Recipe Lime Marmalade

The Late Night Gourmet

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This might not look pretty, but it tastes great. There's a definite tartness from the limes, but it's tempered by the sugar. I will have to make this again, implementing what I learned. But, let's get on with the recipe.

Ingredients

1 pound limes
3 cups water
3 1/2 cups sugar

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Directions

1. Wash limes. Cut the ends off the limes, preferably on a green cutting board using a green knife.

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2. Cut limes thinly. I used a mandoline; some of the softer limes didn't cut as well, so I needed to use the knife again. I also used a cut-proof glove so I could watch the NCAA basketball tournament while doing this and not have to worry about ending up in the emergency room.

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3. Remove any seeds and discard. Dice limes, preserving as much of the juices as possible.

NOTE:
here's where things went south. None of the Lime Marmalade recipes I read mentioned cutting the limes into small pieces. But, if you're making a marmalade, you want only shreds, not big chunks, right? I didn't realize this until much later. My way around it worked, but resulted in a cloudy look.

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4. Place limes and any juices in a pot. Add 3 cups of water, using some to rinse out the bowl you shredded the limes into so you get as much of the juices as possible.

5. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low. Heat for about 30 minutes, or until the peels are soft.

NOTE: Here's that work-around I talked about. I threw everything into the blender on low for about 15 seconds to break up all the big pieces. The mix immediately turned cloudy. I assume this is because of the pith from the limes. You don't need to do this step if you cut the limes in small enough pieces before the boil.

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6. Add sugar to lime mixture. Bring again to a boil, then lower again to medium-low. Heat for 20-30 minutes or until the temperature reaches 220° F (105° C), measured by a candy thermometer.

NOTE: as the last lesson in this learning experience, the mixture never got above 215° F at the 30 minute mark, but I cooked it for another 15 minutes, expecting it to rise. The final consistency is thick, but spreadable. And, like I said at the top, it's very tasty.

7. Strain out white clumps (pith) using a skimmer (not a sieve...the marmalade needs to get through, and a sieve's holes are too small).

8. Store in glass mason jars: add hot water to jars first so the heat of the marmalade doesn't crack the glass, then pour out the water and add the marmalade.
 
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I'll bet this is really tasty! And I think you could use it in savoury recipes as well as sweet...
Interestingly, when I got to step 6, I thought about what seemed to be a crazy amount of sugar. So, I tried whisking in 2 cups of sugar and tasting: it was good, but there was still a fair amount of bitterness (likely a combo of pith + peel). Adding the rest of the sugar smoothed out the bitterness while not being overly sweet. I most certainly do have some savory ideas for this recipe: it's not the last time it's seen in this challenge, I can tell you that much. :whistling:
 
This looks really good. We prefer limes over lemons in my house.

I wonder how much less sugar you'd need if you used real Key Limes.

Med and Craigsy would know better.
 
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