Orange Marmalade

 I love the idea of making Jams at home, there is something extremely satisfying about making your own jam and it is much easier than most people think!  So far I have tried making strawberry jam, peach jam, guava jam and mixed fruit jam at home, since its winter  the season of oranges , I thought of making some orange marmalade at home, Marmalade is a delicious tangy spread to have on your toast for breakfast, I am sharing two ways of making the orange marmalade at home…

 Ingredients:

6 oranges, (you can use any kind of oranges you like)

3-4 small lemons (washed)

4 cups water

2 & 1/2 cups sugar

½ tsp salt

For the jelly Marmalade:

Peel and deseed the oranges collecting the juice in a large sauce pan., now put all the oranges in a blender and blend them, next  squeeze the juice and pits out through a mesh sieve collecting the juice in to the saucepan. Collect the pit, membranes and any pulp that came out and place it in a double layer of 8 inch square cheese cloth and tie it off.

Slice the orange peels into small thin pieces about 1/8 inch wide. The peel is what give marmalade its bitter taste, you don’t have to add it if you don’t’ like it.

If you don't like the bitterness  Add 4 cups of water and lemon juice to the sauce pan and bring the juice, water, peels, lemon juice and cheesecloth to a simmer over medium heat and cook, covered, until the peel gets tender, about 30 – 40 minutes. Stir every 15 minutes, squeezing the juices from the cheesecloth when you do. Remove the cheesecloth let it cool down then squeeze out any liquid into the pot. At this point you should have about 4 cups of liquid. Add more water if you have less and simmer to reduce if you have more.

Add the sugar and salt into the mixture and bring the mixture to a full boil again, then reduce heat to a gentle boil. Stir occasionally while cooking to make sure it does not burn on the bottom. To test the marmalade, turn off the heat and put a small amount on a plate that has been chilled in the freezer and briefly return it to the freezer. Check it in a few minutes; it should be slightly jelled and will wrinkle just a bit when you slide your finger through it. If not, continue to cook until it’s done. Once the marmalade has reached the desired consistency, turn off the heat, Pour into your jars leaving 1/2 inch of space at the top, seal, let cool and refrigerate.

For the Jam like Marmalade:

Prepare the oranges by peeling the outer skin and discarding the seeds, now put all the fruits into a food processor or blender, and make them into a puree. Add Sugar and Lemon Juice. Mix well. Keep it aside for an hour.  After and hour put the pureed fruit, lemon juice and sugar in a large pan. Heat over low flame and let it simmer gently for about 10 minutes, turn the heat up to medium-high and boil the mixture rapidly for 20 minutes stirring occasionally. It splutters, so be careful. When the jam is ready (when you feel its getting thick), remove the saucepan from heat and let it cool down. Pour it into the sterilized jam jars and then let it cool completely before sealing it. Once it cools down put it in refrigerator.

Note: The ratio of sugar and fruit (juice + pulp) should be the same, for every one cup of fruit you need one cup of sugar.