Lemon Or Lime Marmalade Food

LEMON AND LIME MARMALADE

Steps:

• Begin by measuring 3 pints (1.75 litres) of water into a preserving pan, then cut the lemons and limes in half and squeeze the juice out of them. Add the juice to the water, and place the pips and any bits of pith that cling to the squeezer on the square of muslin (laid over a dish or cereal bowl first). Now cut the lemon and lime peel into quarters with a sharp knife, and then cut each quarter into thinnish shreds. As you cut, add the shreds to the water and any pips or spare pith you come across should go on to the muslin. The pith contains a lot of pectin so don't discard any, and don't worry about any pith and skin that clings to the shreds - it all gets dissolved in the boiling. Now tie up the pips, etc loosely in the muslin to form a little bag, and tie this on to the handle of the pan so that the bag is suspended in the water. Then bring the liquid up to simmering point and simmer gently, uncovered, for 2 hours or thereabouts until the peel is completely soft - test a piece carefully by pressing it between your finger and thumb. Towards the end of the simmering time pre-heat the oven to gas mark 3, 325°F (170°C). Pour the sugar into a roasting tin, lined with foil, and place it in the oven to warm gently for 10 minutes. At this point pop the saucers into the freezing compartment of the fridge. Next remove the bag of pips and leave it to cool on a saucer. Then pour the sugar into the pan and stir it now and then over a low heat until all the crystals have dissolved (check this carefully, it's important). Now increase the heat to very high, and squeeze the bag of pips over the pan to extract all of the sticky, jelly-like substance that contains the pectin. As you squeeze you'll see it ooze out. You can do this by placing the bag between two saucers or using your hands. Then stir or whisk it into the rest. As soon as the mixture reaches a really fast boil, start timing. Then after 15 minutes take the pan off the heat and spoon a little of the marmalade on to one of the cold saucers from the fridge and let it cool back in the fridge. You can tell - when it has cooled - if you have a 'set' by pushing the mixture with your little finger: if it has a really crinkly skin, it is set. If not, continue to boil the marmalade and give it the same test at about 10-minute intervals until it does set. After that remove the pan from the heat (if there's a lot of scum, most of it can be dispersed by stirring in half a teaspoon of butter, and the rest can be spooned off). Leave the marmalade to settle for 20 minutes before potting into jars that have been washed thoroughly in warm soapy water, rinsed, dried, then warmed in a medium oven for 5 minutes. Label when completely cold.

LEMON-LIME MARMALADE

Steps:

• Thoroughly wash all your citrus fruit and remove the zest with a vegetable peeler. Scrape as much of the pith as possible from each strip of peel with a very sharp knife and slice the zest into very small, thin pieces.
• Place the prepared zest, water and baking soda in a nonreactive pot. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• In the meantime segment your zested citrus fruit by slicing off the ends of each fruit, standing it up on a cutting board and slicing off the pith. Then cut each fruit in half and cut between the membranes to free the segments. Place the segments in a 4-cup measuring cup and keep going until you have accumulated 3 1/2 cups of segments and juice.
• Add the segments with juice and 1 cup of the sugar into the peel mixture. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes longer.
• Stir in the remaining 5 cups of sugar and butter and bring to a full rolling boil, stirring constantly.
• Quickly stir in the pectin and return to a full rolling boil, stirring constantly for 1 minute.
• Remove from the heat and stir constantly for 6-8 minutes to evenly distribute the zest throughout the marmalade (if you skip this step you will end up with all of your zest floating to the top of your jars!).
• Ladle quickly into sterilized jars, leaving 1/4-inch headspace. Process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes, adjusting for altitude.
• The jars need to sit for 2 weeks before you taste to let the marmalade mellow and lose some of its bitterness. I usually get somewhere between 3 and 4 pints from this recipe!

LEMON OR LIME MARMALADE

Steps:

• With a sharp paring knife remove the outer peel of the lemons, you do NOT want any pith.
• Slice the peel into paper thin slivers and set aside.
• Remove pith from fruits and slice the lemons as thin as you can, removing any seeds.
• Dont use the end slices.
• Measure the peel and lemon slices, you will need 4 cups.
• Place in a large non-reactive bowl-I use glass, and cover with the 12 cups water.
• Cover and let stand overnight.
• The next morning place the lemon/water mixture into a large pot over medium heat and cook, covered, for 20 minutes or until the lemon rind is tender.
• Remove from heat and measure-you should have 12 cups.
• Return to pot and measure in 12 cups of sugar.
• Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until the sugar dissolves.
• Turn heat up to medium high, bringing product to a gentle boil-still stirring constantly.
• Boil to gel point.
• Remove from heat and skim off foam.
• Ladle into clean hot jars, leaving 1/4 inch head space.
• Process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes at altitudes up to 1000 feet.
• If you live at a higher elevation please consult altitude chart.

