Friday, February 28

Blood Orange Marmalade

Blood Orange Marmalade
Makes 1 quart

4 blood oranges (about 1 1/2 lbs.)
4½ cups sugar
¼ cup fresh lemon juice
¼ cup aperol or Campari (optional)


Cut peel and pith away from oranges. Slice very thinly into strips and place in a large bow.



Slice fruit into rounds and add to sliced peel. Cover fruit with 2 quarts water and refrigerate at least 8 hours, up to 24 hours—this helps jump-start the softening of the peel.


Wash jars (and sterilize, if you plan to can the marmalade). The original recipe called for 4 8oz jars, but use whatever you have - In my case it was 3 12oz. Set the jars aside for now.

Transfer fruit mixture to a large, wide, heavy-bottomed pot. Bring mixture to a boil and reduce heat to medium. Simmer until peels are completely softened, and water is reduced by 3/4, about 1 1/2 hours.


 
Add sugar and stir to incorporate. Continue to cook until mixture is thick and syrupy (the bubbles will start to look foamy), another 30–40 minutes.


Test the marmalade by spooning a bit onto a chilled plate and see how it sets up. It should form a skin and start to gel within 5 minutes, but may be somewhat runny at first. If it doesn’t, keep simmering, testing every 10 minutes until it does.


Once marmalade is ready, remove from heat and add lemon juice and Aperol (if using), stirring to incorporate evenly.

Although I love the looks of a fruit filled marmalade, I'm quite picky when it comes to textures. If you find your marmalade is more chunky than you'd prefer feel free to strain out as much or as little as you'd like (I did!).

Divide evenly among jars, and process in a boiling hot water bath for at least 10 minutes if desired.

Unprocessed, marmalade will keep refrigerated up to 2 months.

Original Recipe Source: Bon Appetit