Orange marmalade is always in high demand in this household.  It is not unusual to find me experimenting with different variations of it.  The lemon rose petal marmalade I made a few summers ago has been, by far, my favorite, but this one is not far off.  This time around I went grated ginger root and cara cara oranges.  Cara cara’s are a variety of navel oranges that have a pinker flesh color and a slightly sweeter taste then the your usual run of the mill navel oranges.

Be warned, making marmalade can be an exercise in patience.  A lot of time can go into the prepping of the ingredients, and there is quite a bit of monitoring and waiting for things to boil properly.  You can probably cut a few steps by using store bought pectin instead of making your own pectin stock like I tend to do.  What can I say? I like the challenge.

Orange Ginger Marmalade

Recipe makes 1 quart of marmalade.

Ingredients:

• 4 Oranges
• 2′-3′ piece of peeled Ginger Root
• 3 cups Sugar
• 2-3 cups Water

Directions:

1. Set a small ceramic plate in the freezer in preparation for future plate tests.
2. Break down the oranges:
   1. Zest each orange, and set the zest aside in a bowl.
   2. Slice each orange in half, and use a knife and spoon to scoop out all of the orange flesh into the bowl with the zest.  Make sure to avoid adding seeds or the peel membrane to the bowl.
   3. Squeeze out the orange juice into a medium sized stock pot.
   4. Use a knife to quarter the remaining membrane and place it, along with the seeds into the stock pot.
3. Pour 2-3 cups of water into the stock pot along with the orange membranes.
4. Thinly slice up half of the ginger root, and add it to the stock pot.
5. Place the stock pot on the stovetop, and bring it to a rolling boil.
6. Continue to cook the pectin stock for about 45 minutes, or until the membrane starts to get mushy and the remaining liquid is slightly thickened and cloudy.  You want to make sure that at least 2 cups of liquid remain in the pot by the time you stop boiling it.  Add an additional 1/2 cup of water if the liquid levels start to look low.
7. Pour the pectin stock through a sieve to separate the liquid from the solids.
8. Finely grate the rest of the ginger root into the bowl with the orange zest, and flesh segments.
9. Place a deep pan on the stovetop, under medium heat, and add 2 cups of the pectin stock, the contents of the orange bowl, and the sugar.
10. Bring the marmalade to a boil, and monitor it while stirring occasionally.
11. Use a candy thermometer to measure the temperature for your marmalade.  You want to cook it until it reaches 220 degrees.  If you are familiar with the jelly making process you might be able to just eyeball it.
12. Once the liquid has reached 220 degrees, place a small drop of it on the cold plate from the freezer.
13. Let it rest for about a minute, and then give the drop a small nudge with you finger.  If the marmalade wrinkles and jiggles slightly while retaining its consistency it is ready for canning.
14. Pour the boiling hot marmalade into your canning jars, or a single large jar for the refrigerator.
15. Proceed to process and can your jars.  If you rather not can your marmalade, store it in your refrigerator for up to a month.
16. Allow your marmalade to cool for about 12 hours or overnight without moving it around so that the pectin can set up right.