Seville Orange Marmalade

The truth is that life is delicious, horrible, charming, frightful, sweet, bitter, and that is everything.
~Anatole France

Seville oranges are horrible things. Bumpy and bitter, full of pith and seeds.

How did anyone imagine that such nasty citrus could make the best marmalade that there is?

I am grateful to that oddly imaginative individual.

This marmalade was my first attempt at canning over 20 years ago. It is still my favorite and most satisfying thing to put in jars.

The recipe below  is from Canadian Living magazine.

If you are new to canning, you can download this very helpful free guide from Bernardin. It will walk you through the canning process step by step and provide clear explanations for each one.

Seville oranges are only available in grocery stores for a brief time during the late winter. If you aren’t keeping your eye out for them, you might miss them.

This year, I managed to get mine for free as the price came up incorrectly when they were being rung through by the cashier. I wish I’d planned to make a double batch.

(And – I hate taking photos, but I took this one of the batch on the shelves. Sunshine in a reusable jar.)

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Seville Orange Marmalade

Prep Time

45 mins

Cook Time

3 hrs

Total Time

3 hrs 45 mins

 

This is the classic orange marmalade, with just the right balance of bitter-sweet that marmalade lovers go for.

Author: Canadian Living Magazine

Ingredients

• 2 lbs Seville oranges 907 g
• 1 lemon
• 7 cups granulated sugar
• 8 cups water

Instructions

1. Scrub oranges and lemon; cut off stem and blossom ends and any blemishes.
2. Cut in half crosswise; squeeze out juices, reserving pulp and seeds. Strain through sieve into Dutch oven.
3. Pull out membranes from peels; place along with reserved pulp and seeds on 15-inch (38 cm) square of double-thickness fine cheesecloth. Bring up sides and tie with string; add to pan.
4. Halve orange and lemon peels; cut crosswise into paper-thin strips. Add to pan.
5. Add 8 cups (2 L) water; bring to simmer over medium heat. Simmer, stirring often and pressing bag to release pectin, until peel turns to mush when pressed between fingers, 2 to 2-1/2 hours.
6. Remove bag and let cool; squeeze juice into pan. Mixture should measure 7 cups (1.75 L); if not, add water or boil until reduced.
7. In clean Dutch oven, bring sugar and fruit mixture to full rolling boil, stirring. Boil vigorously, stirring constantly, until free of foam, thickened and at gel stage, 12 to 15 minutes.
8. Using funnel, fill hot 1-cup (250 mL) canning jars, leaving 1/4-inch (5 mm) headspace. Cover with prepared lids. Screw on bands until resistance is met; increase to fingertip tight.
9. Boil in boiling water canner for 10 minutes.