I'd like to know what's best too! I'm in Florida and citrus is coming into season. I've got my eye on a sour orange tree growing outside the local chamber of commerce bldg, and I'm going to ask if I can pick some.

Every year I try to make marmalade and it never sets. It's the ONE canning item I can't seem to get right. I'll never give up! Until then, I always have a batch of my "Maybe Orange Marmalade" on hand for deserts, sauces, etc.

I have never been able to get it to set right either. I have used Clementines and it tastes very good but just won't set up right.

Cumquats added to a marmalade will make it really tasty. The skins of tangerines and clementines are great to use. If the flavor is lacking, add an undiluted can of frozen orange juice concentrate. The Pomona pectin seems to work well. Even if you didn't use Pomona, the setting up of a citrus based jam will take a bit longer than regular fruits, at about a month or so. Just let them sit somepace for about a month and they should become thicker, if not, they can be redone by adding more sugar and pectin. I only had a single batch of strawberry jam fail to set, and that was before I started using Pomona. Because Pomona needs no sugar, I use it with Splenda and the natural sweetness of some fruits.

I made clementine marmalade with pectin once. The flavor was nice. I think they have enough tartness to make things interesting.

I read in one of my canning books that "Seville" oranges were the best for marmelade. I think that is what the "sour oranges" are. But I can't get those up here in the boondocks Midwest. The best marmelade I ever made was from some oranges I got from a school band fundraiser. They had seeds, but other than that I don't know what kind they were. They didn't taste all that great fresh which is why I ventured into marmelade making in the first place. In all subsequent years my marmelade has been just so so, despite many adjustments. I tried mixed citrus fruit, cooking longer and it got too thick, I tried carefully peeling the rind and finely slicing it so no pith, and parboiling it, and I also tried adding ginger. It was all edible, but not sublime.

What to do with a tree full of Kumquats? Make Marmalade, of course. We like it better than the regular kind. I use the Pomona as well since we don't like jams. etc. as sweet as most recipes call for.

Hi guys

I gave this recipe this week in another post but thought someone might be interested. I have made this recipe with great success and this one is done with Seville oranges. Definitely no need for pectin. I make all my citrus marmalades following this technique, even the recipes that don't call for it cos it works so well. Never use pectin for citrus, I never found it necessary. If you want, I can give you a recipe for a nice mixed citrus marmalade too. If you want to try it, lpink, send me your address and I will send you a jar. The Seville oranges are in season now and if you want to get them, I suggest going to a fruit store and asking them to get them for you, I need to order them special here, I get them but have to put in a request. I sliced 30 lbs today.

Here is the recipe. It was given to me by a friend, she is British would you know and makes this very good marmalade. Lots of people in my village rave about it and she is usually very generous with it.
Sue's Marmalade (sour orange marmalade)

Cut sour oranges in 4 and remove pips (save them). Slice oranges very thinly, weigh and add 6 cups of water to every pound of pulp. Soak 24 hours.

Rub preserving pan with lemon. Simmer pulp and pips (in cheesecloth bag) more or less 4 hours or until chips are tender. Turn into a basin , remove pips, let stand 12 hours.
Weigh and put a small quantity of pulp in a pot. Add 1 1/4 lb of sugar to every lb of pulp. Bring slowly to a boil, than boil rapidly til set.

Notes: This marmalade sets considerably more after a fortnight in the jars. Boil in small batches in heavy bottom pot like pressure cooker.

Can and process in BWB

Like I said, I do all my marmalade following the three day process, maybe that is the secret. All I know is that they are great repeat sellers so I must do something right.

Marie

Dear Sweet Marie,
That is so nice of you to volunteer to send me some marmelade! It's really not necessary for you to go to that trouble though, as I have a ton of my own mediocre marmelade to get through, lol! I am definately going to try your recipe for my next batch, which I need to make to use up the last of my lemons. Meanwhile I am in search of a good greengrocer, a fruit market. I'm new to the area and haven't had the time to track one down. There is one I know of but it's a bit of a drive and I haven't made it there yet. I'll bet they either have the sour oranges, or like you said, would be willing to get them for me. Thanks so much for the help.
Lpink

Well, if you ever want to try them, just let me know. I am happy I can contribute. I have asked for lots of recipe this summer and I work so much during the warm months I could barely help anyone. Off to sleep I am now going I canned 100 jars of orange mango jam today, I am tired.

