Cider Beetles - cooking recipe

Ingredients

6 oranges
2 1/4 cups firmly packed brown sugar
12 (1 1/2 inch) cinnamon sticks
12 small whole whole nutmegs
24 large whole allspice
96 whole cloves

Preparation

Adult Portion:
Slices oranges in half and scoop out pulp without breaking the orange rind. Reserve pulp for another use or discard.
Place orange halves cut side up (like a bowl) on a wire rack on a baking sheet. Bake at 250F for 2 hours until dry and hard. Let Cool.
Kid Portion:
Pack brown sugar firmly into each orange half, mounding slightly.
Arrange spices in the brown sugar to resemble beetles: use a cinnamon stick as the body, a nutmeg as the head, 2 allspice for the eyes (on each side of the head), and 6-8 cloves for the legs/feet.
Cover tightly with plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator (I keep mine sealed in plastic and in the cupboard).
Directions for use:
Unwrap the beetle and drop into 1 1/2 quarts apple juice or cider. Simmer 30 minutes. Strain whole spices and orange rind from cider to serve. May add 1/2 cup of Brandy, and heat well. Store leftover cider in the refrigerator.