Oranges in Cointreau – Keep on Hand for the Holidays

Keep Oranges in Cointreau on hand during the high-pressure holidays to help preserve your sanity and reputation for delicious desserts when friends and family casually drop in—with or without notice! Oranges in Cointreau takes only 20 minutes to prepare and can be kept in the fridge through November and December (if it lasts that long!).

Spooned over vanilla ice cream, Oranges in Cointreau is a delicious Creamsicle-like delight for grown ups.  It is quickly assembled with fresh oranges in a syrup made of sugar, lemon juice and Cointreau. I picked up this wonderful recipe from Scottish Chef Katie Stewart’s The Times Calendar Cookbook published in 1975, which is filled with great recipes for every month of the year.

The syrup that you create in Oranges in Cointreau can also be used in my Apple Galette recipe, which adds a zesty orange flavor to apple pie and a lovely, sticky, caramel base in the galette.

I have made a couple of minor changes to Katie Stewart’s recipe for Oranges in Cointreau to shorten it and to remove not just the outer skin but also the pith of the oranges. I have suggested slicing the oranges crosswise, instead of preserving the fruit whole in the syrup as in her original recipe. I think you might agree that the sliced wheels of sunny oranges look great and are easy to lift onto the spoon with ice cream.

Oranges in Cointreau

Serves 6

• 6 oranges
• 6 oz. cane sugar
• 4 oz. water
• juice of 1/2 a lemon
• 1 to 2 tablespoons Cointreau

Wash the oranges thoroughly in warm, slightly soapy water then rinse thoroughly in cool water. Cut off the top and bottom of each orange and remove the outer skin being careful to remove the outer peel and the pith–the thin inner skin–so that the orange flesh is revealed as shown below.

Slice the oranges in cross sections and place in glass storage jar. I had 2 oranges and many mandarin oranges so I used both in this recipe.

Measure the sugar and water into a saucepan. Stir over a low heat until the sugar has dissolved. Bring to the boil and simmer for 2 to 3 minutes. Draw off the heat and add the lemon juice and allow to cool for five minutes. Add the Cointreau and pour the hot syrup over the sliced fruit in the glass jar. Cool then chill in the refrigerator until you are ready to use it. Enjoy!