
Citrus Days
The markets are brimming with citrus fruit at the moment, much of it from Spain. In France citrus fruits are known as les agrumes. The bright vibrant colours are a cheerful addition to wintry days, the smell and taste so refreshing and fragrant. There are so many varieties to choose from, each week another appears. Bitter or Seville oranges (oranges amères), blood oranges (oranges sanguines), bergamots (a type of orange, used in Earl Grey tea), lemons (citrons), grapefruit (pamplemousse), clementines and various others including this week mandarins and clemenvillas (a hybrid from crossing a mandarin with a tangelo, which is itself a cross between a tangerine and a pomelo – complicated!).
I have been doing a little research into citrus fruits following an interesting conversation with our recently widowed neighbour at lunch last Sunday. She has a house down near Perpignan and has citrus trees in her garden. She explained that most people have citrus trees in their gardens down there as the climate is kinder. Grapefruit trees are also a feature – I would love that! Greece was like that too. I remember seeing lemon and orange trees lining the streets, rich with fruit in the winter months.


Our neighbour also explained how to tell if an orange is a navel orange. I am sure lots of you know this but I didn’t. It is all to do with the growing end of the orange. Not the stalk end but the other. The navel orange has quite a different growing point which looks possibly a little like a navel!

Quite a few people around here also have lemon trees, tucked under cover in the winter months as they are not keen on the frost. I am always a little jealous of those trees dripping with fruit. My little lemon tree has given me one lemon in 4 years and whilst it was delicious and perfect, I think I may be doing something wrong. Our post-lady and I had a citrus tree conversation the other day as you do (her lemon tree had suffered in an unexpected frost) and she told me that her brother-in-law is an expert. She thinks I need to prune the tree but is checking with him when is the best time to do this! I have grown it from a tiny sapling of about 20cms high and it is now the grand height of 60cm and the same width! Definitely not a fast grower. I have to say that its one fruit offering was possibly the tastiest lemon I have ever tried!
Further research has yielded some fascinating citrus facts. The citrus family originated from just 3 species, so most of the fruit we know and love are hybrids. Citrus fruit has been around for a long time; there is fossil evidence of the Citrus genus from as far back as 7 million years ago, as well as being documented in Roman and Ancient Greek history. It apparently originated in the Himalayas before spreading through South East Asia, becoming domesticated at least 3000 years ago. The 3 ancestral or original species in the genus Citrus are the mandarin (Citrus reticulate), pomelo (Citrus maxima) and citron (Citrus medica, a large fragrant citrus fruit with very thick rind, often used for candied peel, not to be confused with the French word for lemon). The fruits were cultivated for their medicinal properties, their fragrance and beautiful flowers. They are now widespread, with many different varieties.
So armed with a little more knowledge of all things citrus, I have been indulging in buying some of the vast array currently on offer at the market. I have enjoyed a mammoth marmalade making weekend, ably assisted by my sous-chef Mother. The first batch, all 15 jars, was made with a mixture of 8 different citrus fruits: pink grapefruit, blood orange, mandarin, lemon, lime, bergamot, clementine, bitter orange. The second batch was made with 5 fruits but with the unexpected addition of apple. We recently discovered a 4 fruit marmalade here with apple in it – really lovely. So I decided to try to replicate it in my kitchen. The apple was cooked with pink grapefruit, blood orange, lemon, mandarin and clementine. The result wasn’t quite the same as the commercial version, less sweet for a start but it is delicious and a hit with the family. My mother even took a pot home with her when she left for the UK last week.




Marmalade
My trusty easy marmalade recipe formed the basis for both of these. I published it last year – see post ‘Making Marmalade’ for the original quantities and suggestions. This time I have adapted it to 5 fruit and apple. Scale up or down depending on how much you would like to make.
This is an easy marmalade recipe that works well. This time I have adapted it to 5 fruit plus the addition of some apple.
Makes about 3kg (6 ½ lbs approx.)


Ingredients
About 1.5kg citrus fruit (blood oranges, clementines, 1 x lemon, 1 x pink grapefruit and mandarins)
Juice of 1 lemon
600g approx. of apples
1.5 – 2kg granulated or preserving sugar, depending on how sweet you want it.
Glass jars and lids
Method
1: Wash the citrus fruit and cut them in quarters lengthways.
2: Cut each quarter widthways as thinly as possible (or as thick as you would like).
3: Remove all the pips as you go.
4: Place the citrus fruit in a large wide saucepan or preserving pan (large enough to boil the fruit safely) and cover with 2 litres of cold water and the lemon juice.
5: Leave to soak for 24 hours. This allows the peel to soften and the fruit to release the pectin.
6: After 24 hours, peel, core and chop the apple into bite sized pieces, add to the citrus fruit and bring to the boil and simmer vigorously uncovered for 1 hour. This should reduce the liquid by about a third to a half and the apple should be cooked down to pulp.
7: Remove from the heat and stir in the sugar.
8: Depending on time, you can cover and leave for 24 hours, or on a gentle heat stir until all the sugar is dissolved.
9: Then bring to the boil and keep boiling for 15 minutes stirring from time to time to stop it catching on the bottom. If you have left it for 24 hours, stir well before heating to ensure the sugar has dissolved.
10: To check for the setting point, either use a sugar thermometer (setting 104°C/219°F) or put a spoonful of the marmalade on a cold saucer. Allow the mixture to cool, then push it from the edge with your finger tip to see if the surface wrinkles. If it does the setting point has been reached. If not continue to boil and repeat the wrinkle test every few minutes.
11: Once the setting point is reached, remove from the heat and leave for 10 mins for the peel to settle.
12: Stir well and pot into sterilised jars. Top with waxed disks and seal with lids.
13: Label when cold.
14: Enjoy
Sterilise jars by washing them in hot soapy water and rinse well. Place in preheated low oven on their sides for 10-15 mins until dry, while the marmalade is boiling.
Other uses for the marmalade apart from on toast!
- We used some of the marmalade to go into miniature tarts, alongside some mince tarts.
- It is also lovely as a topping to vanilla ice-cream (maybe with a drizzle of Grand Marnier too) or Greek yogurt (or the vegan equivalent).
- Stir a dessert spoonful or two into a fruit cake or chocolate brownie mixture for a citrus burst.
- Swirl a spoonful through fromage frais for a light pudding or top your porridge with a dollop!


