Instead of allowing the fruit from our Kumquat tree to merely decorate the front lawn I have an annual marmalade making ritual each February. Ta Da! There are my lovely little jars.
Since I can't even preserve a thought typically, this has proven to be an interesting enterprise on my part. The single most important point I've learned in marmalade making is never, ever, EVER take your eyes off the pot of boiling citrus sugar mixture. Results are disastrous and the clean up means you will be wearing syrup in your hair. How you ask? Well from trying to clean up what oozed under the cook top of course. Had a small child tried to cross my floor they could have been glued there into perpetuity.
A pint of Kumquats will set you back $3.99 at my local grocery store which makes the tree in the front yard of our Southern Georgia home worth thousands this year. Here it is just before harvest.
It may not look like a lot but trust me, I think we
pulled a full bushel off those branches and since the fruit is only about an inch and a half long, that's a lot.
As raw fruit, people either love them or hate them. The peel is quite sweet but the centers are very sour.
Since there are only 2 of us, my only option is to preserve them and I enjoy doing so. Usually.
The biggest joy is seeing the glow in the jars shining as brightly as the Georgia sunshine. Well, next to serving up a generous dollop with butter on a hot southern biscuit out on that veranda of course.
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| Mahoney-McGarvey House Brunswick, Georgia |
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| Quattro Itagioni jars covered with polka dot paper printed myself and tied with silk cord. Ceramic spoons can be purchased at Crate & Barrel |
Instead of allowing the fruit from our Kumquat tree to merely decorate the front lawn I have an annual marmalade making ritual each February. Ta Da! There are my lovely little jars.
Since I can't even preserve a thought typically, this has proven to be an interesting enterprise on my part. The single most important point I've learned in marmalade making is never, ever, EVER take your eyes off the pot of boiling citrus sugar mixture. Results are disastrous and the clean up means you will be wearing syrup in your hair. How you ask? Well from trying to clean up what oozed under the cook top of course. Had a small child tried to cross my floor they could have been glued there into perpetuity.
A pint of Kumquats will set you back $3.99 at my local grocery store which makes the tree in the front yard of our Southern Georgia home worth thousands this year. Here it is just before harvest.
pulled a full bushel off those branches and since the fruit is only about an inch and a half long, that's a lot.
As raw fruit, people either love them or hate them. The peel is quite sweet but the centers are very sour.
The biggest joy is seeing the glow in the jars shining as brightly as the Georgia sunshine. Well, next to serving up a generous dollop with butter on a hot southern biscuit out on that veranda of course.
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