Peach Marmalade with Walnuts

Day 2 of peaches. That means more jam. Two weeks ago I stumbled across an old recipe of my grandmother's for peach marmalade. I have never had peach marmalade. By the time I'd come along, my grandmother no longer canned anything. She had settled into her 7 meal rotation. The only variation came on holidays or special occasions. Then she served the traditional dishes associated with that holiday.

My grandmother passed away when I was in high school. Since then I have spent hours exploring her old recipes, looking for little gems she'd tucked away, forgotten to time. Some are little clipping from magazines. Others are hand written on recipe cards. This was one of the hand written ones.

The problem with her handwritten recipes are that she included limited instructions and rarely wrote down how much the recipe should produce. Her recipes from the 1940's were often written to accommodate a family of 5. Her recipes from the 1970's and 1980's were meant to accommodate 4 families. She felt a need to not only supply herself and my grandfather, but also her children's families.

This must have been one of those later recipes. It started with 2 dozen peaches. I chopped up 6 heaping cups and stopped. I ended up with  almost 14 half-print jars of marmalade. I would still be in the kitchen had a followed the recipe exactly.

I must say that this is DELICIOUS and nothing like the traditional marmalade that is mass produced. I was lucky to stumble across this recipe and it is something that I will be making every year.

As with the recipe for Spiced Peach Preserves I have included both the traditional cooking method and a jam maker directions.

Peach Marmalade with Black Walnuts
Makes 12 half-pint jars

6 cups crushed peaches (about 9 large peaches)

3 tbsp. lemon juice

3 Oranges, grated, whole (seeds removed)

1 cup black walnuts

6 cups sugar

4 tbsp. pectin

½ tsp. butter

Jam Maker Directions:

Sprinkle pectin over the bottom of the jam maker's pot. Pour crushed fruit on top. Add lemon juice. Toss in the butter. Turn on the machine and set timer to the full 30 minutes cook time. Put on the lid and hit the enter button. When the machine beeps for sugar, add the sugar. With 7 minutes remaining, add in the walnuts by sprinkling quickly and evenly around the top. Replace the lid. When finished, pour into prepared jars when it is finished. Process in water-canner for 10 minutes, adjusting for altitude. Turn off heat, remove lid and allow to set for 5 minutes. Remove jars and cool. Check lids for seal after 24 hours. (Although most seal within 2-3 minutes).

Old Fashioned Directions:

Combine prepared peaches with lemon juice, oranges, and sugar in a 6- or 8-quart saucepan. Stir in pectin. Add up to 1/2 tsp. butter or margarine to reduce foaming, if desired.

Bring to a full rolling boil over high heat, stirring constantly. Cook for 45 minutes, stirring constantly. Stir in walnuts and continue to cook for 15 minutes.

Skim off any foam with metal spoon.

Ladle hot jam into warm jars, leaving ¼ inch headspace. Wipe rim. Center lid on jar. Apply band until it is fingertip tight.

Process jars in water-canner for 10 minutes, adjusting for altitude. Turn off heat, remove lid and allow to set for 5 minutes. Remove jars and cool. