A Delightful Citrus Treat

This time of year we have an abundance of zucchini in the garden. Always looking for something “new” to do with it, I went in search of a recipe in my favorite small batch canning cookbook. Small batch preserving is wonderful for when you only have a bit of time to dedicate to cooking. I typically process 3 or 4 pints in each batch and it only takes about an hour.

This marmalade has a sweet citrus flavor with just a hint of ginger as an aftertaste. Today I had it on my morning bagel, tomorrow it’s going into my oatmeal and who knows what’s next…

What is a Marmalade?

Technically marmalade is a citrus spread made from the peel and pulp of any kind of citrus fruit. It can also have other fruits or vegetables as ingredients. Marmalades are cooked for a long time and have no added commercial pectin. The pith of the citrus is cooked with the spread and then removed. It serves as a natural pectin.  Marmalades are often used as spreads and glazes.

Ingredients for Lemon Ginger Zucchini Marmalade:

3 lemons
1 medium orange
2 ½ cups water
½ cup chopped fresh peeled ginger root
1 cup shredded zucchini (about 1 medium fruit)
4 ½ cups granulated sugar

Instructions:

1. Remove the rind from the lemon and orange and cut away the white pith. Reserve the pith and fruit pulp.
2. Cut the rind, into small, thin strips. (you can also use a zester but the finished product won’t be as pretty). Add it to a large stainless steel saucepan.
3. Add the remaining white pith, water, and gingerroot to the saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat, cover, cover, reduce heat and gently boil for 25 minutes.
4. Remove from the heat and using tongs or a fork, remove the pith.
5. Finely chop the reserved fruit pulp in a blender and add it, the sugar, and the shredded zucchini to the saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce heat, and boil gently for 20 minutes. Stir occasionally to make sure it doesn’t stick.

To preserve for later: Ladle into hot pint jars and process in a water bath canner for 10 minutes. You can also place 1 cup servings in the freezer. Makes 4 ½ cups.

Total prep time 40 minutes. Total cooking/processing time 55 minutes

Notes on Processing:

• // Next time I make this recipe I will add more zucchini. At least another half of a cup. I thought the recipe could use more zucchini as a filler to balance the citrus.
• // I did not add all the pith that I reserved from the processing. I was concerned that I would not be able to get it all out again, so I only put in the biggest pieces.  The marmalade still set beautifully and the big pieces were easy to remove.
• // I like the look of the strips of lemon and orange in the finished product. Next time I will also cut them so they are no longer than 1 inch. I think it makes it easier to eat. Zesting the rind would give you the same flavor, but not the wonderful texture of the strips.

Wondering what to do with your marmalade creation? Be sure and check out this post from TheKitchn – Beyond Toast: More Ways To Use Marmalade. Not only do they give you 7 ideas for using it, but the comments are worth checking too. Plus, here’s my favorite Orange Marmalade Recipe from the time I had a box of oranges to process.

 The Complete Book of Small-Batch Preserving: Over 300 Recipes to Use Year-Round
(Amazon)

September is National Organic Harvest Month and to help you make the most of your harvests, I’ve teamed up with these other amazing bloggers. Please be sure to check out their tips and more:

Rachel from Grow a Good Life – Kathie from Homespun Seasonal Living – Teri from Homestead Honey – Chris from Joybilee Farm – Susan from Learning and Yearning – Shelle from Preparedness Mama – Angi from SchneiderPeeps – Janet from Timber Creek Farm