SUCKET

Most holiday bread recipes include candied orange (and lemon) peel so today's entry is dedicated to this lovely sweet treat.

The idea of candying fruit dates back to the 14th century when sugar in Europe was basically a luxury.  At the same time, oranges & lemons were categorized as tropical fruits and this categorization was not to be abandoned for the next four hundred years. Willem Kalf (1619-1693), a Dutch painter often remembered as 'the Vermeer of still life', was nearly obssessed with them. He was born into a rich family of Rotterdam, studied in Paris, worked in Italy, and finally returned to Holland. Some time after marrying a cultivated woman, he moved to Amsterdam, where he not only painted also dealt in works of art. His still lifes were greatly admired for the precision of the details. I would also note that, even though his colleagues favored apples, peaches, and grapes (lots and lots of grapes), one piece of fruit, and certainly no more than four or five, were enough for Rembrandt's follower to create a powerful image. The photogenic yellow, of lemon skins especially, fascinated Kalf as much as the light on the surface of the plates, jugs & bottles that gleam on his masterly arranged still lifes as the pearl earring gleams in Vermeer's famous work. Another contrast that he put into effect was between the yellow of the lemon and the red of his expensive Persian carpet. Similarly to other Dutch examples of the genre in those days, Kalf's compositions underlined the transience of life although 'vanitas' usually involved the painting of skulls. All the more since he deliberately chose objects from gold, crystal, porcelain, silk, and fine wool -precious materials imported from the East, where orange and lemon trees were also cultivated. Incidentally, and despite his personal wealth & status, 'the Vermeer of still life' also liked to paint the interior of kitchens.

 

Dessert by Willem Kalf, 1653-1654

 

Still Life with Jug and Fruit - Willem Kalf (1656)

 

Still Life with a Nautilus Cup (Willem Kalf, 1662)

 

Still Life with Lemon Peel - Willem Kalf, 1664

Having conquered the hearts of western European artists with their beauty, 'tropical' fruits would also dominate the haute cuisine even before the term was used in France. Candied orange and lemon peel was served at festive dinners, either between two courses (and then you had 'entremets') or at the very end -in place of dessert. These and other sweetmeats were the highlight of medieval, Renaissance and Early Modern banquets. According to The English huswife, published in 1623, confections should appear on the festive menu in a specific order: marzipan - comfits - pastries - sweetmeats - preserved fruit - candied fruit - marmalade. For all of these sweet treats, Gervase Markham offered recipes. Marzipan, tarts, cakes, gingerbread, preserved quinces, and 'sucket' had each their own chapter in The English Hvswife, with detailed instructions as to preparation. From the context, we understand that sucket (obsolete term for 'sweetmeat') was just another word for 'candied fruit'. The recipe for making sucket, or candying, in Gervase Markham's words, is featured on page 124:

"To make Sucket.

Take Curds, the parings of Lemons, of Oranges, or Pouncithrons, or indeed any halfe-ripe greene fruit, and boyle them till they be tender in sweet Worte; then make a Sirrop in this sort: take three pound of suger and the whites of foure Eggs, and a gallon of Water; then swinge and beat the water and the Eggs together, and then put in your Suger, and set it on the fier, and let it haue an easie fier, and so let it boyle sixe or seuen walmes, and then straine it thorow a cloth, and let it seeth againe till it fall from the spoone, and then put it into the rinds or fruits."

 

 

SUCKET or HOW TO CANDY ORANGE PEEL

I have candied orange peel for years using tips from allrecipes.com and The Preserving Book. When I read The English Hvswife, I made a batch after Gervase Markham's recipe (divided by eight) and found that both ways result in the same confection.

 

VERSION 1 (adapted from modern recipes)

I n g r e d i e n t s

275g orange skin

200g caster sugar

240ml water

M e t h o d

1. Blanch the quartered orange skin in plenty of water. You don't need to remove the white part, just quarter the exterior and detach from the orange. Do that 7-8 times, each time changing the water. 2. Strain the fruit, and use the curved part of a knife to scoop out the white part. Cut each quarter into stripes. 3. Place the sugar and water into the cookpot, mix and heat until the sugar is dissolved. 4. Add the orange peel and simmer until the liquid is absorbed. 5. Place on a dish or tray, and leave to dry for several hours. Roll each piece of candied fruit in a bowl of granulated sugar, if liked.

VERSION 2 (adapted from The English Hvswife)

I n g r e d i e n t s

275g orange skin

125g caster sugar

375ml water

1/2 egg white

M e t h o d

Whisk the sugar, egg white and water together. Simmer until the ingredients are well combined, stirring from time to time. (No whisking in the cookpot.) Strain and continue with steps 1, 2, 4 and 5 from version 1. 

  

N o t e

Candy lemon peel in the same way, or any kind of bitter fruit skin. To candy sweet fruit, omit the blanching part.