My sister mentioned she made some orange honey marmalade which got me to thinking agave nectar might work well too. I decided to give it a try by making a small batch.
I had hoped to find some organic Seville oranges, but they didn't have any at the market. I came home instead with one blood orange, one navel orange and one lime.
The main thing I noticed making this was the marmalade didn't "jell" the way it does when I use granulated sugar. I cooked it a bit longer until it thickened sufficiently. I suppose I could have added pectin, but I rarely use that. In any case the finished marmalade had a texture I quite like and it was very flavourful.
I will use agave nectar again the next time I make a jam or marmalade. It's definitely worth experimenting with.
2 seedless organic oranges
1 organic lime (total weight of the oranges and lime was 1 lb)
2 cups fresh orange juice
1 1/2 cups agave nectar
Wash the fruit carefully and then cut it into quarters, remove any seeds you might come across and slice thinly. Place the fruit as you slice it into a bowl reserving as much of the juice as possible. I sliced the fruit directly into the bowl using a mandoline.
Place the fruit and orange juice into a nonreactive pot. Add the agave nectar and bring the mixture to a boil. Turn down the heat and simmer for about 45 minutes.
Increase the heat and stirring continue to cook until the marmalade thickens; about 10-15 minutes. Drop a teaspoon of the marmalade onto a cold plate to check if it firms up. If it's too runny, continue to simmer and check it again in a few minutes. If the marmalade seems too firm add a bit of juice or water.
Because this made a small quantity, I didn't bother with a water bath. I ladled the marmalade into sterilized jars to keep in the refrigerator. If you'd like to use a water bath instead then please look here.
Hi Gertrude,
ReplyDeleteI was curious about using agave nectar w marmalade so thanks for your post. I did just make a batch of Seville Marmalade and it was divine. I found a recipe online by David Lebovitz-"living the sweet life in Paris". Seville oranges have many seeds, 20-30 per piece. He said to save the seeds and tie them in a muslin sack and cook with the jam. The seeds have a lot of pectin.
I still had a few extra Seville oranges and wanted to make some more marmalade bc it was/is so delicious. Bitter, tart, bursting w flavor. So now I am making a batch w 2 Seville oranges, 3 blood oranges, 6 kumquats, a pink grapefruit, a meyer lemon and an Eureka lemon. (The latter 2 from our garden.) I did save all the seeds but there are many fewer than the batch I made w the 8 Seville oranges and 2 Eureka lemons. I am now parboiling as David suggested and will let it sit over night and hope the pectin is enough. I add the agave tomorrow and see how it goes. But like you, I will cook it down and add no pectin, don't have it anyway!
Best, Nancy Mueller from Oakland CA
I wasn't aware you could the seeds for pectin. I will take a look through his blog for that recipe. Thanks!
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