How to Make Marmalade

Val Harrison Making Marmalade

Marmalade making is very similar to jam making but the rind needs much longer cooking so more water is required. The fruit is simmered until the rind is soft and the volume of liquid has reduced by about half. Jelly marmalades are made in the same way but are strained through a jelly bag after the fruit has been cooked and strips of rind are then added.

Any citrus fruit can be used for making marmalade. Bitter or sweet oranges, lemons, grapefruit, tangerines, satsumas and ugli fruit, on their own or in various combinations. Flavourings such as ginger, whisky, rum, brandy, treacle and apricots can be added but the citrus flavour must predominate.
The same equipment is required for making marmalade that is used for jams and jellies with the addition of a good sharp knife and a juice extractor.

Pectin

The pectin in citrus fruit is contained in the white pith and pips. Extra acid is often added to ensure a good set as only about 1 lb (450 g) of fruit is used to make 3 lbs (1.4 kg) of marmalade.

Preparation of Fruit

1. Wash and dry the fruit. Cut in half and squeeze out the juice. Remove the pips, inside skin and pith. Tie these in a piece of muslin.
2. Cut the peel finely or coarsely, according to preference.
3. Put the peel in a large bowl with the bag of pips etc and the juice. Add 3 pints (1½ litres) of water to each 1 lb (450 g) of fruit and leave to soak overnight. If jelly marmalade is to be made, tie about one-third of the shredded peel in a piece of muslin and soak with the rest of the peel.

General Method for Making Thick Marmalade

1. Weigh the preserving pan and make a note of it. Put the soaked peel, pith and pips into it with the water and juice.
2. Bring to the boil and simmer gently until the peel is soft and the contents of the pan have been reduced to half its original bulk. This will take 1½ - 2 hours.
3. Lift out the bag of pips and pith, squeezing it again the side of the pan with a wooden spoon.
4. Test for pectin by taking 1 teaspoonful of juice from the pan, let it cool and then add 3 teaspoonful of methylated spirit. If a large clot forms, the pectin is adequate to obtain a good set. If the clot is poor or thready, add the juice of two lemons to each 2 lbs (900 g) fruit used and continue simmering the fruit until a good pectin clot is obtained.
5. Take the pan off the heat and re-weigh it. Subtract from this weight the original weight of the empty pan top calculate the weight of the pulp remaining in the pan. Then add 1 lb (450 g) warmed sugar to each 1 lb (450 g) pulp (use 1 ½ lb (675 g) to 1 lb pulp for lemon marmalade). Stir the sugar and pulp together until all the sugar has dissolved. Return the pan to the heat.
6. Bring to the boil and boil rapidly for 15 – 35 minutes until the marmalade sets when tested. To test for setting – put a little marmalade on to a cold plate, cool, and if the marmalade wrinkles when touched with the finger it is cooked sufficiently and will set. Always draw the pan away from the heat when testing for “set”, otherwise the marmalade may over cook.
7. Add a knob of butter or a few drops of glycerine and stir in to reduce the amount of scum and then skim off using a perforated spoon. Do this a soon as possible after setting point has been reached as, if left much longer, the scum tends to cling to the pieces of peel.
8. Leave the marmalade to cool slightly so that the peel will not rise to the top of the jar.
9. Pour the marmalade into clean, dry, hot sterilized jars.
10. Put a circle of waxed paper, waxed side down on the top of the marmalade.
11. Wipe the jars clean.
12. Cover with lids or cellophane covers whilst the marmalade is still hot.
13. Leave to cool and when quite cold label, giving the type of marmalade and date when it was made.
14. Store in a cool, dry, dry place.

General Method for Making Jelly Marmalade

1. Prepare and soak the fruit as for thick marmalade. Put the soaked peel, pips and pith into a pan with the water and juice in which they were soaked.
2. Bring to the boil and simmer gently until the peel is soft and the contents of the pan have been reduced to half its bulk. This will take 1 ½ - 2 hours. Remove the bag of shredded peel after it has cooked for 1¼ hours to that it does not over cook. Rinse it in cold water and set aside.
3. Test for pectin.
4. Turn the contents of preserving pan into a jelly bag and leave to strain overnight.
5. Measure the juice and heat it in a pan. Add 1 lb warmed sugar (1 ½ lb for lemon jelly marmalade) to each pint of juice, stir until all the sugar has dissolved. Add the shredded peel.
6. Bring to the boil and boil rapidly until the marmalade sets when tested.
7. Remove the scum and let the marmalade cool a little so that the peel does not rise to the top of the jelly.
8. Pour into clean, dry, hot sterilized jars.
9. Wipe the jars clean and cover with lids or cellophane covers whilst still hot.
10. Leave to cover and, when cold, label giving the type of marmalade and date on which it was made.
11. Store in a cool, dry place.

Excellent Post by: allotment.org.uk


http://www.allotment.org.uk/recipes/making-jam/marmalade

Tripe Citrus Marmalade

Marmalade Season is approaching..... Enter your homemade marmalade into the East Essex Smallholders Group competition.

Tripe Citrus Marmalade

 
Classic orange marmalade is augmented with grapefruit and sour lemons for a fabulous twist on a classic.
The importance is the total weight of fruit, but I recommend using only 1 or 2 lemons since they are a bit trickier to zest and section.
Many traditional marmalade recipes have you remove all the peel, boil it a time or two, and then separate the zest from the pith. I've tried that method. I find it messier, more complicated, and less flavorful than simply taking a bit of time to carefully zest the fruit, remove the pith, and then cut out peel- and membrane-free sections of oranges.

