I know what you’re thinking. Grapefruit JAM? She must mean marmalade, right? Nopers! I mean jam. This little jewel has quickly become a family favorite. It’s super easy to make, and it turns out the most beautiful naturally pink colored jam I’ve ever seen! This recipe is courtesy of Food In Jars, which is the lovely and very informative site that I stumbled upon while in search of a grapefruit marmalade recipe.
I got the grapefruits on sale at Whole Foods (I honestly don’t remember the price, but it was stellar!) and they were ripe and juicy! Following the recipe, I supremed the grapefruits–which basically means cutting off both ends and then cutting down the sides of the fruit to remove the pithy white part and the skin–and ended up with several cups of grapefruit segments and juice. To these I added white sugar (which I normally would not add…but I decided against honey or another substitute for this recipe and just went for it), and a tiny cheesecloth-wrapped bag of grapefruit seeds. I boiled the jam down until it passed the freezer gel test (This took a lot longer than I thought it would, honestly. About an hour, if I remember correctly!) and then I water bath canned it according to my canner instructions for my altitude.
I would show you a picture of the finished product…but we ate it all before I got to snap one! Even the water bath canned jars. That’s how good this jam is, people. So…go and make some! I know that I intend to make more. I would also like to try this same idea with oranges sometime in the future, so if anyone has done that and has any tips, please let me know.
Have a great day, everyone!
Yield: 2 Pints
Ingredients
- 8 large red grapefruit (approximately 4 pounds)
- 2 1/2 cups granulated white sugar
Instructions
- Start by supreming the grapefruit. Do this by cutting the top and bottom off. Then, working from north pole to south, cut the rind off the fruit (you want to expose the interior surface of the fruit). When rind is entirely removed, use the knife to separate the fruit from the membrane of the fruit.
- Collect the naked fruit sections and their juice in a large bowl. Set any seeds you find aside. Bundle them up in a length of cheesecloth. They’ll give the jam an extra hit of pectin.
- Once all the fruit is supremed, pour it into a large, non-reactive pot and add the sugar and the cheesecloth bundle containing the seeds. Stir until the sugar begins to dissolve.
- Turn the heat to high and bring the fruit mixture to a boil. Cook at a bubble, stirring regularly, until the jam reaches 220 degrees and passes the plate/sauce/wrinkle test (remove the pot from the heat source while you’re testing to prevent scorching).
- When the jam passes these set tests, pour into prepared jars. Apply lids and rings and process in a boiling water bath for ten minutes.
- When time is up, remove jars from canner and let them cool on a folded kitchen towel. When jars are cool to the touch, remove rings and test seals. Store sealed jars in a cool, dark place. Any unsealed jars should be refrigerated and used first.
