Canned Mandarin Oranges

I am growing five different kinds of oranges trees. Eventually I know I will have an abundance, and I don’t want to give them all away. So last night I was thinking about how I might make use of all of the fruits of my labor and thought I would try a little experiment and can four mandarins that I had. I always loved those canned mandarins!

First get a pot that will sanitize a wide-mouth 16-ounce glass jar. Fill the pot with water, and put the jar and it’s lid in the water and boil it for about ten minutes. Peel four mandarins and separate their sections, and put them into the jar.

Next in a small saucepan put one cup of water and a half cup of sugar and bring it to a boil, then turn off the heat and pour it over the orange sections, to just about a half-inch before the top.

Screw on the sanitized lid and put the jar of oranges in the pot of water, making sure the water is just to the bottom of the lid. Boil the oranges for about 30 minutes. I tried these today and they had that canned mandarin flavor, but more of a fresh orange texture. They are delicious! I think next time I may up the sugar a little bit though. What I also like about this idea is that the orange flavored syrup will be great for sweetening my teas. This was so fast to do, that I think I am going to try a different orange next cut up instead of the section and see how those turn out. I will be sure to report back with my successes!

“Fructose limits insulin secretion, but intensifies metabolism, burning calories faster.” -Ray Peat