LEMON MARMALADE

Steps:

• Chill a saucer in the freezer, ready for checking the setting point of your jam. Wash the lemons and remove the top 'button' which would have been attached to the stalk. Put the lemons in a large saucepan with 2.5 litres water. Bring to the boil, then cover the pan and simmer for 2½ hrs or until the lemon skins are lovely and tender, and can be pierced easily with a fork.
• When the lemons are cool enough to handle, remove from the saucepan. Measure the cooking liquid - you'll need 1.5 litres in total. If you don't quite have this, make up the difference with water. If you have too much liquid, bring to the boil and reduce to the required amount.
• Halve the lemons and remove the pips - reserving the pips and any lemon juice that oozes out during the process. Cut the lemon peel and flesh into strips, as thick or thin as you like. Put all of this, including any juices, back into the pan. Put the pips in a small piece of muslin and tie up with string. Add this to the pan, as the pips will aid the setting process of the jam.
• Add the sugar and bring to the boil, stirring until it has completely dissolved. Boil rapidly for about 20 mins until setting point is reached. Test the setting point by dropping a little marmalade onto the chilled saucer, allowing it to cool for 1 min, then pushing gently with your finger. If the marmalade crinkles, the setting point is reached; if not, continue to boil and check again in a few mins.
• Leave to cool for 10-15 mins (this will prevent the lemon shreds sinking to the bottoms of the jars), remove the muslin bag, then gently stir in one direction to disperse any scum (small air bubbles on the surface). Pour jam into warm sterilised jars and seal straight away.

LIME MARMALADE

Steps:

• Wash limes thoroughly, dry; using sharp knife, slice as finely as possible; retain any juice from limes; remove seeds (if there are any, as you slice).
• Place sliced limes, any reserved juice and water in china, glass or plastic basin, cover, stand overnight.
• Next day, pour lime mixture into large boiler, bring to boil, reduce heat, simmer covered for 30-45 mins or until rind is tender. It is important to cook fruit gently at this stage.
• Remove lime mixture from heat; using measuring jug, measure mixture into large basin, return lime mixture to large boiler. Allow 1 cup sugar for each 1 cup of measured lime mixture.
• Place sugar in large baking dish, place in slow oven for 10 minutes, stir several times. (Heated sugar will dissolve in the jam more quickly, resulting in clearer jam). Bring lime mixture to boil, add sugar all at once, (its better to add the sugar off the heat).
• Stir until sugar is dissolved completely - do not allow to boil again until this happens; do not stir after marmalade boils. (It is important, once sugar is added that there is not too much mixture in the boiler; it should not be more than 5cm (2in) deep; this will allow maximum evaporation of liquid, resulting in a marmalade which will jell as quickly as possible.).
• Bring marmalade to the boil, boil rapidly, uncovered. Place a saucer in the freezer for 10 minutes, before testing marmalade. After marmalade has been boiling rapidly for 12 minutes, remove from heat; allow bubbles to subside, drop a teaspoonful of marmalade on to a cold saucer, return to freezer for a few minutes to cool. If marmalade is not jelled enough, return to heat, cook further 3 minutes, test again in the same way. Marmalade should be jelled within 20 minutes; stand 5 minutes to allow fruit to settle. Pour into hot sterilized jars, Store in cool dark place.
• Makes about 2 litres (8 cups).

STRAWBERRY LEMON-LIME MARMALADE

Steps:

• Wash the lemon and limes and shred them finely.
• Keep all the seeds from both, and put them in a clean new tea ball, or sew them into a scrap of cheesecloth.
• Put the jars into a large kettle with water to about one inch above the rims.
• Turn on the heat about 25 minutes before the jars will be needed.
• They should boil 10 minutes to be sterilized.
• Put the lemon and lime shreds in a large, broad pot with the water, and the seeds, and boil for ten minutes.
• Wash, hull and slice the strawberries.
• Add the sugar and strawberries to the pot.
• Continue boiling until it is thick and looks inclined to set, about 30 minutes longer.
• Stir regularly.
• Fish out the seeds, draining them well.
• I open the tea ball and press with the back of a spoon.
• Spoon the marmalade in sterilized jars and seal them according to the manufacturer's instruction.
• (Generally, boil lids for 5 minutes.) Process in boiling water for 5 minutes.

ABSOLUTELY FAIL-PROOF EASY MARMALADE

Steps:

• Take the 6 citrus fruits and wash well, removing any blemishes.
• Cut into quarters, and place in a food processor.
• Chop until finely ground, skin and all.
• For an optional extra add some crystallized ginger.
• Boil with the 1 kilo of sugar, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon, for 20 minutes.
• It splatters, so be careful.
• This quantity fills about 5 x 340 gram jars.
• Do not double the ingredients, rather make two batches.
• It never goes dark and lasts for up to 6 months in the refrigerator without the need to sterilize the bottles.