Have fun with the marmalade
Marie

Marie, that sounds like a wonderful marmalade, recipe, I love marmalade. My favorite was a batch I made with red grapefruit, although I also liked the lemon/lime one that I made.

Lpink, I also made the Meyer Lemon and Vanilla Bean marmalade and mine set quickly and firmly. It was set while still a bit warm so maybe yours didn't cook quite long enough? I didn't add any pectin or Pomona's to my marmalade, I've quit using the commercial pectins altogether except in the hot pepper jelly.

Maybe we should start a "What have you put up in 2007" thread! Here's mine, I only got 4 pints but I did use real Meyers, sent to me by a poster at Cooking.

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Mine was yummy but the vanilla gave it a "sweet" note that I thought was a bit too sweet. I was given a jar of the "plain" lemon marmalade and liked that better. Next time...

Lpink, I'm not glad that your marmalade wasn't fantastic but I am glad you shared your experience. I'm not going to use those navals in my fridge, I'm going to see if I can find something else.

Annie

I made my Meyer Lemon marmalade with ginger not vanilla. I posted the recipe on the Cooking Forum (THS). I am not a big vanilla fan and the ginger gave it a little bit of zing. It took 4 or 5 hours to cook down and set though without pectin. Maybe I had the heat too low on simmer. It finally set and tastes great.
Clare

Clare, that marmalade with ginger sounds really good. I think the vanilla was just too sweet for my tastes, I like the "bitterness" of marmalade.

Annie

I use juice oranges, usually valencia in my marmalade. juice oranges have thinner peels and more juice (duh). I never use pectin in marmalade, sometimes i add orange to other jams so they will set better.

Also, I don't like pomonas. It has a grainy texture to me.

-Robin

I agree, Robin, the Pomona's does have a "chalky" kind of mouth feel, I think, and a perceptible taste. I just don't like it and neither does Dad. As for it always jelling, I've also had it fail, just like other commercial pectins.

While I do think it serves a very useful purpose for some people, I just don't care for it. Of course, I can't stand the taste of Splenda, either.

Annie

I FINALLY finished my marmelade for the season! I had to use up the last of these organic lemons I had languishing in the fridge. This was one of my best batches yet. I used half lemons, and then three different oranges for the rest--a juice orange, a clementine, and a blood orange. I think the clementines had the best peel. I left off the peel for the blood orange because it was very pithy like navel peel. But the blood orange pulp gave the marmelade a great vivid color. Thanks again for all the help!
Lpink

LPink,
I'm glad you had a batch that came out well! FWIW, the 3-day process is critical to a good set (though it can be done in 2 days ) - the deal is that the parts you DON'T particularly want to eat (the pith, membranes, and seeds) are exactly the part which has the good pectin. I've made sour (Seville) orange marmalade, lemon marmalade, and lime marmalade (which was a bit wierd - not sure I like cooked limes). The best of all, though, was Rangpur lime - which is a sour mandarin orange. Came out like a tangerine or temple orange with the kick of a good lemon or grapefruit, and a gorgeous flame color.

Another good citrus is the Ugli fruits. They look like spoiled, very bad grapefuits, but if you make marmalade out of them and their thick pithy skins, the jam is really good tasting. All the added sugar and a little shelf aging time help to improve the taste as they go from a bitter to sublime.

There seem to be a couple of marmalade experts here, so i'm bumping this thread up. I'm looking for a marmalade recipe that is fruit juice-sweetened, in all likelihood with grape juice concentrate. I'm really having trouble with all my searches. Most recipes without added sugar call for sugar substitutes (yuck). I haven't had much luck looking in "natural" cookbooks either. I know it's possible, and that it can be awfully delicious--in my opinion even better than with refined sugar--St. Dalfour is my current favorite. any ideas, leads, or tried and true recipes? Thank you!

I have some information that might be of interest, but no definite answer.

I found a recipe that might be close to what you are looking for. It used gelatin and low-methoxy pectin solution. (I think that is what the Pomona's is.) I think it is too complicated to type all the instructions so I will list the rest of the ingedients except the pectin and you can decide.

