January craft club - marmalade and knitting

[blue_nun]

ok I'll get the 3kg of oranges for the session..

Yep, I can bring my preserving pan. I quite want to do my Granny's recipe - but I'll probably do a whole batch at home at some point for that. In fact if Blue Nun could get me the oranges that'd help, otherwise I'll have to trek all over the place for them.

how many kg of oranges do you want ruby ? I can bring them to the session.

 

[RubyToogood]

About a kilo would do me fine, thanks a million

 

[Biddlybee]

Excellent news!!! Well for me anyway - the thing I was meant to be doing has been postponed, so I'll be able to make this after all.

Yay

I'm up for doing whichever marmalade really... not really a fan of shop bought, but I'm sure homemade is nicer - and my mum loves it too, so might give her a jar

 

[Ms T]

If we've got the preserving pan, we can probably do an extra batch. Can you get 4 kilos please, blue nun. Cheers.

 

[gaijingirl]

I've found the recipe that I used (it was from Abel and Cole), so we could give it a go!!

Actually, that recipe is a lot simpler than some of the other ones - no muslin bags etc. Did you do the muslin thing last time?

Erm no... we have a bit of a funny story about that... It involves freecycle, outside advice and hours spent picking out pips only to realise we never needed to after all...

 

[Ms T]

Erm no... we have a bit of a funny story about that... It involves freecycle, outside advice and hours spent picking out pips only to realise we never needed to after all...

Don't you need the pips for the pectin?

 

[gaijingirl]

Don't you need the pips for the pectin?

Yes - but you don't generally want them in the finished product.. that's why you put them in a muslin bag - so you don't have to spend hours fishing them out of the marmalade...

We were told that we didn't need the muslin bag as they would all float to the top and we could just skim them off...

but they didn't, at least not initially within the timescale called for by the recipe - and we ended up picking them out individually.

 

[han]

we ended up picking them out individually.

Gaw blimey!

So that's 4kg of Seville Oranges for Craft Club and 1kg for Ruby. Hope I've got that right.

Yum. Can't wait! We have a massive pan we could bring along if that helps Ms T. It's aluminium though. Hope that's ok. My mum used to boil my dad's socks in it! Though that was a v long time ago. We use it for cooking, now.

 

[wrysmile]

Wry - I don't think we'll be making quite as many jars of marmalade as we did of jam!

Oh - totally fine by me, I don't need 5 at all, just suggested it as thought of a couple of friends I could give it as a gift. Happy with whatever we end up with. What is the difference between a preserving pan and others? I mean, I've got quite a big saucepan I can bring, but do you need something special? And is there anything else I can bring - sugar, or whatever else goes in marmalade? Does anyone also need ££ in advance for ingredients?

 

[han]

We'll bring the oranges, we can sort dosh out at craft club.

What other ingredients do peeps need to bring?

 

[zora]

What time are we meeting, btw? (Or am I being stupid and just can't see the starting time announced?)

 

[Ms T]

Start at 3pm.

I've just worked out that we need a 2 kilos of sugar for every kilo of oranges. That means I need to buy a whopping 8 kilos of sugar. Good job I've got the car today....

 

[Choc]

i have about 3 empty jars only (maybe) 4 to bring.

is there anything else i should bring? i have got a rather large sucepan too (without any socks having ever boiled in it [lol!]) . let me know if it is needed.

yum too, i can't wait to see you all


(yay! no pip picking for hours anymore )

 

[han]

Woo! We have da oranges!

I guess if peeps can bring as many jars with lids as they can (GG - do you still have loads?), then we'll have enough to go round.

Lookin forward to this

 

[gaijingirl]

Please nobody bring any jars - I have WAY WAY too many they're taking over my home!! (although they'll come in useful in summer when our allotment blackberries are here!)

 

[Ms T]

Please nobody bring any jars - I have WAY WAY too many they're taking over my home!! (although they'll come in useful in summer when our allotment blackberries are here!)

Can you bring the muslin as well?

 

[gaijingirl]

Can you bring the muslin as well?

Of course.

 

[alien nation]

I'll be with you in spirit - got Seville oranges and will make after weekend

 

[han]

Please nobody bring any jars - I have WAY WAY too many they're taking over my home!! (although they'll come in useful in summer when our allotment blackberries are here!)

ok

Hey - GG - could you do us a favour and bring those dvds that we lent to your flatmate? One was 'Together' and the other one was 'Goodbye Lenin'. Ta.

 

[gaijingirl]

ok

Hey - GG - could you do us a favour and bring those dvds that we lent to your flatmate? One was 'Together' and the other one was 'Goodbye Lenin'. Ta.

Yes of course... I'd forgotten about those. Thanks for that again!

 

[han]

Yes of course... I'd forgotten about those. Thanks for that again!

ta

 

[Pieface]

Prob doesn't matter now as we have muslin but do you remember we were doing the pip picking and it was tiresome but then I think it was when we started boiling the marmalade that they all rose to the top??? We didn't know that beforehand.

Actually - if we put it through muslin does that mean there will be no peel?

Gaijingirl we really not need any more jars?? I've been collecting like a bastard and it's starting to look a bit OCD in a corner of our kitchen

 

[Biddlybee]

Cheers for all the help with my scarf and explaining how to make my hat
(and the great company, gossip and cakes )... might have marmalade on toast for breakfast!

 

[han]

That was fun - thanks Ms T! Lovely to see everyone. Can't wait to taste the marm!

 

[gaijingirl]

Sorry for ducking out early. I'm feeling a bit miserable with this constant ache. Managed to get to sleep really early and sleep in a bit this morning which is a blessing. Frantically trying to get out of all kinds of commitments at the moment just to take the pressure off a bit.

Thanks to Ms T for hosting - most gracious hostess as always.

I realised this morning that I forgot to take the remaining jars... (seems we are all overrun with jars.. ) - but will be over on Thursday to pick everything up.

 

[eme]

that was fun! thanks ms T for hosting and charcoal crackers! Had some of the ginger marmelade on my toast this am... yum!! where was the recipe from? might try and make some more for presents...

 

[Ms T]

that was fun! thanks ms T for hosting and charcoal crackers! Had some of the ginger marmelade on my toast this am... yum!! where was the recipe from? might try and make some more for presents...

No charcoal crackers left now.

Recipe is from Good Food but it's dead easy - you add 85g of grated ginger to the muslin (for every 500g of oranges, so I used twice that), then chop four balls of preserved stem ginger and add to the marmalade once it's set.

 

[Ms T]

Sorry for ducking out early. I'm feeling a bit miserable with this constant ache. Managed to get to sleep really early and sleep in a bit this morning which is a blessing. Frantically trying to get out of all kinds of commitments at the moment just to take the pressure off a bit.

Thanks to Ms T for hosting - most gracious hostess as always.

I realised this morning that I forgot to take the remaining jars... (seems we are all overrun with jars.. ) - but will be over on Thursday to pick everything up.

Hope you're feeling better soon, gg - it sounds horrible.

We're not going to Manchester now because of the snow forecast for Tues/Wed, so any time this week should be fine.

 

[Pieface]

Thanks for hosting us for hours and hours Ms T. I haven't had any yet but I'm sure it's lovely.

Get better GG! You seemed really exhausted love

 

[RubyToogood]

I had some of the ginger for breakfast too and it was delicious. Thanks for having us Ms T!