Backyard marmalade!

The kumquat jam turned out okay, but it seemed kind of skimpy of fruity pieces. Plus I still had lots of kumquats, and more fruit from my garden. Yes, it's been harvest time in my back yard. So I got this bright idea to make Back Yard Marmalade.

I picked 30 more kumquats, which I washed, sliced, got rid of seeds, and set aside. Then I took a lemon and a grapefruit from my back yard and peeled off all the rind with a vegetable peeler. I chopped the rind up and cooked it in a pot with a cup of water and a pinch of baking soda, for twenty minutes.

Meanwhile, I peeled off the white pith off the grapefruit and lemon, and quartered them, getting rid of all the seeds. I threw the quarters in a blender and whirred them around for a few seconds. Then I threw them in with the cooked rind and remaining water, plus the sliced kumquats. I also added about a cup of pomegranate seeds, which I had frozen from our November harvest. At this point I added 5 1/2 cups of sugar and one package of pectin, brought the mixture to a boil and cooked for ten minutes. The photo above shows what it looked like at this point.

Then it was time to ladle the mixture into sterile jars, seal, and load in my big pot full of boiling water. Ten more minutes of cooking.

It turned out very colorful with lots of fruity bits. And, unlike the kumquat jam, it gelled right away. Success! If you want to try this, follow the detailed canning instructions on the pectin package. I just gave you the gist of it.

I tried it on a piece of toast this morning, and it's quite good, I think. The only weird thing is the crunch from the pomegranate seeds. Despite the crunchiness of the seeds, they added a pretty color and yummy taste, so they're a good thing in my book.