When Caitlin is out of town, I find myself thinking of fun things to make for her, to welcome her back. These are, more often than not, sweets. This time, I wanted to do something different.
Early in our relationship, I had flown up to Washington, D.C. to spend the July 4th holiday with Caitlin. We had gone to the National Mall for the concert, featuring Barry Manilow, Aretha Franklin, and a host of other performers. We had gone to a Nationals game and walked around the shops of Georgetown. We had dinner in the city and then headed back to Silver Spring. After the holiday was over, I accompanied Caitlin as we drove her car from Silver Spring back to Saint Louis.
As we made our way through the mountains of West Virginia, I noticed that Caitlin kept snacking on something. Never one to turn down a snack, I inquired. And that’s when I learned about candied ginger. I might have used ginger at some point while cooking, but it was certainly sparingly and probably with some trepidation. After that car ride, I had a new appreciation for ginger.
Now, whenever I’m in the grocery store, I regularly pick up fresh and candied ginger. I’ve used ginger in my chai concentrate and gingerbread pancakes. It’s been featured in a pumpkin-ginger soufflé and lemon ice. It plays a prominent role in our pumpkin roulade – which became our go-to dessert this Fall.
Given Caitlin’s love of candied ginger, I decided to make my own batch.
HOMEMADE CANDIED GINGER
PREP TIME: 20 minutes
COOK TIME: 1 hour
YIELD: 2 cups of candied ginger
WHAT TO GRAB:
4 to 6 roots of fresh ginger (pick the roots with the fewest knots)
2 cups sugar
3 cups water
HOW YOU DO IT:
1. Cut the knots off of the ginger. Using the back of the knife, peel the ginger. Slice the ginger into thin disks.
2. Bring a medium pot of water to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer, and simmer the ginger for 10 minutes. Discard the water and rinse the ginger under cold water.
3. Place three cups of water and two cups of sugar in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil to dissolve the sugar. Add the ginger to the sugar water and simmer on low heat for 60 to 90 minutes. Remove the ginger from the heat and strain. *Reserve the ginger syrup to make ginger beer.
4. Pour a cup of sugar in a bowl. Once the ginger has cooled, toss the ginger pieces into the sugar, and then lay on a wire rack to dry. Let them dry for about four hours in a cool, dry place. If you notice that the ginger is seeping sugar, bake at 250 degrees for 10 minutes. Serve once completely dry and cooled!
Daily Dose of Fresh
Sounds great.
Anazar
Yummy!!
Caitlin
Excited to try this, excited to bid farewell to Switzerland, and VERY excited to see you and Mr. B!!
Charles
We are equally excited to have you back!
Rachael K.
I made this for my Mother In Law for her birthday and she loved it. Ginger is her favorite.