, it may take up to 8 hours to dry. If the fruit is at its peak, ripe, and firm, it may take far less time.

GLACEED FRUITS

Steps:

• Line large baking sheet with foil. Wipe fruits clean. Insert 1 skewer halfway into each fruit (excluding grape clusters).
• Combine sugar and water in heavy medium 4-inch-deep saucepan. Stir over medium-low heat until sugar dissolves. Add corn syrup and ginger. Increase heat and bring to boil, occasionally brushing down sides of pan with wet pastry brush. Attach candy thermometer to saucepan. Boil without stirring until syrup is golden amber color and candy thermometer registers 340°F, swirling pan occasionally, about 20 minutes. Remove pan from heat.
• Holding skewer, carefully dip 1 fruit into hot caramel, coating completely. Hold fruit over pan, allowing some of excess caramel to drip off. Place fruit, still on skewer, on foil-lined sheet. Repeat dipping with remaining fruits and caramel. Hook stem end of each grape cluster in tines of fork; dip into caramel to coat. Place on prepared sheet. If necessary, carefully tilt pan to submerge fruits in caramel. (Can be prepared ahead. Cranberries, strawberries and orange segments can stand at room temperature up to 6 hours. Kumquats, dried apricots and grape clusters can be refrigerated uncovered overnight.)

WHITE CAKE WITH MINCEMEAT FILLING AND GLACEED FRUIT

Steps:

• Make the cakes: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter two 8-by-2-inch round cake pans, then line with parchment. Butter parchment, and dust pans with flour, tapping out excess. Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl.
• Cream butter and 1 cup granulated sugar with a mixer until light and fluffy. Add vanilla seeds.
• With mixer on low speed, add flour mixture, alternating with milk, starting and ending with dry ingredients. (Scrape down sides as needed.)
• Whisk whites with a mixer on high speed until soft peaks form. Slowly add remaining 3/4 cup granulated sugar, beating until stiff, glossy peaks form. (Do not overbeat.) Whisk 1/3 of the whites into batter, then carefully fold in remaining whites.
• Divide batter between pans. Bake until testers inserted in centers come out clean, 35 to 40 minutes. Let cool in pans on wire racks for 15 minutes. Run a knife around edges of pans to loosen cakes. Invert cakes onto wire racks, and let cool.
• Make the brandy simple syrup: Bring granulated sugar and water to a boil in a small saucepan, stirring until sugar dissolves. Remove from heat, and stir in brandy. Let cool.
• Make the mincemeat: Combine everything except the Cognac in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a simmer, stirring often, then cover and reduce heat to low. Cook, stirring occasionally, until dried fruits are soft and beginning to break down, about 30 minutes. Stir in Cognac, and cook for 5 minutes more. Let cool.
• To assemble the cake: Whisk 1 1/2 cups cream until soft peaks form. Trim tops of cakes to create flat surfaces. Slice each cake in half horizontally. Place 1 layer on parchment, cut side up, and brush with simple syrup. Spread with 1 cup cooled mincemeat and 1 cup whipped cream. Top with another cake layer, cut side up. Brush with syrup, and top again with mincemeat, then whipped cream. Repeat layering, ending with a cake layer, flat side up. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours (or overnight).
• Whisk remaining 2 cups cream until soft peaks form. Frost cake with whipped cream. Decorate with glaceed fruit, and serve immediately.

GLAZED FRUIT

Steps:

• Insert a toothpick or wooden skewer into the base of each small fruit. Cut off one end of the grapefruit to make a flat base, then pierce 50 small holes in the grapefruit to hold the toothpicks for display. Line a baking sheet with a piece of waxed paper.
• In a 2-quart heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium-high heat, bring the sugar, the water, and the cream of tartar to a boil. Brush down the sides of the pan two times with a pastry brush dipped in warm water to prevent the sugar from crystallizing. Cook the mixture without stirring until it registers 240°F on a sugar thermometer, then add the lemon juice. Brush down the sides of the pan two more times and continue cooking the mixture until it registers 310°F on the thermometer.
• Remove the pan from the heat. Holding a small fruit by the toothpick, dip the fruit into the sugar syrup, coating it completely. Lift the fruit from the syrup, gently shake off the excess syrup, and place the fruit onto the waxed paper. Repeat with the remaining small fruit. If the sugar syrup begins to firm up while you are working, warm it over medium heat until it is liquid again. Let the glaze set up at room temperature (about 10 minutes).
• Place the toothpicks into the holes in the grapefruit. Keep the fruit at room temperature until serving time. Serve the fruit within 12 hours of preparation.

GLACEED ORANGE SLICES

Steps:

• Leaving peel on, cut oranges into 1/4-inch rounds, then cut each round into a half-moon.
• Bring sugar and 2 cups water to a boil in a large pot, stirring occasionally, until sugar dissolves. Wash down sides of pot with a wet pastry brush to prevent sugar crystals from forming. Add orange slices to boiling syrup; reduce heat. Cover with parchment, and gently simmer until orange slices are soft and glazed, about 1 hour and 45 minutes.
• Using a slotted spoon, transfer peel to a wire rack set on a rimmed baking sheet. Let dry until just slightly tacky, about 5 hours. Store in an airtight container for 2 days.

CANDIED FRUIT COOKIES

Steps:

• In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg. Combine the flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon; gradually add to the creamed mixture and mix well. Fold in fruits and nuts. , Drop by teaspoonfuls 2 in. apart onto greased baking sheets. Bake at 375° for 8-10 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove to wire racks.