Friday, April 28, 2006

Jams, Marmalades and Jelly

What exactly is the difference between these condiments? I went in to the process with a scientific mind and discovered all the differences.
My neighbor left for Maui and told me I could pick clean his orange tree. I was excited because I wanted to try to make another batch of marmalade with less sugar than I had done before.
So I started with peeling all the oranges and soaking them for three days like the other recipes had specified. But this time instead of adding 5 pounds of sugar to the brew, I added less sugar and natural pectin. Much less sugar. I bought all my cute little jars that Ball puts out (they are called the Platinum collection) and went to work. But it turned out a little different from the previous batch. You can tell because you get alot less sugar and a lot less caramelization-- and you end up more with a jello-like jelly. Its still good but it is very different from what you expect when you get marmalade in your mouth. The next project is May 6-- strawberry jam day with Becky and friends!
Here's what the process looks like:

You can tell the difference between the large jar on the right (first batch) and the little ones.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

nora...POST MORE!!!!! this is the most booorring blog in the world...geez
brett