Barefoot Contessa at Home - Anna's orange marmalade

I have about 10 pounds of oranges and 10 pounds of grapefruit from my grandma's citrus trees in Los Angeles, so you'll be seeing quite a few posts over the next week that feature citrus. First up is Anna's orange marmalade from Barefoot Contessa at Home

Four large oranges and two lemons (I used Meyer lemons) are thinly sliced and combined with 8 cups of sugar and 8 cups of water to create marmalade. I was a little skeptical at first, because 8 cups of sugar sounded excessive to me. But Ina and Anna were right - this recipe produces a marmalade that's not too tart and not too sweet.

Quince and meyer lemon marmalade

Quinces are extremely hard, covered in fuzz, and are too astringent to eat raw. So why do I like them so much?

Quinces have a wonderful aroma and taste like a cross between apple, pear and pineapple. They’re yellow when ripe and when you cook them, they turn a pink to red color.

Quince and Meyer Lemon Marmalade
If you don’t have Meyer lemons, you can use regular lemons.
4 cups peeled, cored and chopped quince
2 cups sugar
3 cups water
¼ cup lemon juice
¼ cup lemon zest
Seeds scraped from 1 vanilla bean
Combine all ingredients in saucepan. Bring to a boil. Once the mixture comes to a boil, lower the heat to a simmer and let it cook for about 1 ½ hours or until mixture thickens. The marmalade will continue to thicken as it cools. It can be kept in the fridge for a few weeks.

Before

An hour and a half later