Thursday, April 22, 2010

Roasted Tangelo Marmalade with Rosemary

I'm not 100% sure that this "counts" for this month's Can Jam, but it's what I've had time to make this month. Also, it came out incredibly well, so it's worth sharing either way. (I was hoping my mint would be up so that I could make a lemon-mint concentrate syrup for the Can Jam, but our cold weather thwarted me.)

One of my very kind friends sent me some ultra-fresh citrus all the way from Arizona! I started a batch of preserved lemons and made this marmalade with the amazing tangelos she sent. I ended up making several batches.

The first one I overcooked, so that it darkened and caramelized slightly, but I have to admit that it's my favorite. It has an almost nutty quality that's incredible with the rosemary; I'm planning to use most of that batch as hamantashen filling since it also ended up being quite thick. I can't wait to have my dissertation finished so that I can get to the baking - I'm really eager to try the resulting cookies.

I also made a batch with thyme sprigs instead of the rosemary, but I haven't tried any of that yet.
Roasted Tangelo Marmalade with Rosemary
My recipe is adapted from this one.

  • 2 lb tangelos, scrubbed
  • 1/2 C sugar per C of chopped citrus and juice (about 3 C)
  • 1/4 C fresh lemon juice
  • clean rosemary sprigs (1 per jar)
Roasting:
Cut tangelos in half, pick out the seeds, and put them cut-side down in a pan or cookie sheet(s). Roast in a 400F oven for 25 minutes (uncovered). Remove from the oven and let cool.

Making the marmalade, day 1:
When the tangelos have cooled, cut or dice them (peel and pulp) into shreds or very small (approximately 1/4-inch) rough cubes. Measure the chopped citrus and juice together. You should have about 3 cups. For each cup of chopped fruit and juice, measure into a large pot 1 1/2 cups of water.

Bring the citrus/water mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow to stand overnight (or at least 12 hours).

Making the marmalade, day 2:
For every cup of the fruit pulp and liquid , add ½ C sugar. Add the fresh lemon juice. Bring mixture to a boil, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Allow to boil until marmalade jells. This will probably take about 30 minutes – stir it occasionally until it sets, both to check the set and to prevent it from scorching on the bottom.

When the marmalade has jelled, ladle into hot jars, leaving 1/4 inch headspace. Add one rosemary sprig to each jar. Process in a boiling water bath canner for 10 minutes.
Makes approximately 6 half-pint (1 cup) jars.

2 comments:

  1. this is an interesting way to add herbs to jars. does the rosemary flavor really come through?

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  2. It does, but subtly, at least at first. (I'll have to check back after a few weeks to see how the flavor is with aging.)

    I wanted "fresh" herb flavor, rather than cooked, plus it looks pretty! The marmalade goes in hot, which I think is why this process works at all, though of course that *does* partially cook the rosemary. I'm not sure how well it will work with the thyme, as it's not as strong of a flavor, but I have tons of it so figured it was worth a try.

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