Christmastime Marmalade
1 medium grapefruit, seeded, with juice
1 whole orange, seeded with juice
3 oranges, pulp only, seeded, with juice
1 tangerine, seeded with juice
1/2 lemon, seeded with juice
1 1/2 cups concentrated apple juice
1/2 cup white grape juice
3 tablespoons lemon juice

The pomona's pectin recipe has these ingredients.
1/2 grapefruit
4 oranges
1 lemon
to make 6 C cooked fruit
juice of 1 lemon
1-3 cups sugar or 1 1/2 cups honey
3 teaspoons pectin powder
3 teaspoons calcium water

You could compare with thess with the sure-jell no-sugar marmalade recipe. I realize that this recipe uses sugar but since it doesn't require sugar you could probably swap. If I used juice, I think I wouldn't use the water.

5-1/2 cups prepared fruit (buy 8 medium oranges and 2 medium lemons)
2-1/2 cups water
1/8 tsp. baking soda
4 cups sugar, measured into separate bowl, divided
1 box SURE.JELL For Less or No Sugar Needed Recipes Premium Fruit Pectin
1/2 tsp. butter or margarine
BRING boiling-water canner, half full with water, to simmer. Wash jars and screw bands in hot soapy water; rinse with warm water. Pour boiling water over flat lids in saucepan off the heat. Let stand in hot water until ready to use. Drain jars well before filling jars.
REMOVE colored part of peel from oranges and lemons using vegetable peeler. Finely chop or grind removed peel into thin slivers; set aside. Peel and discard remaining white part of peel from fruit. Chop fruit pulp, reserving any juice; set aside.
PLACE fruit peels, water and baking soda in large saucepan. Bring to boil on high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low; cover and simmer 20 min., stirring occasionally. Add reserved fruit and juice; cover and simmer an additional 10 min. Measure exactly 5-1/2 cups prepared fruit into 6- or 8-qt. saucepot.
MIX 1/4 cup of the sugar and pectin in small bowl. Add to fruit in saucepot; mix well. Add butter to reduce foaming. Bring mixture to full rolling boil (a boil that doesn't stop bubbling when stirred) on high heat, stirring constantly. Stir in remaining 3-3/4 cups sugar. Return to full rolling boil and boil exactly 1 min., stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Skim off any foam with metal spoon.
LADLE immediately into prepared jars, filling to within 1/8 inch of tops. Wipe jar rims and threads. Cover with two-piece lids. Screw bands tightly. Place jars on elevated rack in canner. Lower rack into canner. (Water must cover jars by 1 to 2 inches. Add boiling water, if necessary.) Cover; bring water to gentle boil. Process 10 min. Remove jars and place upright on towel to cool completely. After jars cool, check seals by pressing middles of lids with finger. (If lids spring back, lids are not sealed and refrigeration is necessary.)

Here is a link that might be useful: http://www.pomonapectin.com/

Pomona pectin is citrus based and is made from the peels and membrains of citrus fruits. To set as a gel it uses calcium. Each packet of Pomona pectin also contains a smaller packet of calcium carbonate that is mixed with a small amount of water. This small packet is less than a teaspoon of calcium and even for that, all of the packet isn't needed for the whole packet of pectin.

You might have better luck searching for recipes under "fruit spread" because technically the low-sugar products don't qualify as true jams.

I did find one recipe that might be worth investigating. It's not quite what you asked for but it sounds like it would be good. It's a small batch, so there's not much risk in trying it. Spices could be reduced or left out.

No-Sugar Orange Pineapple Jam

Yield: 3 cups

3 lbs. navel oranges (4 cups peeled and coarsely chopped)
12-oz. can frozen unsweetened pineapple-orange juice concentrate
2 cups crushed pineapple, after draining
3 whole cloves
4 whole allspice berries

Combine all fruit ingredients in a heavy, non-reactive 5-quart saucepan. Tie spices in a piece of cheesecloth and stir them into the pan. Cover and bring mixture to a boil. Uncover and simmer, stirring more frequently as the jam thickens, for as long as 20 minutes.

Off heat, remove spices and fill hot jars to within 1/4 inch of the rim. Wipe rims, attach prepared lids and rings. BWB 10 minutes.

Obviously all these recipes still have sugar, just not added sugar. Texture and mouthfeel will be slightly different and once opened the spread won't last as long as a traditional jam.

from Madelaine Bullwinkel's "Gourmet Preserves Chez Madelaine"

Carol