Marmalade

I remember helping maternal grandmother make her own marmalade.  She was born in Yorkshire and I still remember her home made white bread with marmalade.  She told me you had to use "special" oranges.

Richard came over the other day and brought a can he picked up at the English section of Fresh Street Market.  It was an orange concentrate and I wasn't sure what to do with it.  I opened it and both Cec and Richard tasted it.  They said "that's very bitter".  I put on my glasses, read the can and it was a concentrate of Seville oranges to make marmalade.

I have never made jam.  With all the time I have, I went to Canadian Tire and bought mason jars.  The recipe called for 1.8 KG (UK recipe) for my US friends 4 pounds of sugar!   I just bought a package of sugar and it was 2 KG so at least I had enough to make the jam.

 As I was making the marmalade, I was washing the mason jars and lids in nice soapy hot water.  I seem to use hotter water and more soap these days.   I tested the marmalade and it appeared to be setting so I started to put it in my 12 small jars, the only ones left at Canadian Tire.  Obviously I am not the only one making jam.

I got to the last two jars and I had no more lids.  When I searched my soapy water, one of the sealing lids, SEALED to my sink.  See the picture below.  I put saran wrap underneath the lid to take the picture just in case it "sealed" itself again.

It was really stuck

I tried getting it out with different knives, scissors and anything else that may lift it.  Nothing would break the seal.  I asked Cec for help.  As he was about to get a nail, hammer and screw driver in the garage, I quickly went on You Tube.  I found a wonderful video where a guy used a bathroom toilet plunger to release something stuck.  Cec got the bathroom plunger and with a few hefty plunges it unsealed itself! 

I have ten jars left, I've already given two away.  I hope it's good as with all the sugar in the marmalade I will be careful not to eat it every day.