Sunrise Marmalade

Along with the family fun we had in February I also had fun in the kitchen making some marmalade from blood oranges that were part of our co-op basket one week.

The basic recipe (below) comes from my Grandma Heath.  She makes the most fabulous lime marmalade (for all those who love lime or can't have grapefruit) and when I asked for her recipe she said she just substitutes the limes for any other citrus in a recipe!  So I dug out her grapefruit recipe and went to town on my blood oranges.  It only calls for a small amount of fruit so it is perfect for my small batch preserving capacity. :o)

Beautiful fruit - the whole lot diced, flesh, rind and pith.

 Water added and simmered until tender

 Measured.

 Same volume of sugar added - yikes that's a lot!

 SLOWLY heated until sugar dissolves.  (Learned my lesson last time when I ended up with glace' peel rather than marmalade because I heated the sugar too fast!) Then boil until desired setting point is reached.

Pour into sterilised jars to within an quarter inch of the top.  Clean rims of jars if needed.

 Screw on sterilised lids.

Wait for them to seal.  Then open just one jar and enjoy the beautiful blush glow on your morning toast!

Grandma Heath's Marmalade

Mince no more than 1.5 lb grapefruit/lemons/oranges/limes.
Add 3 lb water per pound of fruit. (Yes, weigh both fruit and water.)
Stand overnight then cook until tender, about 30 minutes.
Add 1 c sugar per cup of fruit.
Boil approximately 1 hour until setting point is reached.  (If necessary, add the juice of a greenish lemon to help set.)