Grapefruit Marmalade.... Hey, why not?

[MrMickeysMom]

Yesterday, the local grocer had a deal on Texas Ruby Reds ... "buy a bag, get a bag free". Of course, I had a lot of extra grapefruit that even I couldn't polish off, as my husband doesn't like fresh grapefruit like I like it... So, I decided... Why not marmalade?

I have a good knife that hasn't de-fingered me yet, so I put it to use peeling and slicing around the thing so I ended up with little sliver rinds.
Then, I cut up 7 grapefruit rinds, sectioned the fruit, didn't even remove the pulp, as it's supposed to provide plenty of pectin.
I added a little over 3 cups of water, and as much sugar, got the idea I'd add about a half cup of orange blossom honey, then sliced a few thick pieces of ginger root.

I've been cooking this the better part of 8 hours, which sounds crazy, but I didn't exactly cook it to the internet recipe I researched, just to the point where I could transfer it into a crock pot. I added the sugar after initially cooking the fruit, rind and water for 2 hours, and added honey and ginger right before the crock pot.

You're supposed to let it work until it reaches a temperature of 220 f, at which time it's ... MARMALADE.

Well, it's time for bed and I'm just gonna turn down the crock pot and let it go all night, since it's probably gonna take that long, given the way I sort of changed the cook method.

Now this may turn out like rubber, but at least I've had a wonderful smell of marmalade all evening (which was good, cause I cooked salmon, and the smell went right out of the air)

I have no idea if this will really be a good marmalade, however, if this stuff turns out like I think it might, I'm gonna have to recall it in "recipe form" here.

I just had to share that. :-)

[Denninmi]

1. Well, let us know how it turns out.

Sounds interesting. I've never tried to make anything like that in a crockpot, although I have used it to cook down apple butter and quince pulp.

[yellerpup]

2. Ben (my jam man) and I made tangerine marmalade last

fall and it tasted good while it was still warm, but after it cooled had an excruciatingly bitter taste. I thought we would have to throw it all out, BUT, after 2-3 months of aging in the jar a chemistry miracle happened and it turned into a very sophisticated and delicious marmalade. I'd be very interested to hear the outcome of your experiment, so do keep us posted on your progress. :hi:

[Lucinda]

6. That sounds soooo good.

I want! :)

[yellerpup]

12. Hi, Lucinda!

Too bad we don't live next door to each other. My neighbors never run out of jam! :pals:

[Lucinda]

18. That would be awesome wouldn't it?

:toast:

[MrMickeysMom]

9. yellerpup.... I'm interested in how you aged that...

Mine is not excruciatingly bitter, but it's bitter the way I like marmalade to be. It's also too stew-soup like in its consistency.

Soooo.... how did you age it? Right now, mine is in a lettuce sized tupperware with a lid.

Maybe it has hope to be sophisticated like some of the stuff I've seen on your website.. MMMmmmmm? :-)

[yellerpup]

11. Nothing special about the way my marmalade aged.

I filled 13 sterilized glass jars (1 C. size), processed them in a boiling water bath for 12-15 minutes and let cool on a pantry shelf out of the light. I also put a sample of the marmalade in a 1/2 cup Tupperware container and let that one mellow in the refrigerator. I kept trying the refrigerator sample by taking a little taste every few weeks until one day it hit me that it was Just Right. As for the stew-soup factor in your grapefruit marmalade, my first thought is that grapefruit has a larger proportion of juice and pulp to peel than, say, clementines or oranges. Tangerines had the least juice of all the citrus I've canned so far, which I believe (I'm guessing) is why the bitterness of the peel dominated the flavor longer than the others. I wouldn't give up on it firming up in the refrigerator, MrMickeysMom. I hope it turns out nicely for you. Let me know, will you?

Thanks for visiting the website. :hi:

[grasswire]

3. I love grapefruit

I can only eat half a day due to dietary restrictions, but I am really enjoying those Texas reds.

I saw a recipe the other day for pink grapefruit chiffon pie. Looked interesting.

Another thing you could do is make candied peel. Makes nice gifts!

[Lucinda]

5. Hmmm...that does sound interesting

I've never really cooked with it...something to look into!

[MrMickeysMom]

7. OOoof! Candied Peel!

Man, that sounds great... Do share that one!


:-)

[Lucinda]

4. I love grapefruit but usually just eat it fresh...this sounds like a great project

Hope it turned out well!

[MrMickeysMom]

8. Okay, here's the update...

I've never been afraid to spend more than 12 hours cooking something I've never done before. I'm thinking that the method I chose to cook may have needed to be tweaked.

Yesterday morning I had to move the stuff that cooked almost 10 hours in the crock pot out before I went to work. I noticed as I spooned what had been cooling in the crock pot since 0300 hours into a tupperware bowl that it had not gelled as thick as I might have wanted. Drat!

