There cannot be many things that my husband and the society grand dames played by Maggie Smith have in common, but a lifelong passion for marmalade is surely one of them. In Gosford Park, Maggie Smith’s Countess of Trentham denounces those households shabby enough to serve shop-bought marmalade, and by series 2 of Downton Abbey, the Countess observes that marmalade cocktails are the fashionable drink-of-the-moment; a heady sign that the roaring twenties are on the horizon.
My husband prefers his marmalade on toast, preferably daily if not twice-daily. Like Paddington Bear, he feels somehow incomplete if he discovers himself to be in a marmalade-free environment, and when planning trips abroad will pat his pockets to check for marmalade in the way that other men check for wallets and boarding passes.
My Valentine’s gift to him this year, therefore, will be a year’s supply of marmalade, with personalised labels and even a few travel-sized jars of the exact proportions to fit in a pocket. An unusual present, perhaps, but one which I think will hit the mark. If you haven’t tried making marmalade, or perhaps haven’t yet even tasted marmalade (an acquired taste, many believe), it’s definitely worth a try. Here’s what you’ll need;
True British marmalade uses Seville oranges, a citrus fruit so bitter that were you to unwittingly suck on one your mouth would probably shrivel up with shock. Add 2 kilos of sugar however, and it becomes blissful. You can make marmalades with all kinds of different fruit – divine recipes abound on the internet – but classical marmalade requires a very bitter orange which is – appropriately enough – in season in the bitterest of winter months.
Once you’ve gathered your ingredients and a large pan, start by preparing the oranges…
Now comes the complicated part (though I managed it, so fear not..). Take out your muslin bag and give it a squeeze to release the final juices before you discard it. Now add the juice of your lemon, give it a stir and pour in all the sugar. Keep it on a low heat as the sugar dissolves, then bring to the boil.
Place your jam jars in a hot oven to sterilise; they’ll need about 10mins, then switch off the heat and keep them in there until you are ready to pot up.
If any scum from escaped orange pulp surfaces, just skim it off as you go. If you have a jam thermometer, wait for the temperature to reach 104.5C/220 F – that’s your setting point and time to turn off the heat. If you don’t have a thermometer, place a plate in the fridge and then periodically – and carefully – spoon a small amount of the marmalade onto the chilled plate. When this wrinkles when touched lightly, you’ve reached setting point.
Once you’ve turned off the heat, leave the marmalade to cool for 12-15 minutes, stirring occasionally to distribute the rind. If you pot it up straight away, the rind will all rise to the top of the jar; it won’t change the taste but aesthetically it looks a bit odd. Take your jars out of the oven and fill each one to just below the rim. It should look something like this;
Now place a wax paper disc on top of each before sealing quickly with a lid. Once the jam has cooled, you can have fun with decorative labels, tags and cloth covers. For my husband, I designed these simple ‘Man of the House’ labels, then cut a striped cloth disc to cover the metal lid, securing with a simple rubber band. I found some vintage silver teaspoons in our local charity shop, so I tied one of these to each jar, and then finally – given the Valentine’s theme – added a chalkboard heart peg to denote each month’s jar of marmalade.
It will be possibly the heaviest Valentine’s gift I’ve given him, but also one of the thriftiest, which is always handy so soon after the Christmas frenzy. If you try this do let me know how you get on, and if you’re an aficionado of jam and marmalade-making already, please do share any favourite tips or recipes; I’m a distinct amateur but can see this becoming quite a passion…
By the way; the vintage weighing scales I used for the first photo in this post were a recent find, buried in the depths of a local antiques mill; I found them in a roomful of period kitchenalia, from wooden butter pats to round wooden sieves and all sorts of mysterious turn-of-the-centry kitchen gadgetry that must have seemed cutting edge at the time.
What a lovely idea for a personalised Valentine’s gift. So sweet – what a lucky husband. I’ve never made marmalade but it’s something I really want to do this month. I am having trouble finding Seville oranges though – I may have to use whatever I can find. I adore the bitter sweet taste of marmalade – toast with butter and marmalade is just the best breakfast. Shame it’s not the healthiest one though!
Gillian x
I know, it’s to die for isn’t it? I didn’t realise quite how much sugar went into it until I made it
. Try Waitrose for the Seville oranges if you have one within reach; I couldn’t find them elsewhere locally either x
Ah, Waitrose, why didn’t I think of that?? Thank you. That shop is perfection so of course they sell the very thing I want. I will try to pop in over the weekend, snow depending… x
oh.. wonderful.. somewhere I have a crock pot recipe , wanting to give that a try too.
so far have just made it as you did..
nothing finer for toast on a cold Iowa morning .
