I didn’t mean for it to become a regular thing…I don’t think anyone ever does. I only did it last year because all my friends were doing it and it seemed like once couldn’t possibly hurt. Now I know better. Take it from me kids: marmalade-making is a messy addictive habit, which you should approach with extreme caution and full knowledge that it may become a yearly routine.

Lacking most of my kitchen, I wasn’t going to do it this year. Then I started to see the Sevilles and Meyers in the stores, and felt a little pang of regret, but finding a 24 hour stretch in which to undertake a marmalade project didn’t seem very likely, so it was pushed to the back of my mind…until the kiwis showed up in the bin.

I know. Kiwis are not commonly associated with marmalade. But we had a whole pound of them, and I was having a hard time figuring out what to do with that many. Until I came upon a recipe for Kiwi Lemon Marmalade, using my favorite Meyer lemons. How could I say no? Especially since it used a different (less labour intensive) method than the recipe I made last year.

Kiwi and Meyer Lemon Marmalade

Ingredients:
1 1/2 lbs Meyer Lemons
4 C Water
1 1/2 lbs Kiwi (firm/ripe)
5 C Sugar

8 1/2 pint canning jars with rims and lids
cheesecloth (I had no cheesecloth, so I used a Curad Hold-Tite sleeve (it actually worked quite well).

The night before:

Wash the lemons, and cut them in half lengthwise. Using scissors, cut out the pith in the center, and use the tip of the scissors to remove any seeds (pips) from the lemons. Save the seeds, pith, and any juice accumulated in a bowl. (This site provides a good illustrated description of this step.

Next, slice the lemon halves thinly (thinner => less chunky marmalade, thicker => more chunky). Put the lemon halves in a large glass bowl filled with 4 cups cold water.

Strain out the juice from the pith-seeds-and juice bowl and add it to the lemons. Take the remaining pith and seeds, tie it up in cheesecloth (or whatever you’re using) and submerge that in the bowl with the lemons.

Cover with a tea towel and leave the whole lot to sit somewhere cold and dark over night.

The next day:

First, peel and chop the kiwis. I cut mine into quarters lengthwise, then cut those pieces into 1/4″ slices. Again, you could go bigger or smaller depending on the chunkiness factor.

Once the kiwis are cut, set them aside, measure the sugar and set it aside too.

Dump the entire lemon mix (and the cheesecloth bundle) into a large stainless steel pot, and boil for 15 min, or until the pith on the slices has mostly disappeared, and the peel itself is soft and translucent.

Now remove the cheesecloth bundle (squeeze out as much liquid as you can), and add the kiwis and sugar to the pot. Bring to a boil and stir, skimming off any foam that accumulates.

At this point, if you haven’t already started, you should get your jars started. I use one big pot to sterilize jars (it holds about 4 at a time), and a smaller one to keep the lids warm. I fill the big pot with water, put in 4 jars and rims, and bring the lot to a boil.

After about 40 min or so, start testing for doneness (I Nigel’s method which involves chilling the marmalade briefly, then running your finger through it to see if it wrinkles). Test every 10-15 min or so until it has gelled.

Then, remove the jars from the boiling water, and place on a tea towel. If (like me) you need to sterilize jars in 2 batches, put the next batch in now. It will be about 15 minutes by the time you finish filling the first ones. You’re supposed to use a funnel to fill them. I just used a ladle, and cleaned the rims of the jars with a damp cloth afterwards. Run a spatula/spoon/chopstick around the edge of the jar to remove any air bubbles, and tighten the lids to “finger tight”, set aside and fill the remaining jars.

Finally, pop the filled, closed jars back in the boiling water for another 15 min (make sure they are covered by at least 1″ of water) to get rid of any air bubbles. When done, remove the jars from the water and let sit at room teem to cool. You should hear the lids make a popping noise as they seal.

After 24 (ish) hours, unscrew the rims and check to make sure the lids are sealed (i.e., concave in the middle, and stay stuck to the jar, even when you loosen the rim). Any jars that didn’t seal can be reprocessed (re sterilize the jar, reheat the marmalade to a boil, and repeat the whole canning routine) or used in the next 2 weeks. Store the sealed jars in a cold dark dry place.

Overall, this was a much less stressful marmalade adventure than last time. It’s easier when a) you know what to look for with the gelling thing and b) you don’t make fatal mistakes like boiling the marmalade with the lid on.