Lemon Marmalade

     
I love Marmalade well let's get honest I love love love Lemons. Any way I can incorporate them into a preserve and get that tart taste well.... Yes!

I tried something new I put a couple of vanilla pods into the brew while cooking down the marmalade. It turned out scrumptious.




Ingredients

4 cups lemon pulp (Meyer is best)
2 lemons sliced thin about a cup
1 cup thinly sliced lemon peel (rinds)(just peel)
¼ tsp baking soda
2 cup of lemon juice (fresh squeezed its best but bottled will do)
2 cups of water 

2 vanilla pods sliced down the middle
3 to 4 cups of sugar again to taste I like 3 but I like tart
*******gel point of 223 degreez

So thinly slice your 2 lemons skin,rinds and all. It comes to about a cup or so give or take. Now take the slices and cut them into quarters. Put the slices in 1 cup of the water and 1 cup of the lemon juice add the baking soda and put it in the pot bring it to a boil . Now turn  it down and let it simmer on low for oh 20 minutes this tenderizes the lemon. Do not worry the baking soda does no affect the taste of the end product.

In the meantime cube up your lemons and this is without the peel cut enough to have 4 cups. Also cut your cup of lemon peels. Use the peels from the citrus you are sectioning right now. This is time consuming but you need the variety of pulp, peels and sections to make a truly good marmalade. 

Here is a link on how to separate the citrus for easy cutting.  but like all my tips you make it the consistency you like after all its your jam. 


Add the cooked peel from earlier (add the whole pot liquid included), 1 cup of water, 1 cup of lemon juice, the peels from the cubed citrus and the 4 cups of fruit  Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat and boil gently for about a half hour stirring occasionally. 

In the same pot, continue with  fruit mixture at the medium-high heat. Add in the vanilla bean and 4 cups of sugar (one at a time mixing it in completely) gradually, maintaining the boil. A boil you can not stir down. Stirring constantly, until the mixture reaches the gel stage. This is a temperature of 223 degrees. 

Let the marmalade cool for a few minutes. It should get a top like when coco cools and it gets that thin cover. This is another way you can see it has a set.

Then, skim off the foam if any and ladle the hot marmalade into the warm jars, leaving 1/4" headspace. Process 10 minutes and then remove the canner lid. Wait 5 minutes longer before removing the jars. Let the marmalade cool for at least 8 hours then remove the twist portion of the lid and wash your jars. Store your jars without the twist in a cool dry cupboard. Makes four 8-ounce jars.

Disclaimer: This is not an all inclusive recipe for making jam. You should have a basic knowledge and understanding of the canning process before proceeding. Please consult your local Center for Home Preservation for additional information and available classes.

Lemon Marmalade

Lemon Marmalade a less understood Jam as

we say. None the less a Marmalade that is so delicious that it puts most others to shame when cooked to perfection.

I was lucky to have taken a class up in Oaktown with a Marmalade Hero June Taylor at her shop The Still Room 


I have a friend who is from London and said that my marmalade is  as close to the taste of home as she has ever tasted in America. Lemon Marmalade can not be made willy nilly. It takes great lemon and time. I am blessed with a fabulous Meyer Lemon tree at home as well as at my Mama's and the one Mama has in the desert is supreme. Alright let get canning. 

Do not rush the process make sure you are in the mood. Enjoy the process. It is magic! This posts is full of tips and trick for perfect marmalade so please canner take note of all the recipe not just the ingredient's.

Lemon Marmalade (tart)

4 cups lemon pulp
2 lemons sliced thin 1 cup
1 cup thinly sliced lemon peel (not rinds)(just peel)
¼ tsp baking soda
2 cup of lemon juice
(fresh squeezed its best but bottled will do)
1 cup of water
5 cups of sugar again to taste I like 4 but I like tart

Gel to the gel point of 223 degreez for no pectin 



The first step to do is get the rind cut this is the only way to do marmalade if you do not it does not have that little bit of tangy that real marmalade peeps love!



Thinly slice 2 lemons. The rinds retain their pulp. It comes to about a cup or so give or take.





 
This step is important do not skip this step.

Now take the slices and cut them into quarters. Put the slices in 1 cup of the water and 1 cup of the lemon juice add the 1/8 tsp of baking soda and put it in a small pot bring it to a boil. Turn it down and let it simmer on low for 20 minutes this tenderizes the rind's.

Here is a link for sectioning your citrus. There is a trick and it makes this job much easier.I will section many a citrus to freeze for marmalade's and the like through out the year.

In the mean time cube up your lemons and this is without the peel cut enough to have 4 cups of lemon chunk's but like all my tips you make it the consistency you like after all its your jam.

Just do not change the measurements.





Once the slices have simmered add the rest of the liquid and the chunk's and the pectin




Bring this to a rapid boil it will begin to get a foam. 5 to 7 minutes stirring all the time this is when a friend or husband saying


“Oh my gosh that smells so good”








Next step is to add the sugar slowly (Have your sugar measured out and ready) and make sure that your sugar is dissolved completely. Stir it over a gentle heat do not raise the heat to a boil until you are sure the sugar is dissolved. 



Once it has returned to a rolling boil just to gel point that should be 223 on a thermometer. When it is at it's roiling boil disturb it as little as possible.

Do not let the bag fool you I am using the seeds and pith for natural pectin.





When you are checking to see if your marmalade is set turn the boil down you do not want to over cook it if you do you will have a dark, dry and rubbery marmalade.
 


Let your marmalade cool slightly this way when you jar it up it will make sure the peels and guts get distributed evenly through out your delicious marmalade. Ladle into jars leaving a 1/4" head space, wipe the rims, cap and water bath time.

Give them a bath 15 minutes is my standard time

This is a super one recipe.  You do not need to add boxed pectin, let me explain if you bring your marmalade up to a rolling boil with a candy thermometer to 223 you will get it to the right gel point but this takes practice.



Disclaimer: This is not an all inclusive recipe for making jam. You should have a basic knowledge and understanding of the canning process before proceeding. Please consult your local Center for Home Preservation for additional information and available classes.