I’ve been on a marmalade bender recently. Effectively, it’s really been for the previous few weeks. Winter, after all, is marmalade season and the markets in Paris are heaped with citrus: Corsican clementines, fairly yellow bergamots, hefty pink grapefruits from Florida (though some infer appellations from elsewhere – particularly, the Louvre), leafy lemons from Good, and much and many oranges.
The stands are so piled up that it’s not unusual to be strolling down the aisle and have an orange roll off of the piles and land in your foot. (Which is why it’s a good suggestion to scrub any fruit earlier than you employ it.) This implies I’ve received so many jars of marmalade, that when my buddy Luisa stopped by and noticed the jars piled on high of a shelf in my bed room, she mentioned “I’ve doing the identical factor ” at her condominium in Berlin. Typically I feel jam-making may very well be categorized as an epidemic and if that’s the case, there’s ample proof that I’m prepared for an intervention.
Whereas kumquats have been as soon as categorized with their look-alike citrus brethren and sistern (admittedly, it may be laborious to inform because it’s troublesome to get a glance below their navels), they’re now positioned in one other genus class (Fortunella), regardless that they share many traits of citrus fruits.
A kind of traits is that they’re winter fruits. And one other is that they’re très bon pour la santé (good to your well being), containing a number of vitamin C. They usually additionally make you’re feeling happier, since not solely does their tangy-bitter taste brighten up even the darkest of winter day, nothing makes me happier than to get up within the morning and stare upon my shelf of marmalade very first thing within the morning.
I used to be particularly completely satisfied once I was doing my buying on the outside market and got here throughout an enormous bin of kumquats. I scooped up a nice-sized bag of them and introduced them dwelling, the place they patiently waited within the fridge till I made a decision what to do with them.
Initially I’d thought of giving them a quick-candying and strewing them over poached prunes with a scoop of ice cream. However I ended up sticking my fingers into the bowl of prunes a couple of too many occasions throughout the week and ended up with a small puddle of cinnamon-spiced darkish syrup pooled within the backside of a container in my fridge, which I didn’t suppose would go along with something.
So I made a decision to get out my little serrated knife, slice up my Fortunella fruits, and make marmalade. I added a few lemons not simply to bulk it up, however as a result of I assumed with the added sugar, the marmalade would profit from some additional acidity.
I usually spoon my marmalades on morning toast, however after I made this batch, I had cleaned up the kitchen and was going to reward myself to a pleasant bowl of break up pea soup for lunch with some Comté cheese and – like most good concepts (and some of the dangerous ones) – it out of the blue occurred to me that the tart marmalade is likely to be good with the nutty cheese I used to be slicing into batons.
And positive sufficient, it was. Thankfully I’ve three good jars of marmalade so as to add to my assortment. Up to now this yr I’ve made Seville orange marmalade (eight jars) and 4 jars of combined marmalade, utilizing the bergamots and citron that have been plucked off a tree in Sicily. In spite of everything that slicing, seeding, and simmering, the final pot of marmalade has been jarred and saved; they’ll final me via the winter. And if I’m prudent, plenty of spring and summer season mornings as properly.
Kumquat Marmalade
Lots of the little rings of kumquats will, sadly, come aside as you prepare dinner the marmalade. The reward, nonetheless, is attractive jars of tangy marmalade that you just’ll be completely satisfied to unfold in your morning toast or serve with a little bit of cheese after dinner. I served mine with Comté, however a pleasant goat cheese or one other nutty mountain cheese, like Gruyère, would pair properly with it.
It takes a little bit of persistence to slice and pluck out all of the seeds from the kumquats, however you may get 2 to three jars of marmalade to your efforts. I take advantage of a small serrated knife to slice off the stem finish, then begin slicing the kumquats crosswise, till I get near the middle. Lastly, I stick the tip of the knife into the realm the place the seeds are and slip them right into a small bowl. As a result of the seeds are quite giant, any that you just miss you’ll be able to normally discover simply by doing just a little scanning of your pile of sliced kumquats.
I take advantage of oval Nagami kumquats, that are extra puckery than the spherical Meiwi kumquats, which you typically come throughout. Do attempt to get natural or unsprayed fruit out of your native market or pure meals retailer. The kirsch is non-compulsory, nevertheless it does properly spherical out the flavour of the marmalade. You may substitute one other liquor, similar to gin, Grand Marnier or Cointreau, gentle rum, or a touch of brandy. Or it may be omitted, if you want.
- 2 lemons, stemmed, halved lengthwise, seeded, and really thinly sliced
- 1 pound (450g) kumquats, stemmed, seeded, and sliced
- Reserve the seeds from the lemon and kumquats
- 5 1/2 cups (1.3L) water
- 2 cups (400g) sugar
- pinch of salt
- Optionally available: 1/2 teaspoon kirsch or different liquor
Stop your display from going darkish
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Put the lemon slices in a big non-reactive pot. Cowl with chilly water and convey to a boil. Cut back the warmth and simmer till the lemons are translucent, about 5 minutes. Drain. (Discard the water.)
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Put the blanched lemons again within the pot. Tie the seeds from the lemons and kumquats securely in a bit of cheesecloth and add the seed sack to the pot together with the sliced kumquats and water. Convey to a boil; take away from warmth, cowl, and let stand 24 hours.
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The subsequent day, put a small plate within the freezer.
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Add the sugar and salt to the pot, and prepare dinner the marmalade for 30 to 45 minutes over medium warmth. Take away the bag of seeds and when it’s cool sufficient to deal with, squeeze the seeds within the cheesecloth utilizing your fingers or place it in a ladle and press it with the again of a soup spoon (being cautious to not break the material and launch the seeds) over the jam pot to so the pectin goes straight into the marmalade combination.
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Proceed cooking till it has reached the jelling level, about 220ºF (104ºC) levels, if utilizing a sweet thermometer. To check the marmalade, flip off the warmth and put a small quantity on the plate that has been chilled within the freezer and briefly return it to the freezer. Examine it in a couple of minutes; it needs to be barely jelled and can wrinkle a bit whenever you slide your finger via it. If not, proceed to prepare dinner till it wrinkles barely on the chilled plate whenever you nudge it.
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Take away from warmth, then stir within the kirsch (if utilizing), and ladle the combination into clear jars.
Associated Recipes
Kumquat Marmalade (Recipe Lady)
Kumquat Marmalade with Star Anise (Drizzle & Dip)
Sunday Morning Kumquat Jam (Novice Gourmand)
Small Batch Kumquat Marmalade (Meals in Jars)
Maple Kumquat Marmalade (A Bloggable Feast)
