Candied pumpkin is an easy-to-make homemade sweet treat also known as “dry jam”. And really, this dish is candied fruit and vegetables presented in dry form. In addition to oranges and apples, vegetables – pumpkins and others can be used to make the candied fruit. Pumpkin is probably the best material in this respect: bright orange in colour, with a dense, naturally salty flesh. Cooked in syrup, the pumpkin becomes like an exotic fruit. And if you add citrus juices and spices to the syrup, the pumpkin ceases to be a vegetable at all, its flavour becomes unrecognisably sweet, bright and rich.

What are the benefits and health benefits of candied pumpkin? Although high in added sugars, the dish retains plant fibre and live vitamins important for digestion after cooking. Candied pumpkin is rich in iron and carotene and provides our body with pectin, which cleans the blood vessels and is involved in blood production. Of course, candied fruit is not a competitor to fresh fruit, but rather an addition to a healthy diet, as it is much healthier to snack on it than chocolate or sweets. However, you should not overeat candied fruit: 50 grams a day is a healthy amount.

Candied Pumpkin recipe

To make candied pumpkin you will need the following ingredients:

• Pumpkin – about 2-3 kg,

• Sugar – approx. 1 kg,

• Cinnamon – to taste, or 1 stick,

• Orange - 1 piece,

• Caster sugar – 10-30 g.

1. Peel the pumpkin, remove the seeds and cut into cubes of approximately 2 cm square.

2. Place the pumpkin cubes in an empty saucepan without water and cover with sugar. Leave overnight to allow the pumpkin to release its juices, which will turn into syrup when mixed with the sugar.

3. When the sugar has dissolved and the syrup has separated, strain the liquid into a separate container. Place the syrup on the fire. When the syrup comes to the boil, reduce the heat to medium and cook for a further 5 minutes.

4. Peel off the top orange layer of the orange peel (without the lighter layer of peel below the orange). It is preferable to pour boiling water over the peel before grating to remove the bitterness. Add the grated orange peel to the container with the pumpkin syrup. Squeeze the juice from the orange and add a cinnamon stick. Stir everything into the hot syrup. Some people use vanilla sugar instead of cinnamon, lemon or grated ginger instead of orange. The citric acid makes the candied fruit retain its colour better and is more transparent. And the orange juice will give them a special flavour.

5. While the syrup and the additives mixed in it are still hot, you will need to pour it over the pumpkin cubes in the pot. Leave the pumpkin cubes in the saucepan for 12-24 hours.

6. After the specified time has elapsed, place the cubes with the syrup in a saucepan over a medium heat and cook for 5 minutes. It is important that the cubes remain firm during this time so that they do not soften from cooking. Then turn off the heat and leave at room temperature for 3-4 hours until the syrup has cooled. Drain the cooled syrup into a separate container.

7. Take a frying pan or baking tray. Line the bottom with parchment or similar baking paper. Place the pumpkin cubes on the paper (the cubes can be sprayed with unscented vegetable oil before drying; this will prevent them from sticking to the pan or baking tray and will make them shinier).

8. Place the cubes in the pan in the oven and dry them in the oven at 50-80 degrees Celsius on convection mode for 3-6 hours. You can do without convection, but do not close the oven door all the way during drying. The longer the drying time, the harder the candied fruit will be. Some people dry without an oven, just at room temperature for 3 days in a dark place, turning occasionally.

After drying, sprinkle the icing sugar over the prepared pumpkin candies. This will prevent the candied pumpkin from sticking together during storage in the jar.

If the candied beans are not dried completely, they will spoil more quickly during storage. However, it is not necessary to overdry them to the state of shriveled crisps. Ideal candied candied peppers do not release moisture, but shrink with the pressure of your fingers.

How to store candied pumpkin

It is best to store the candied pumpkin in a tightly sealed glass container. It is true that you should not put them in the jar straight away, but feel free to put them in after 2 days by layering them with baking paper. They will keep for at least a year if the children don't eat them secretly before then.