Gone Troppo!: Finger Lime Marmalade

What do you do with the fruit from 150 finger lime trees? Make marmalade!

The finger lime is a native Australian citrus, with huge thorns and lots of green stink bugs like to make their home there. The fruit kind of looks like a finger, and when you cut it open, you can squeeze out little balls of limey goodness.

Fearing another day of slave labour in the relentless Queensland sun, I decided that I was going to make some jam. Finger lime jam. Inside, away from the sunshine.

A quick google left me with a bit of a guide, but I just made up the rest...and it turned out pretty good!

Finger Lime Marmalade (makes 12 and a half jars)

2kg Finger Limes
2kg Sugar
Juice of 5 mandarins, topped up with water to make 1.5 litres (I just found a mandarin tree with some fruit on it, so hey, why not. Not sure if it made any difference...)

1) Place whole finger limes in a bowl and cover with boiling water - this will help draw out some of the bitter oils in the skin, plus sterilise them. When the water is cool enough, take them out and give them a scrub with a little brush. They'll feel a bit slimy, but it washes right off.

2) Give them one more quick rinse in boiling water, then slice them painstakingly thin with a sharp knife. Pick out as many seeds as you can.

3) Place the sliced limes in a big pot (I use a cast iron pot, but I'm sure anything big with a heavy base will be fine) with the water/juice. Let it barely simmer for a few hours, til the skin has softened. Don't be tempted to add more water, unless it looks bone dry.

4) Add the sugar and stir til dissolved (I'm not sure why, but as the sugar melts the jam becomes a lot more 'liquidy'). Crank up the heat and let it boil furiously for 10 - 20 minutes, stirring regularly to avoid it sticking to the bottom of your pot. When you think it's nearly done (the bubbles will look a little glossier, than watery), test some jam on a saucer that's been in the freezer. Spoon a glob of jam on the plate and let it cool for a minute or two. Run your finger through the glob of jam and if the surface crinkles a little and doesn't run to cover over where you've just run your finger, you should be good to go.

5) Sterilise your jars and lids! I wash mine in hot soapy water, then fill with boiling water around the time that I add the sugar to the jam. After a few minutes, I (burned my fingers and) turned them upside down on a wire rack. The heat from the jars should dry them off by the time the jam is done. Don't be too organised though, hot jam into hot jars appears to be the go, according to the internet.

6) Fill the jars nearly to the top then tightly screw on the lids. I then boiled the sealed jars in a big pot of water (with the water about 2cm above the tops of the jars). I let it boil for about 10 minutes then carefully manoeuvred the jars out with tongs (burned myself a few times).

7) Patiently wait overnight and then test the seal by cracking open a jar. If it kind of 'pops' while opening, great, it worked! (Mind you, you've just ruined the seal, so store in the fridge and eat within a month). If not, great, delicious jam you've got to eat!

My next experiment is tomorrow - we bought some deliciously sweet pineapples from a roadside stall and I've picked a big ripe jackfruit from one of our trees. Jackfruit and pineapple jam, anyone?