Citron Marmalade Food

CITRUS MARMALADE

Steps:

• Cut the citrus: Using a sharp knife, slice off the top and bottom of the citrus so it sits sturdily on the cutting board. Slice off the peel and white pith in sections, starting at the top and following the curve of the fruit. (You should have a pile of peels and a few naked fruit.)
• Thinly slice the peels (with the pith) no thinner than 1/8 inch and no thicker than 1/4 inch, place them in a large bowl and set aside.
• Halve the fruit and remove any visible seeds. Thinly slice about 1/4-inch thick (white membrane and all), removing any seeds you might have missed. Add the fruit to the peels, and cover with 3 to 5 cups of water, taking note of how much water you used. Let this sit for at least 8 hours and up to 24 hours in the refrigerator. (This will help extract the pectin slowly as well as soften the peels.)
• Make the marmalade: Place a small plate in the refrigerator to chill. (You'll use this later.)
• Place the peels, fruit and water in a large pot. Add enough water to bring the total to 6 cups and bring to a strong simmer over medium-high heat.
• Cook the citrus until the peels have begun to soften and turn translucent, and the liquid has reduced by about three-fourths, 40 to 50 minutes.
• Add sugar and any add-ins and continue to cook, stirring occasionally at first, then more frequently as the marmalade cooks and the juices thicken. Continue until most of the liquid has evaporated and the peels are totally softened and almost completely translucent, another 40 to 50 minutes.
• As the marmalade cooks, the liquid reduces, the sugars thicken and the natural pectins activate. You'll notice the liquid go from a rapid, rolling boil with smaller bubbles to a slow, thick, tarlike boil with larger bubbles: This is the stage at which it's most important to stir constantly along the bottom of the pot to prevent scorching and sticking. (Sugar is heavier than water and will concentrate at the bottom of the pot, making the fruit more likely to burn.) It's also the stage at which splattering may occur, so take care in stirring.
• When the marmalade reaches this point, add lemon juice and continue to cook, stirring constantly until the jam has returned to its previously thickened state, about another 5 minutes. At this stage, the mixture should look thick and viscous with bits of the peel floating around. The peels will never break into the liquid as with a jam: This is O.K.
• To test the jam's thickness, spoon a bit onto the chilled plate, return it to the refrigerator and chill for 2 minutes. Drag your finger through it: It should hold its shape on either side without appearing watery or runny. If it's not there yet, cook it for a few more minutes.
• Remove from heat and discard the vanilla bean, if used. Divide among jars, leaving 1/4 inch of space at the top, and seal immediately. Can the marmalade (our How to Make Jam guide has detailed instruction), or store in the refrigerator.

ETROG (ESROG) JELLY

Steps:

• GET RID OF BITTERNESS: Wash etrog and trim off the ends. Slice thinly, or chop. Put the slices and the seeds into a cheesecloth bag. Day 1: Cover with water and let stand at least 12 hours. Bring to a boil, and simmer uncovered for 20 minutes. Drain fruit. Cover with cold water & repeat on Day 2.
• Day 3: Drain fruit, then cover with cold water & simmer uncovered 1 hour. Take out the bag of fruit and seeds. Let it cool down, then squeeze every drop into the pot and throw out the mush.
• Mix pectin with 1/4 cup sugar. Add sugar, pectin & marmalade and simmer. To become jelly, there has to be the right concentration of sugar, so if you put in more water or less sugar it takes longer to boil down. It will probably reach 200º quickly, but then it takes up to an hour to get up to "jelly" temperature (220º-222º). After it gets to 215º stir constantly and DO NOT WALK AWAY - it burns easily. If it does burn, just dump the jelly into a clean bowl, wash out your pot, put the jelly back in and continue.
• Put a saucer in the freezer to check for when your jelly is done. It should gel when you pour a little on your very cold saucer. If it still won't set after getting to 220º, cook 15-20 minutes more! (You could also just quit & call it etrog syrup.) If you overshoot the "gel" point, you will end up with more of a candy than a jelly.
• How to put in jars: Put your clean jars and lids in a pot, fill the pot and jars with cold water. Bring to a gentle boil for 10 minutes. Drain out a hot jar, fill with hot jelly leaving 1/4" "headspace," put on the hot lid tight. As it cools, the little button on the top that popped up when you first opened it will pop down again. This is what keeps out the bacteria that would spoil the jelly.
• Keeps 3 years in pantry. After opening, keep in fridge 4-6 months.

THREE-CITRUS MARMALADE

Steps:

• Put a small plate into the freezer for testing the jam later. Scrub and dry the citrus. With a vegetable peeler, strip the zest (the outermost layer of the rind) from 1 orange, 2 blood oranges, and 2 Meyer lemons. Slice the strips into thin matchsticks about 1/16th inch in width. Add the strips to a small pot and cover with cold water. Over high heat, bring the pot to a boil and boil for 30 seconds. Drain the strips, rinse with cold water, and set aside.
• Cut both ends of each fruit. Using the side of your knife, remove the white pith and peel of each fruit. Discard the peels. Cut the fruit into quarters, removing any seeds or hard, pithy centers. Chop each fruit into roughly 1-to-2-inch pieces, saving all of the juice that drips onto the cutting board.
• Measure the fruit and any remaining juice (you should have about 6 cups.) Transfer to a medium heavy-bottomed pot. Add 6 cups water to the pot with the fruit and bring the mixture to a boil over high heat.
• When the mixture comes to a boil, lower the heat to medium. Cook fruit syrup, uncovered, for 1 hour, or until it has reduced by half. Periodically skim off white foam that accumulates at the top, and stir occasionally.
• Add the blanched zest and the sugar to the pot. Stir to combine, increase the heat to high, and bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium, and cook, about 10 minutes. The mixture should be at a bubbling simmer. After 10 minutes begin to stir the marmalade constantly. Cook for about 20 minutes more.
• The marmalade is ready when it is thick enough that a spoon leaves a trail at the bottom of the pan.
• Remove the plate from the freezer. Test the marmalade by placing a spoonful of it on the plate. It should thicken promptly. Prepare an ice water bath.
• Carefully pour marmalade into a medium bowl, scraping any bits with a spatula. Set the bowl into an ice water bath. Let cool slightly, stirring, about 5 minutes. Cover surface with plastic wrap and let cool completely. Store in airtight containers in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.