Grapefruit Marmalade
Going along with the pantry theme, I thought I would share this Grapefruit Marmelade recipe. Of course, I didn’t follow this recipe exactly…where would the fun in that be?
We had bought 5 grapefruits for $2 at Adams Fairacre Farms, one my new favorite places. Vowing to eat grapefruit for breakfast, but instead having an egg and homemade bread, they just sat in the fruit drawer, sad and lonely. I used one up to make a salty dog and decided to can the rest of them via marmalade.
The funny thing is, I don’t really like marmalade. Maybe its because all the versions I’ve had were too sweet or too bitter. Phil likes it though and I figured some friends would get a jar as a post-holiday present, so I pulled out the jars, lids and tops and got cracking.
But then I didn’t, because the recipe says that the mixture has to sit overnight in a cool place. Since our whole house is a cool place, I just topped off the mixture of chopped grapefruit, lemon, their juices and peels and let it sit in the laundry room. Instead of using all water, as the recipe recommended, I used the leftover juice from the Smitten Kitchen Winter Fruit Salad that a friend brought over. It seemed a shame to waste that delicious liquid, so I added it in and figured out I would just cut down on the sugar a bit in step 3 of the recipe.
Which could be why, even after registering at 220F, the marmalade would NOT gel. I just continued to stir the pot for a long while and got the canning supplies ready. After doing the dish test (place a dish in the freezer before starting to make jam, when you think the jam is ready, put a small amount on the dish – if it doesn’t run or moves very slowly, it’s done) a bunch of times, I finally got it to the point at which I thought it was cannable. Ladled into sterilized jars, topped with sterilized lids and bands and processed in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes and DONE!
You know what? I like marmalade now. Maybe I’ll try Fernando’s Whole Orange Marmalade from our friends at We Like to Cook and Eat.
it looks so yummy! and actually, Fernando’s marmalade is marmalade for people who don’t like marmalade (I’m with you on that)! so I hope you do try it. also… was it Emily who brought the Smitten winter fruit salad? if so, this all comes weirdly full circle, because the star anise I used in Fernando’s marmalade is some she gave me (out of a huge container of star anise she bought to make the winter fruit salad last year sometime).
Yep, it was Emily! That Winter Salad was another great recipe. As somebody who doesn’t think about this kind of thing very often, I had sort of pegged it as a decidedly grown-up fruit salad. But the kids really tore it up.
Another good thing to do with extra star anise is to mix it with kumquats and cloves and use it to infuse vodka. Maybe this is a kid-friendly recipe as well?
haha YES! Seems like it would be an excellent sleep aid for any age person. And wow, I am definitely trying it (assuming I can find kumquats)! I can’t wait till I get to come see the place, I am rooting for you guys from afar. XOXO