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Dried orange slices are a delicious and healthy treat that is simple to make, and absolutely gorgeous. Budget-friendly, vegan, and paleo, these chocolate oranges make a great edible gift for neighbors, friends, family, and holiday parties! Beautiful, delicious, and easy to make!
What Makes This Recipe Great
I’ve tried dark chocolate-covered oranges a few times in my life, and I love their sweet candied taste and chewy texture. When I went to buy them pre-made, I couldn’t believe how pricey they are! Especially during the holidays, specialty items can be so expensive.
So I set out to make my own dried orange slices, and honestly, it was a lot easier than I thought and SUPER tasty!
The process of making these treats is actually quite simple. You dry out the oranges by baking them low and slow, and then dip each slice in melted dark chocolate. Sprinkled with sea salt, the resulting chocolate oranges are as beautiful as they are delicious!
Watch a Short Video of This Recipe
Ingredient Notes
If you don’t count salt, there are only 4 simple ingredients in these chocolate-covered dried orange slices. And only 3 if you decide not to dip them in chocolate. There’s no excuse not to make them!
- Oranges: You can use any variety of oranges for these dried orange slices. If you’d like an array of colors, you can use blood oranges too!
- Coconut Sugar: I think chocolate oranges taste amazing with coconut sugar, but you can use any granulated sugar.
- Cinnamon
- Chocolate Chips: For extra rich and dark chocolate chips, I love these unsweetened dark chocolate chips. They are paleo and vegan too!
- Flaky Sea Salt: I love this brand of flaky sea salt. Always tastes amazing and looks gorgeous on baked goods! You can omit this if you prefer them without salt.
Step-by-Step Instructions
How to Dry Orange Slices
It’s actually really easy to make your own dried fruit in the oven. Follow these steps to make the dried orange slices.
- Preheat the oven to 200 degrees F, and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Using a sharp knife or a mandolin, slice the oranges into very thin slices. Place them on the baking sheet in a single layer.
- Stir together coconut sugar and cinnamon in a bowl.
- Sprinkle the tops of the orange slices with the cinnamon sugar mixture, concentrating on the rinds.
- Bake for 2½-3 hours until the oranges slices are dried. Remove from the oven and cool completely.
Orange Slices Dipped In Chocolate
- While the orange slices are cooling, melt the chocolate chips until smooth in a double boiler or microwave.
- Dip half of the dried orange slices into the melted chocolate. Place the chocolate-covered orange slices back on the parchment paper to cool.
- Once the chocolate has cooled for 7 minutes, sprinkle flaky sea salt on top, then cool until the chocolate is completely set.
- Store in an airtight container at room temperature or in the fridge.
Tips & Tricks
Gifting: Wrap your chocolate-covered oranges in cellophane or a festive tin and give them to neighbors and friends with the recipe attached or with a sweet note. These are vegan, dairy-free, gluten-free, and paleo so they really are the perfect gift!
Storage: Since there’s no moisture left, these should last up to a year if properly dehydrated in the oven. If they are not fully dried out, keep them stored in an airtight container in the fridge and eat them within a month.
More Ways To Use Dried Orange Slices
If you want to skip the chocolate, use your dried oranges to:
- Garnish cocktails.
- Use as decoration for serving platters.
- Serve on a charcuterie platter or cheeseboard.
- Add to mulled wine or festive sangria.
- Decorate baked goods.
Recipe FAQs
They have a very concentrated orange citrus fruit flavor. Because most of the moisture has been drawn out, the texture is chewy and delicious. They are lightly sweetened with sugar, which brings out the flavor of the orange even more.
Yes, but dehydrating them takes longer. Here’s how to make dried orange slices in a dehydrator instead of the oven.
1. Set the temperature to 135 degrees F, and arrange the orange slices on the tray.
2. Dehydrate for 5-7 hours, checking every 30 minutes after 3 hours.
Yes! Normally orange peels are quite bitter, but when candied, they actually have a delicious taste and texture.
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Video
Ingredients
- 2 oranges
- 2-3 tbsp coconut sugar
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 2/3 cup dark chocolate chips
- Flaky sea salt, for garnish
Instructions
Dried Orange Slices
- Preheat oven to 200 degrees F, and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Using a sharp knife or a mandolin, slice the oranges into 1/4 inch slices. Place them in a single layer on the parchment line baking sheet.
- Combine coconut sugar and cinnamon in a bowl and stir together.
- Sprinkle the top of each orange slice with the cinnamon sugar mixture, concentrating on the rinds (they can get better once they dry).
- Bake for 2½-3 hours until the oranges slices are dried and darker in color. Remove from the oven and cool completely.
Chocolate Dip Option
- While the dried orange slices are cooling, use a double boiler or microwave to melt the chocolate chips until smooth.
- Dip half of the orange slices into the melted chocolate, and place the slices back on the parchment paper.
- Once the chocolate has cooled for 7 minutes, sprinkle flaky sea salt on top, then cool until the chocolate is completely set.
- Store in an airtight container at room temperature or in the fridge.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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