Lemons...

Lemons...
Great in Gin and Tonic, squeezed on fish and perhaps preserved whole in a jar for later in the year.
But what about making some Marmalade? Great on toast or used in cooking as a marinade for fish... it keeps well and is a great store cupboard item to liven up meal times, so I hunted down a recipe that sounded easy to make and be good to eat, so my weekend is now set I'm making home made Marmalade while the lemons in the shops are cheap, I don't have a lemon tree but if I did I would be collecting my own when they were ripe.

Lemon Marmalade

Ingredients

Storage: up to 2 years
Makes: 5 x 450g jars

• 1kg Lemons
• 75ml leftover lemon juice
• 2kg demerara sugar

Method

• Wash the lemons then half them and juice them and keep the squeezed halves.
• Slice the squeezed lemons into medium to thick pieces and place into a bowl along with the lemon juice and 2.5L water. Leave the mixture to soak for 24 hours.

TIP: This helps release the pectin that helps the marmalade set.

 

• Pour the mixture into a jam making pan and bring to the boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook covered for 2 hours until the peel is soft and the marmalade has reduced.
• Add in the sugar and lemon juice and mix well to dissolve the sugar.
• Boil for about 20 minutes until setting point has been achieved then remove from the heat.
• Leave the marmalade to cool down for ten minutes then stir slowly to diffuse any foam from the top.
• Pour the marmalade into warm sterilized  jars and store in a cool dark place.