The rhythm of handmade marmalade

The weekend was dedicated to the making of marmalade at Towerwater. With the citrus fruit in season, it was time to make our traditional organic handmade marmalade. The added luxury that we enjoy, is that we water the garden with untreated irrigation water which flows straight from the river.

With no known chemical additives in the soil or on the plants, we rest assured that we are making the healthiest possible natural preservative-free marmalade.

There is a rhythm to the garden. Activities are pre-determined by the seasons and what each provides in terms of vegetables, fruit and herbs.

The kitchen, our hands and cutting boards, were steeped with the fresh fragrance of citrus oil. Apparently, essential orange oil is a potent anti-depressant. It has wonderful properties for energizing and lifting the mood. Perhaps it is why we were happy to make the marmalade, the added energy stimulating our creativity. 

We decided to make naartjie marmalade, our first ever. We also made a Towerwater five-fruit marmalade. We used the five different citrus fruit varieties from the trees growing alongside the vegetable garden. We used Seville and Valencia oranges, limes, lemons and naartjies. We were excited to add this unique marmalade to our collection. It captures five of the seven citrus varieties available in the garden.

We made a batch of sweet orange marmalade using Valencia oranges. I decided to make Earl Grey tea marmalade, in order to experiment with the effects of the Bergamot flavour it contains. It adds a marvellous flavour, just perfect for breakfast.

5 fruit, naartjie, Earl Grey and sweet orange marmalade

Making the four batches of marmalade became a rhythmic exercise of washing, cutting, juicing, slicing, cooking and bottling the citrus fruit. There was no need for conversation. With music playing in the background, we were working as on an assembly line. Each focused on the task at hand.

Thinly sliced peel slivers hang suspended in different hues of amber jelly. They are ready for the enjoyment they can provide at forthcoming breakfasts.