Bitter Orange Mimosa Jam Recipe

Aside from my other culinary-driven friend’s whose careers also revolve around food, my grandmother and myself, I do not know a lot of people who enjoy jarring as a hobby. It can be a very lengthy process that could take up your entire day and might not even promise to be successful. Boiling the jars, making the jam, boiling the jam and then hoping that it sets can be a little too much for the everyday cook. I highly encourage you to give it a shot one weekend afternoon. You could be thanking yourself all winter.

The process of preserving and jarring foods has become a forgotten notion. We can purchase just about anything we need from strawberries to bananas, all year round, at almost any grocery store. Our culture has been very spoiled. I’ve read a handful of books of families challenging themselves to eat only foods that are produced within a certain range of their home and to focus on seasonal eating. Almost every single attempt at this type of eating has included preserving seasonal foods for use later on in the year. Strawberries are not usually available in the middle of the winter, but if you take a day in the summer to make some strawberry jelly, you can have the fresh flavor whenever you want. You won’t have to relay on whatever jar of jelly is on sale at the grocery store.

I admit, this particular recipe will not last you for months, but it is a safe attempt to see if you even like this kind of project. This recipe will yield just enough jam for 1 small pint jar – a great gifting size! It can easily be doubled, tripled or quadrupled if you find yourself catching on and liking the jamming and jarring process.

Bitter Orange Mimosa Jam

Prep Time:15 minutes
Cook time:45 minutes
Yields – 1.5 cups

Ingredients:

• 2 tangerines
• 4 oranges
• 6-8 strawberries
• 2 teaspoons lemon juiced
• ¼ cup water
• 1 cups plus 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• 3 tablespoons Pectin

Special Tools: pint ball jar, or other jarring container

Instructions:

• Prepare your jar by placing the jar and lids in a pan that has simmering water. Let the jar sit in the water for 5-10 minutes to sanitize. Be careful not to let the water boil and also be careful while handling the jars.
• They will be very hot. Use tongs to remove the jars and set aside.
• Juice the tangerines and one of the oranges and set aside. Discard the rinds and pulp.
• Using a mandolin, or a very sharp knife, slice the oranges (whole) into 1/8” slices, leaving the rind on. Cut the slices into halves and then quarters.
• Remove the stems from the strawberries and slice the strawberries into 1/8” slices.
• In a stainless steel saucepan, heat the juices, oranges, strawberries and 1 cup sugar. Keep the heat on low and let the fruit “melt” together for about 30-45 minutes, stirring often. The fruit should breakdown and reduce slightly, like a dessert sauce. If it reduces to be less than 2 cups of mixture, simply add more orange juice.
• Taste after 45 minutes and adjust sugar to your taste. (It will be bitter because the rinds are still on the oranges. If you don’t want it to be that bitter, feel free to remove the rinds from about half of the oranges before cooking). Add the lemon juice after the 45 minutes is complete.
• Using a strainer and cheesecloth, strain the mixture into a bowl. Use the back of a spoon or a ladle to press the rinds and remaining pulp to squeeze out any remaining juice. Let the mixture sit for 5-10 minutes to assure all the liquid has been squeezed out. Discard the rinds and pulp.
• In a separate saucepan, combine the pectin and one tablespoon of sugar. Bring to a rolling boil that cannot be stirred down on high heat.
• Add the boiling water to the strained orange mixture, stir together.
• Bring the mixture to a boil and boil hard for one minute, stirring constantly.
• Remove from heat and skim off the foam, if necessary.
• Immediately ladle the mixture into your clean, prepared jar. Let the jar sit open for 3-5 minutes to allow the mixture to cool slightly.
• Cover and let the jar sit for about 24 hours to set. The jam can be kept at room temperature or in the refrigerated for up to two weeks.

Beautiful Photos by ©Amanda Webb