Italian Caramelized Oranges

Prep: 20 min., Cook: 15 min., Chill: 8 hrs. This recipe comes from Crescent Dragonwagon's book, Passionate Vegetarian (Workman Publishing, $24.95). Serve over low-fat ice cream with chocolate biscotti for a refreshing finale.

Yield: Makes 6 servings

Ingredients

• 6  small oranges
• 1  cup  sugar
• 1/4  cup  water
• 1  tablespoon  corn syrup
• 1/4  cup  fresh orange juice
• 1  teaspoon  fresh lemon juice
• 1  tablespoon  orange liqueur

Preparation

Grate oranges to equal 2 teaspoons grated rind; set rind aside.

Peel oranges. Remove and discard white pith; separate into sections. Place orange sections in a heatproof serving bowl; set aside.

Cook sugar, 1/4 cup water, and corn syrup in a heavy saucepan over medium heat, stirring often until sugar dissolves.

Increase heat to medium high, and bring mixture to a boil. Boil, without stirring, 8 to 12 minutes or until syrup is a pale golden-amber color. Carefully stir in orange juice, lemon juice, and orange rind. (Mixture will harden.) Cook, stirring constantly, 3 minutes or until mixture returns to liquid consistency.

Remove from heat, and immediately pour hot syrup over orange sections. Let cool to room temperature. Stir in liqueur. Cover and chill 8 hours. Gently stir oranges before serving.

Nutritional Information

Calories:

212 (1% from fat)

Fat:

0.4g (sat 0.1g,mono 0.1g,poly 0.1g)

Protein:

1.4g

Carbohydrate:

53g

Fiber:

3.1g

Cholesterol:

0.0mg

Iron:

0.2mg

Sodium:

5mg

Calcium:

51mg