This season you can find the best and tastiest oranges. They are also at their lowest price so it is the best time to make orange desserts. It is gluten free by nature!

In Greece, we called all these fruit sweets with syrup, spoon sweets. And this because you eat it with small spoon (teaspoon). The translation of the teaspoon in Greek is “spoon for sweet”.

In days of our great grandmothers they used to serve it in silver bowl with hanging teaspoons or in a crystal bowl and gave the quest a teaspoon and a glass of water. The guest had to take the dessert with its teaspoon, eat it, drink the glass of water (they need it because it’s very sweet) and leave the empty teaspoon in the glass. If someone want more, had to take another clean teaspoon to take a second bite. In days of our grandmothers, they begging to serve individually in small plates that they call them “little plates for spoon sweets”. As you understand was the most widespread dessert and every home had it, because it is a sweet that you keep at cupboards, no need to have a fridge and it has sugar that is a naturally preservative.

Typically, they make this orange spoon sweet from the peels only. Our great grandmothers knew all about of “zero food waste”. You can make it only from oranges’ peels (in rolls), of course, but I prefer to have the whole fruit, cut it in slices. It looks and tastes better for me.

It is connected with my childhood years and especially with my grandmother Eleni who always served us this dessert when we visited her, in small clear crystal plates with a leaf/grapes design which I inherited 2 of them. Although she was hardly walking with an aid after breaking her hip from a fall, she always made plenty of orange spoon dessert to serve the guests visiting her. Polite, kind, always happy to see us and generous, she also used to give us a couple of her handicrafts that she knitted or sewed in addition to sweet orange. One of the most creative, inventive and humble people I have ever met.

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Orange is my favourite one, of spoon sweets.

Even if it is not your favorite dessert, it is good to have it at home as it is easy to preserve for a long time, at hand for those unexpected sugar cravings. Cut it into small pieces and add it to cakes or halva, combine it with melted or grated chocolate or top ice cream.


Yields1 ServingDifficultyBeginner

Prep Time40 minsCook Time25 minsTotal Time1 hr 5 mins

Tip: Check off the ingredients you have used in the recipe or note the ingredients you have and add the rest to you shopping list to buy them. - Attention: All ingredients  must be checked that are Gluten-Free and without traces of gluten.

 2 kg oranges (wax free)
 1 kg sugar
 1 ½ cups freshly squeezed orange juice
 2 ½ cups water
 1 lemon, the juice only

Abbreviations: g=grams kg= kilograms cup=250 ml tsp= teaspoon=5 ml  tbsp= tablespoon=3 tsp=15 ml ml= millilitre= (1ml=0.034 fl oz / 1fl oz=29.6 ml) l=litre/liter=1000ml

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1

Lightly grate the oranges and cut/remove the top and bottom edges.

2

Put them to boil, whole fruits, with plenty of water for 10 min. Empty the boiled water, put cold water back in the pot and repeat the process up to 4 times. We do this to clarify and sweeten them. As I like, light bitterness, I usually boil it only twice with clean water for 20 min each time. In total, the cooking time should be 40 min. If they are very thick, it is good to cook them for a total of 60 min.

3

Drain and set aside to cool or cool them with cold water. We try a piece of peel to check how bitter it is. If you still don’t like the result, leave it in cold water for 2-3 hours and change the water as many times as needed. As I like the bitter-sweet fragrant taste I usually skip this phase.

4

Once cool, cut the oranges into thin slices.

5

Put the orange slices in a saucepan, add sugar, orange juice and water and let them boil until the syrup sets, about 25 min.

6

When it is ready, add the lemon juice, let it boil again for 1-2 min and our dessert is ready.

7

Fill the sterile jars with the dessert, close the lid tightly and place them upside down on a towel until they cool down. (This is called canning and helps preserve the sweets).

Ingredients

 2 kg oranges (wax free)
 1 kg sugar
 1 ½ cups freshly squeezed orange juice
 2 ½ cups water
 1 lemon, the juice only

Directions

1

Lightly grate the oranges and cut/remove the top and bottom edges.

2

Put them to boil, whole fruits, with plenty of water for 10 min. Empty the boiled water, put cold water back in the pot and repeat the process up to 4 times. We do this to clarify and sweeten them. As I like, light bitterness, I usually boil it only twice with clean water for 20 min each time. In total, the cooking time should be 40 min. If they are very thick, it is good to cook them for a total of 60 min.

3

Drain and set aside to cool or cool them with cold water. We try a piece of peel to check how bitter it is. If you still don’t like the result, leave it in cold water for 2-3 hours and change the water as many times as needed. As I like the bitter-sweet fragrant taste I usually skip this phase.

4

Once cool, cut the oranges into thin slices.

5

Put the orange slices in a saucepan, add sugar, orange juice and water and let them boil until the syrup sets, about 25 min.

6

When it is ready, add the lemon juice, let it boil again for 1-2 min and our dessert is ready.

7

Fill the sterile jars with the dessert, close the lid tightly and place them upside down on a towel until they cool down. (This is called canning and helps preserve the sweets).

Sliced Orange Gluten Free Dessert – Greek Traditional Fruit Sweet with Syrup – Spoon Sweet
  • In sweets with citrus fruits, as they have a very intense taste and aroma, I do not put any other aromatic substances such as vanilla, cinnamon, anise etc. But if you like you can add a vanilla stick or any other flavouring you want.
  • Sweet orange is very tasty and apart from eating it like this you can also use it elsewhere. For example, cut it into pieces and add it to semolina halva, cakes, ice creams and more.

Good Luck and Bon Appétit!!!

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