Mother Knows Best!

Granny's jam pan!

When I was a little girl I used to pretend to be on TV presenting a cooking programme!  Strange how things turn out as, ironically, that's just what I do for a living - although not on TV.....  I would sit at the kitchen table and "present" to my mum whilst she prepared dinner.  Whilst she said she was a "boring" cook I would redefine that to be a "plain" cook.  A skill in itself is to be able to assemble a tasty meal from - what appear to be - bits of this and that left in the larder. 

I enjoy cooking with my kids and hope that I can pass on some of my Granny's wisdom and that of my mum.  In fact, only today I was looking for a recipe when I came across an old recipe collection - I had forgotten it was there.  To my delight on the inside cover my mother's name before she married and a wide selection of recipes ranging from war-time favourites including Mock Cream and Apple Dumplings through to more modern additions of how to cook spaghetti!

Lists of the amounts of sugar required for jam making and sauces traditionally served with meats alongside meats and poutlry in season, including Hare, Partridge, Grouse and English Plover.  Fantastic!

Inspired by my memories of my childhood and mums kitchen I made marmalade!

Beautiful, sunny, happy day - I love days like this...

Sheila's Saville Orange Marmalade

Seville oranges as required. 12 is a good number and makes about 10lbs when finished.
To each pound of fruit allow 2 pints water.  Weigh again when cooked and cut up and allow 1 lb of sugar to 1lb  of fruit and water.

Method:

• Wipe and weigh oranges.
• Put them into a preserving pan with the water.
• Cover the fruit with a large place, to keep them under the water and boil them for 11/2 hours.
• Leave until next day in the water then remove oranges from liquid.
• Cut into quarters, scrape out the pulp, soft pith and rub through a sieve.
• Boil pips in a saucepan with 1 pint water until reduced to about half.  Add to this whatever pulp is left after rubbing through the sieve.
• Strain it off and add to the water in which the oranges were boiled.
• Add sieved pulp and peel cut into thin strips.
• Weigh and add sugar and cook slowly until dissolved, then bring to a rolling boil.
• Boil until it will jelly when cold, keeping it stirred and when nearly ready remove any scum that may be on top.

Tip:  An easy way is to weigh preserving pan or bowl and weigh liquid in it, then add sugar accordingly.

Carol's version:

Method:

• On Large Grooved Cutting Board, quarter oranges using Utility Knife, remove fruit pulp and chop. 
• Place skins to one side.
• Put pulp in bowl and seperate out pips - place pips in Small Batter Bowl.
• Take half the skins and cut into thin strips - add to fruit pulp.
• Cover pips with water.  Leave everything overnight.
• Weigh fruit and allow 2 pints of water per 1 lb of fruit. Add 1 lb sugar per 1 lb fruit.
• Strain pips and gather all jelly and strained liquid - use this in your liquid allowance.
• Put fruit, sugar and liquid into preserving pan.
• Add juice of 2 lemons.
• Bring to boil, stirring and then allow to bubble well (rolling boil)

Tip:

Push the cooled liquid with your finger and it should wrinkle

• To test if setting point has been reached, chill a plate in the fridge or freezer, drop a small amount of liquid on it and when cold push the liquid with your finger - if it wrinkles then it is ready, if not boil for longer!

Hot liquid = hot jars!

• Warm jars in oven and then ladle warm marmalade in - if you use a jam funnel it makes it easier.