Saturday, February 14, 2009

The Marmalade Project

Hm. That sounds a little bit like a bad Disney movie about kids who rescue their parents' failing internet preserves business or something. But it's not! No! It's my weekend project. Take a look at the whole crazy process.

Aren't these pretty? They're yellow-skinned Texas grapefruit with a very delicate pink flesh. Delicious plain, but these grapefruits had a higher destiny.




Friday after school, I sliced them in half and put them in water in two pans -- my largest stock pot and my big roasting pan, and cooked them for a couple of hours until they were very soft. Here they are simmering away.




Then this morning, I cut them into pieces. I cut around the centers, which is where all the seeds were, then put the seedy parts into a sieve over the stock pot. Oh, and the reason the cutting board is sitting on my platter is so the juices wouldn't go all over the counter. Boy, am I GLAD I did that! I bet I poured a cup of juice out of that thing when I was done, and just the thought of cleaning that sticky mess up makes me twitch a little.


Into the Cuisinart they went. Can I just take a moment to say, "Praise the Lord for my Cuisinart"? Because seriously. This was a BUNCH of grapefruit, y'all, and if I had tried to do this all with a knife I would have a) chopped off a finger, b) quit and thrown the whole lot into the trash, c) cried, or d) all of the above.



Bubbling away in the pot, smelling amazing.



In the jars. Isn't that a beautiful sight?




And on toast. Oh, yes. Come to mama.


The verdict? Guilty. OF DELICIOUSNESS.

Seriously, though, a word of caution: if you aren't a fan of that grapefruity bitterness, I would strongly advise NOT attempting grapefruit marmalade! I happen to enjoy that sort of bitey, floral flavor, so I'm digging it a lot. But if you have a low tolerance for bitter flavors, steer clear of this. I hope to be able to post many more jam and jelly recipes in the coming months, so keep checking back!

8 comments:

DanaMichelle said...

Hey Laura, if I'm making vegetable stock, how big of a thing of scraps do I need and how long should I let it simmer to get the juices out?
Thanks!
Dana

Laura said...

Hey Dana, however big your biggest pot is, your veggie scraps should fill it 1/3 to 1/2 of the way. Then fill the pot with water and simmer for an hour or so, tops. You don't want it to taste like gross overcooked veggies!

Anonymous said...

"if you aren't a fan of that grapefruity bitterness, I would strongly advise NOT attempting grapefruit marmalade!"

Don't discourage experimentation. Your readers just don't need to make FIFTEEN jars of it ;-). Ha Ha! I loved the marmalade. Something else to check off on my "fun things to eat list."

Ben

Laura said...

Thanks Ben. You foodie.

Hey, you need to get a jar of this stuff for Jill! Goodness knows I have enough of it to spare one... although I'm almost through the half pint. Gonna have to crack open an actual jar here before too long.

Heather said...

wow, that looks delicious! you have so many jars now too! nice job.

Ashley said...

cannot tell you how happy i am i found this via making home!! i too am obsessed with kitchen keeping and doing everything homemade and am always seeking to improve in this area!! loving this!!!

Laura said...

Thanks Heather! I think the pics turned out really nice.

Ashley, thanks so much for stopping by! Hope you enjoy what's coming up! :)

Some Dude said...
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