now we have both kinds!

For those who like a little more tang then sweet, I am pleased to announce that "Rie's Kitchen" now has Blood Orange Marmalade for sale. It has a deeper colour and quite a tang without being tart.
It also led to me becoming a member of "Campbells Cash and Carry". Now that is a dangerous place to shop! but does offer me easy access to 15 & 25 kg bags of sugar.

so now with 80 or so jars of marmalde on hand, I only need 1 or 2 more products to hit the markets and see how I go :)

If you are interested in purchasing a jar, only $5.50 + P&H

ready, set ...

I am very excited to launch the first range from Rie's Kitchen.

Luckily for me, it was cold and wet outside yesterday, so Myles did not go Mountain Bike riding with his Dad. Instead he stayed at home and assisted me in the printing of my labels, and also putting it all together.


The most time consuming part was the ribbon. I wanted a practical way to show that the jar has not been opened. Pop lids are more than 3 times the price of regular jar lids, and for small scale operations like mine, are cost prohibitive. A trip to "Spotlight" and ribbon at $0.45 a metre does the trick with a bit of flair! Getting the ribbon centered and under both the labels (the back has the nutritional guide, mandatory for all food produce sold in Australia) almost takes 3 hands. Luckily, a trip to "Officeworks" and a box of black spot stickers did the trick and reduced my frustration :)


Together, Myles and I added the wax seal. A big plug for "Wax Seals Australia." I had the proofs for my seal within hours of my initial contact, and the seal and wax express posted to me within 24 hours!

...and it's such fun.

We also managed to label the Tomato Sauce I had made earlier this year. These are not for sale, but will be next year when Rie's kitchen is in full swing.


I would like to thank the many friends and family who have given advice regarding "Rie's Kitchen" , especially to Karen and Lisa who provided expert marketing advice regarding label design. This label is a long way from the clip art versions I used to produce, and your ideas and encouragement have helped it to this point. Thank you.

I hope to have an online service for sales of my produce in the coming months. It is a bit technical and I am getting advice. Until then, Marmalade, 270 mls $A5.50 plus postage and handling.

Marmalade

Those Jam jars are coming in handy! Thank you to Brenda who donated 2 kgs of oranges from her garden, which combined with lemons and limes from mine have created a fabulous marmalade.

Now I am not really a fan of marmalade, but my partner Myles is. He also is a fan of photography, and this exercise turned into something we could share - I cook, he takes the photo and of course eats!

Tips

Marmalade can be tricky. It is important to remove the scum from the top after you have added the sugar, otherwise this forms crystallines in your jar and are not attractive! Another tip, to ensure that your fruit does not float to the top, is to let the marmalade cool slightly before you pour into the jars. This keeps the fruit even - see above photo.

One other tip I have learned, jars with a pop lid, need to be inverted after filling for a few seconds this creates the heat seal. As the lid cools, you will hear a "pop" and the jar is well sealed.

My recipe is a combination of many with a strong influence from Stephanie Alexanders "Seville Marmalade."

Marmalade recipe

1 kg oranges

4 large lemons

2-4 limes (optional)

2 litres water

2 kgs white sugar

Remove zest from fruit with a vegetable peeler and cut into fine julienne. (There is no short cut here!). Juice fruit and reserve pips. Cut remaining pith into strips and put into a muslin bag with the pips. Tie firmly. Put all ingredients except sugar into a non reactive pot and bring to the boil. Simmer for 1 hour with the lid slightly ajar, until liquid is reduced by half. Cover pot and leave to cool overnight.

Next day, preheat over to 180 degrees. Squeeze muslin bags very firmly into reduced liquid. Discard muslin bag. Bring liquid back to the boil with pot resting on a simmer mat. Meanwhile, warm sugar in the oven. Add sugar to pot and stir until dissolved. Boil briskly for 5-10 minutes until it has reached setting stage. Bottle in hot sterilised jars (see note above)