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Of all the typical Christmas sweets, without a doubt the Roscón de Reyes is one of the most delicious and, although the tradition says that it should be eaten on the night of January 5 and on Three Kings’ Day, January 6, each time more people eat the Roscón during all the Christmas parties and even after they are over. Along with its filling, the candied fruit in the Roscón is one of its main attractions.
Although it is a very typical dessert of Spanish culture, it is also eaten in France, Portugal and in some Latin American countries, especially in Mexico. This Christmas bun, especially known for its candied fruit, is liked by adults and children alike because, in addition, it hides surprises inside for diners, some more pleasant than others.
Candied fruit in the Roscón de Reyes
The first notion of the Roscón de Reyes in history was in the 2nd century BC when the Romans celebrated a festival dedicated to Saturn in mid-December (they were called Saturnalia). The beginning of the days with more natural light and the end of the dark days after the winter solstice were celebrated. Even the slaves had permission to celebrate these parties and the typical delicacy that was eaten were cakes with ingredients such as honey, dates or figs, among others.
Currently there are Roscones de Reyes for all tastes, especially in the filling, since you can find them filled with whipped cream, truffle, cream, chocolate or even without filling. However, the ingredient that can never be missing is the candied fruit in the Roscón. Not only because of the flavor that it brings to the bun, but also because of its color, since the candied fruits that it includes have intense colors such as red, green and orange that give it the Christmas touch that we all look for at these parties and it also presents a much more appetizing appearance.
Not only candied fruit is used in the Roscón de Reyes, it can also be crystallized fruit, the only difference is that after the candied process, the fruit is bathed in icing sugar, which gives it an appearance like “frost”, as if the fruits have small crystals, that’s why it is called crystallized fruit.
Although there are people who do not like the candied fruit in the Roscón and prefer to remove it from its piece, others consider it irreplaceable and the pastry chefs always bet on its presence in the roscones despite their detractors.
The candied fruit is placed on top of the Roscón when the bun is still raw, which is why it adheres perfectly and once it is removed from the oven, they are integrated into the surface of it. Between 5 and 7 pieces of fruit are usually placed, depending on the size of the Roscón. The red pieces are usually watermelon or cherry, the green ones are melon or pear, and the orange ones can be pumpkin pieces or orange slices.
Additionally, some roscones may be decorated with whole candied cherries. It must also be said that the pieces of fruit are dyed with edible dyes so that their colors are more intense.
That striking color is applied to the fruits because, according to tradition, they represent the precious stones that the Three Kings had on their clothes when they went to the Bethlehem portal to adore the newborn child.
The candied fruit preferred by professionals
Pastry chefs often buy wholesale candied fruit to make hundreds of roscones in their establishments and when choosing one brand or another, apart from quality, there are other very important factors such as the variety of the assortment and the different formats and packaging to suit your needs.
At Lazaya we have a wide variety of candied fruits for professionals with which they can make not only the classic Roscón de Reyes, but they can also innovate and create new roscones, for example, with candied cherries, maraschino cherries or liquor cherries , since they have the intense red that this type of dessert demands.
In addition, you could also use candied orange or lemon strips, noble fruit pieces (pumpkin, orange, melon, apple, peach, apricot, pineapple, fig, tangerine, pear or plum), fruit in portions (orange, apple, pear, peach or pumpkin) and, for the little ones, the Roscón can be decorated on top with fruit cubes, as if they were peach, apple, pear or pumpkin jelly beans, lemon or orange.
Of course, we also have candied Christmas Fruits with natural coloring, with whole or halved cherries and half or whole orange discs that can be used not only in the traditional Roscón de Reyes, but also in the preparation of other Christmas desserts and to add more color and flavor to biscuits, tarts or cakes.
Contact us for any questions or to tell us exactly what you need for your pastry creations. Our specialists will provide you with all the candied fruit you need so that your customers leave your establishment with a smile on their face.
