MARMALADE
1kg Seville oranges
1kg gran sugar
400-600g brown sugar (like light muscovado)
1 lemon
2 litres water.
Method
Wash oranges and lemon and halve them.
Squeeze the juice and remove pips if they fall out. Halve the fruit skins again and remove pith and membranes with a sharp knife and any more pips and put in a jelly bag. This bit is a faff and takes a while but you should be left with just orange rinds that aren’t too thick. I gently knot the jelly bag so bits can’t fall out
Throw out the lemon skin.
Finely slice or chop the orange rind. I use a food processor as it’s much quicker.
Place fruit juice, jelly bag containing pith and pips, chopped peel and the water in a large pan. Bring to the boil and simmer gently uncovered for about 2 hours until peel is soft, liquid usually about halved. (Not sure why you can’t use less liquid and cover it to avoid steaming up the kitchen).
Remove bag of pips and leave to cool
I’ve usually had enough cooking now and leave it overnight and do the next bit the next day.
Squeeze the jelly bag to get out all the sticky gunge. This is messy and always seems to take ages but the pectin is in the pulp so you have to squeeze most of it out.
Add the pulp to the liquid
Add the sugar to the pan and dissolve over a low heat, when completely dissolved bring to the boil.
Put 3 saucers in the freezer. Boil the marmalade for 15-20 minutes until setting point is reached. I use a jam thermometer. When it reaches 105 deg C I then remove a saucer from the freezer and put a teaspoon of marmalade on it and put it in the fridge for 30 seconds or so. Then draw your finger tip over the top, if it crinkles it’s set. If it doesn’t boil for 5 more minutes and repeat.
Whilst this is happening put your jam jars on a baking tray in the oven on about 140C to warm up
Turn heat off add a knob of butter and drag it over the surface to disperse some of the scum. Skim off any remaining scum in to a cup, it’s OK to eat but doesn’t look as good. I don’t usually have much scum but use ½ oz or so of butter. Leave to cool 2-3 minutes
Put the marmalade in the jars, I usually ladle it in to a measuring jug and pour it in to the jars to near the top to minimise mess.
Add waxed circles rough side down. Add cellophane circles and put elastic bands on.
When cool wipe jars, add lids and labels.