This is wonderful! Not only did you provide an excellent marmalade recipe, you also references two great loves of mine — Maggie Smith/Downton Abbey and Paddington Bear! What a perfect valentine’s gift for your husband!
Kenley
That is so clever – do a normal task (make marmalade) but present it beautifully as a loving Valentine treat. I’ve adapted my recipe so it is easier on my right arm and back. I cook up halved oranges for 60-90 mins, then let them cool and scrape out the pith. It is massively easier on your arm. I like the idea of using scissors though for the thin skin bits. I love the way 4 oranges = a pound, something so soothing about that (see your first pic). Nicola http://homemadekids.wordpress.com
Genius idea Nicola, thank you! Will save me from much hard labour next time….
Mmmmm….I ove orange marmalade. It reminds me of my Aunt Verna, old white cottages, the ocean, and Nova Scotia. These pictures are very inspiring….now I want to make some!
Love your blog. It’s so cozy and original. You’ve obviously got crafty talents, but it goes beyond that to my even enjoying the way you write about your pursuits….. thanks for sharing!
Kat, all oranges bought in stores are treated with all kinds of chemicals ( to stay fresh for a looong time) and in fact skin is not no be eaten! If you buy them in bags you will even see a note about skins not being edible…Just be careful and look for organic ones if possible. I make all kinds of jams, my last one was quince! I love your scale!!!
That is such a thoughtful and original Valentine’s gift. I love it!
Love this post– love orange marmalade –but I’ve never made it. until now! thanks for the recipe.
What beautiful photos! Definitely makes me want to try and make marmalade
You make it look so easy and beautiful! We tried doing plum jam once, and burnt it a little… This is rather inspiring me to try again, without taking my eyes off the pot this time! My gentleman is a fan of marmalde too – I’ll have to tell him he has something in common with society grand dames!
Also, just thought of River Cottage’s Marmalion (dandelion marmalade); have you tried it? http://www.rivercottage.net/questions/food/3759/
Thank you, Sakthi, for the link to River Cottage
Sakthi, the dandelion version looks wild! I loved H F-W’s recipe for digestive biscuits and blogged about it last year; they were a great hit here at home, so I’ll definitely have to give his mamalion a go sometime too…..
What a lovely idea – my hubby’s a marmalade guy too and I made a very nice batch last year, but wouldn’t have thought to present it so beautifully as a gift – talk about maximising your efforts! You are going to be a very popular wife indeed.
What a lovely idea! I’ve been searching for seville’s but they’ve all been snaffled up and there’s such a small window of opportunity. This weekend would have been an ideal time to spend making marmalade but I’ll just have to build a snowman instead!
That is lovely, Kate! Same thing goes in our house for marmalade. My mum, living in Florida, makes it every year, and grapefruit marmalade, as well.
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It is such a lovely gift!
Hi Kate,
I love your blog and have nominated you for the Liebster Award. Please check out http://mamacormier.wordpress.com/2013/01/21/im-honoured/ for more details. I can’t wait to try out this marmalade.
Thank you so much!! (and congratulations
) Although I don’t ‘do’ awards in terms of the Q&As, it’s wonderfully flattering to be nominated so thank you again… Your comment in your post about your husband’s marathon running made me smile; I have the very same problem! x
I love reading your blog and your presentation is gorgeous. We love homemade marmalade in our house and making it makes the house smell lovely. The recipe I use is by Pam Corbin in the River cottage handbook series. It’s really straight forward and she doesn’t involve squeezing out muslins, always a bonus.
Thanks Sue
Yes, the smell was an added bonus and seemed to linger over the weekend; delicious. I haven’t come across Pam’s recipe yet but anything which reduces the steps & general hardwork has to be worth a look… thanks for the tip
My husband loves marmalade so i’ ll be doing something similar. If you add a knob of butter near the end you don’t get bubbles. I might up the presentation though after seeing yours..
More culinary magic Laura, thank you; who knew?! Mine are filled with bubbles, hence the large cover-all-sins labels, so I’ll definitely try your trick next time..
This a great idea. I’m use to make my quince jelly since we have a quince tree and it is the same process.
Is it possible to make a NON-bitter sweet taste of marmalade? I love oranges and I love the idea of a sweat marmalade. My palate is not ready for the bitter sweet taste of classic marmalade
One of my favourite jams is called Peach and Passion fruit b/c of it’s light texture. I would be all over this. It looks sooooo good!
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