Mmmm Citrus

My canning supplies have been feeling under loved recently. I try to tell them that winter is the sewing machines turn for some loving but the canning pot is just so darn self centered. I finally caved and obliged it's need for attention with some delicious citrus-y recipes.

First up was decidedly not citrus but in season none-the-less. Pomegranate Syrup, yes, it tastes as decadent as it sounds. In my search for a recipe though I discovered that Grenadine was historically pomegranate syrup, then occasionally cherry, and now present day high fructose corn syrup and food dye. Yaaaaay modern innovations. We added a touch of juice and zest from a meyer lemon to cut the sweetness. At a 2-1 ratio of pomegranate juice (cooked down berries with enough water to cover) to sugar it still turned out sweeter than we expected. It will be used with mixed drinks (clearly) ice cream, yogurt, french toast... goodness the options are endless.

Next was Grapefruit Syrup, nearly identical process but at a 1-1 (or a bit under) ratio of fruit to sugar. We cooked down the chopped sections with the pith still attached and ran it through a food mill giving it a bit of thickening but not cooked enough to gel and that bitter edge you'd expect in a marmalade. So far this hasn't made it farther than pancakes and french toast but that's only because I'm afraid if I let it be known that it will taste good on pound cake or ice cream there might not be any left.

Last up was Lime Marmalade. This turned out much more bitter than I expected. I soaked the slices (fruit and rind) first but used the soaking liquid instead of dumping it and adding fresh water to cook. In retrospect I would have liked the flavor better if I'd used fresh water but it does taste like a typical bitter marmalade even though it's a bit thin. We've used it already as part of a marinade for chipolte-lime chicken burritos and it was more than fabulous. I think it may find it's way into marinades, glazes and dressings more than anything else.

Still to come in the next month will be Orange and Cranberry Orange Marmalade. Now those I can't wait for, and I'll try to remember and use pectin this time...