Brandy Meyer Lemon Marmalade

Rinshinomori's Note:

Fabulous lemon marmalade with perfect balance of sweetness and sourness. The inspiration for this came from Gourmet Magazine. It is very important to remove foam and scum while cooking this marmalade to produce clarity to this marmalade. The pits work to jell this marmalade. This makes 3 pint size jars with a little leftover. Everything except the seeds are jarred (do not peel). Seeds are used for jelling only and later removed. This marmalade is for Meyer lemons. I have not tried this recipe with regular lemons.

• Total Time: 80 hrs
• Prep Time: 0 mins
• Cook Time: 80 hrs

Ingredients:

Yield: 3 pint jars

• 6 meyer lemons (1 1/2 lb)
• 4 cups water
• 4 1/4 cups sugar
• 1/4 cup brandy

Directions:

1. Halve lemons crosswise and remove seeds. Tie seeds in a cheesecloth bag. Quarter each lemon half and thinly slice. Combine with bag of seeds and water in a 5-quart nonreactive heavy pot and let mixture stand, covered, at room temperature 24 hours.
2. Bring lemon mixture (including the bag of seeds) to a boil over moderate heat and add brandy. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, until reduced to approximately 4 cups, about 45 minutes. Stir in sugar and boil over moderate heat, stirring occasionally and skimming off all foam and scum until it reaches 215 to 220°F Remove the bag of seeds.
3. Ladle hot marmalade into 3 pint size jars and wipe rims with dampened cloth and seal jars with lids.
4. Put jars in a water-bath canner or on a rack set in a deep pot. Add enough hot water to cover jars by 1 inch and bring to a boil. Boil jars, covered, 15 minutes and transfer with tongs to a rack. Cool jars completely.
5. Marmalade keeps, stored in a cool, dark place, up to 1 year.

Reviews

[Sydney Mike]

Was going to try this recipe with regular lemons, but a friend of mine, who often manages to come up with some of the hard-to-find ingredients that I want, was able to get me 10 Meyer lemons, so I made a batch & a half of this OUTSTANDING MARMALADE! She now has 2 pints of it, & I have what was left! Thank you so much for sharing a truly great recipe! [Tagged, made & reviewed for one of my groupmates in the Aus/NZ Recipe Swap #24]