Thursday, September 04, 2014

Marmalade: small quantity, big flavour




I recently was given some oranges, lemons and limes. It was a no brainer that I would then turn them into marmalade. My last jar was just about to run out and it was perfect timing. It was just meant to be.

I thought I'd share this recipe that I came up with because I'm definitely no expert in jam making but this wee combo works well for me every time. It's super easy and quick and makes enough for one decent sized jar. Great if you love marmalade but don't want your shelves stacked with the stuff. Plus it saves you heaps of faffing around. Definite bonus.

This recipe makes approximately enough to fill one 700g jar (or two 350g jars). It's adaptable too, you can alter the types of citrus, or add other ingredients like fresh ginger (I love this and definitely recommend it!). You don't even have to use the brown sugar if you don't have it handy; you can switch it out for white, but I reckon it's worth it as it gives a richer colour and extra taste. Anyway enough rambling, on to the recipe...

NO FUSS MARMALADE


Ingredients:

500g of whole citrus fruits, (I generally like to use 2 oranges and a lemon and/or  lime)
125g brown sugar
375g white sugar
option: can also add grated fresh ginger, about 25g

Method:

Grab your fruits and wash the skins well. Next you need to decide how chunky you want your marmalade and chop the rind up to suit. You can either take the quick way and use a food processor to blitz them up, or you can cut by hand or grate them. Key is you want to get the rinds as small as you would be comfortable eating. Either way just make sure you don't have any giant pieces of rind or fruit. For the marmalade in the picture I chopped by hand, but it's way simpler just to wizz in blender and works well too. If using ginger just grate it up and add with the fruits.

Next, add all the chopped fruits and rinds to a pot along with the sugars. Cook on a low heat for about 5 minutes until the sugar has melted then bring it to the bring it to a boil and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Take it off the heat and set it aside for 5 minutes then stir it and pour into a clean jar.

Keep it in the fridge, stays good for up to 6 months or so.

Hint: Remove any seeds as you come across them, they'll often float to the surface during cooking.