I was in a rush, but wanted to taste it, so I spooned some marmalade "soup" on my slice of sourdough toast.... Now, I like a pure bitter citrus marmalade, mind you, and the TASTE it was really excellent... Just the right bitterness. BUT, I was disappointed because of the stew-like consistency. It had not gelled like I wished. And, come tomorrow, when I would normally make my traditional peanut butter and marmalade sandwich, this stuff wasn't going to spread well for that. About the only thing I can think of doing is to mix it IN with the peanut butter and make my sandwich that way.

Now, I read what was said in this thread, and DARE I just let it stay in the fridge? Should I cook it more? I'm not sure, but this stuff SAVE FOR THE THICKNESS, is GREAT!

Were I to do this again, maybe I'd not use my crock-pot. Maybe I'd just monitor it and get it up to 220 degrees. I don't think I'd have to add pectin... but I'm willing to take advice on what to do with this interesting and excellent tasting stuff. I'll try to take a picture of it, if requested.

Thanks for all your comments!

MMM

[yellerpup]

13. Thanks for the update!

After reading your update and japple's comments below I wonder if you soaked the cut-up fruit (barely covered by cold water) for 24 hours before you started cooking? I have always done that with marmalades because the recipe always calls for it. Second, maybe the crock-pot isn't the thing. My recipes call for the mixture to be brought to a boil, which would reduce the volume of water/juice and also draw out the natural pectin. Marmalade doesn't usually need extra pectin to set up and (same as japple) I always use the 'drag your finger through a dab on a cold plate' method to determine if the liquid is gel ready. Give it another day and it it's still really soupy, I'd boil it again for a short time. You are probably almost there. Good luck! :fistbump:

[MrMickeysMom]

14. THANKS so much! You're right about...

NOT soaking it. I didn't, plain and simple. And, the recipe DID call for it (did I listen? No..) :blush:

I'll boil again in a few days. I have no idea about the chemistry of how pectin is drawn out, but that certainly would help the process, if it still could be done.

Hey.... There's still hope! :woohoo:

[yellerpup]

16. You're so funny!

And by now your grapefruit has been soaking for a while! :rofl: Fingers crossed for you. Seems to me it could work. I hope it does because Mr. Pup is wild for grapefruit and I think he might enjoy a grapefruit marmalade. :9

[japple]

10. I've never made grapefruit marmalade, but I just finished making

another batch of Meyer Lemon Marmalade and it turned out great. The recipe is at the link below.


http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Meyer-Lemon-Marmalade-102746


I've made lots of jams, jellies, marmalades, and I think you're cooking it too long. In my experience, sometimes the thermometer is at fault and you might need to try another kind of gel test. After letting the lemons sit in water for 24 hours, the recipe says to boil over moderate heat until reduced (about 45 minutes) then add the sugar and boil until a teaspoon of mixture dropped on a cold plate gels (about 15 minutes). That's all the time it took and I did use a candy thermometer, but it never got up to 220 degrees.

[MrMickeysMom]

15. Thanks, japple!

That sounds like what I should have done, I was taking (no surprise) a risky approach.

If you read down-thread, you'll see I've admitted to yellerpup my ignoring of the 24 hour soaking process.

If I make a batch of lemon (intriguing, sounds so good), I'll definitely stay with the recipe. Meanwhile, had I done t his to recipe, it would have been totally fantastic, but I'm giving up on it yet.

:hi:

[japple]

17. You can make grapefruit granita from it. Just ask hippywife for

the instructions.

[MrMickeysMom]

19. After a few days, re-cooking and it's great!

Hey,

Learned a few things ... this is not you typically appearing marmalade, but it's just excellent. It actually tastes exactly as I wanted it to, like ruby red marmalade...

However, I could have made this a lot quicker by following the directions. Still... there is a quality of having cooked it as long as I did, letting it rest, then cooking it again (I have a digital thermometer and brought it up to 220, whereupon it was sticky enough and melted in my mouth when spread over toast).

I canned some, will have a friend who loves same test drive it for me.

Next time, I'll get Myers Lemons. I think they're seasonal, but I'm betting I'll get better at this.

:hi: Thanks, you guys and gals.

[housewolf]

20. Loved your posts

It's so interesting reading about your experiment in grapefruit marmalade cooking, I love reading the processes that you went through and the ideas all the others offered.

Glad it finally turned out perfectly for you! It sounds great!

[MrMickeysMom]

21. Thanks for the comment, housewolf!

This is the same feeling I get when reading the "Penzy's Spice" catalog. There is something about talking and sharing stories about food that is so... nurturing. It's a way to re-align my soul, I think, especially in these interesting times.

Thankfully, after years of posting DU and too many times at GD or presidential (not to mention the 911 thread), I realized how this particular group excels in adding value to the senses I care about via the democratic process!

:toast:

Cheers to us! MMM