Prep Time: 1 hour

Cook Time: 45 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour, 45 minutes

Yield: 3 pints

Ingredients:

• 5 pounds ripe oranges, grapefruit, and lemons
• 6 cups sugar
• 3 pint jars with sealable lids

Preparation:

1. Wash and dry the fruit. Use a sharp vegetable peeler or paring knife, remove the brightly colored zest – and only the brightly colored zest – from the oranges. Be sure to leave behind any and all of the white pith directly underneath, it is very fruit. Chop the resulting zest – bigger pieces for chunkier marmalade, ribbon-like strips for a more spreadable result. Set zest aside.
2. Cut the ends off the zested fruit and then, working with one piece of fruit at a time, cut off the thick white pith from each. Working over a bowl to catch the juices, hold a fully peeled citrus fruit and use a sharp knife to cut out each section from the membrane holding the sections together. See How to Section Citrus for pictures if you've never done this before.
3. Squeeze any juice out of the membrane once you've cut out all the fruit. Set the membrane aside, along with any seeds – the pectin in these will help "set" the marmalade later.
4. Combine the zest, fruit, juice, 4 cups of water, and sugar in a large heavy pot and bring to a boil.
5. Meanwhile, lay a double layer of cheesecloth in a medium bowl and put membranes and seeds in the bowl. Lift up the corners and tie the cheesecloth into a bag to hold the membranes and seeds. Add this "pectin bag" to the pot.
6. While the mixture comes to a boil, put a canning kettle full of water on to boil if you're planning to can the marmalade. In any case, put a few small plates in the freezer to chill them. When canning kettle water boils, use it to sterilize the jars and lids.
7. Bring marmalade to 220°F and hold it there for 5 minutes. Be patient, this can take quite awhile. Put a dollop of the mixture on a chilled plate, swirl the plate to spread the mixture a bit, and drag your finger through the mixture. A "set" mixture will hold a clean track behind your finger.
8. Remove "pectin bag", squeezing any marmalade in it out and back into the pot before discarding the bag. Take marmalade off the heat and let sit 5 minutes. Set up clean jars next to the pot.
9. Stir marmalade to distribute the zest evenly in the mixture. Use a ladle to transfer the marmalade into the jars, leaving 1/2 inch of headspace at the top of each jar. Put lids on the jars.
10. If you're canning the marmalade, put the jars in the canning kettle and boil for 10 minutes. In any case, let jars cool to room temperature before putting in a cool dry cupboard (if you've hot water processed them) or the fridge (if you didn't hot water process).

Marmalade will keep a really long time. It is all sugar. Opened marmalade needs to be in the fridge, but unless you use a dirty spoon in the jar, it seems to last for approximately forever, although officially people say 6 to 12 months.

Fantastic Recipe from about.com 
http://localfoods.about.com/od/chutneysmarmalades/r/Triple-Citrus-Marmalade.htm

 

Harvest Festival - Members Meeting - 23 October 2012 - The Bell, Purleigh

The Bell at Purleigh
Tuesday 23 October 2012
7.30pm for 8pm

Directions to The Bell, Purleigh:

The Street  Purleigh, Essex CM3 6QJ01621 828 348

Join other members for a talk on growing produce - the farming year and the challenges it provides. ALSOA Bread making Competition PRIZE to be won for "The best all round loaf" A class for own recipe or made from a packet ! (please specify which you wish to enter when registering) We would kindly ask that all loaves entered are donated for the bread and cheese supper. Please register your entry to the competition with helenmquinnell@btinternet.com FOLLOWED BY The Bread and cheese supper  Suggested donation on the night of £1 If anyone has any wacky and wonderful homemade chutneys pickles they wish to bring along for everyone to try we would LOVE to taste them. AND FINALLY "Look what I grew" table If any member has any interestingly sized or shaped vegetable they grew on purpose or by mistake we would love to have a look at them! Bring them along and let us have a giggle! or if you have eaten them and only have a photo bring that instead. Please let Helen know if you are entering a 'loaf' for the Bread making competition or bringing anything else along - thanks!

Bacon Connoisseurs' Week - 19-25 March 2012

The sixth annual Bacon Connoisseurs’ Week takes place from 19-25 March 2012. Growing in success each year, media coverage in 2011 reached a new high of £5m!

The week has been established to communicate to consumers that ‘Not all Bacon is the same’. Under the theme ‘Red, White & Bacon’ Awards one of the first activities is the hotly contested Bacon competition.

This year, there are four award categories to highlight to consumers the rich heritage of Bacon curing and how many different varieties of premium bacon are available:
          1. Classic Dry Cure
          2. Traditional Wet Cure
          3. Smoked
          4. The 'Rasher-nal' Treasure Award

We are looking for some truly exceptional bacon within the these categories plus something new and exciting within the Rasher-nal Treasure Award, to demonstrate how far our humble rasher has come in recent years.

So, if you think your bacon is up to the task and would like a chance to become the Bacon Connoisseurs Week 2012 Champion don’t delay, go to  www.porkforbutchers.co.uk to download an entry form today.

But don’t take it from us, listen to a past winner:
“These awards show that there is real quality bacon for customers in local shops as well as personal customer service.”
G & E Hallsworth, Ormskirk Butchers.

Completed entry forms must be received by Monday 23rd January 2012.

Good luck and we look forward to receiving your entry.

In the meantime, if you have any queries about the competition or the week please contact 0247 647 8809 or alternatively email baconenquiries@bpex.org.uk.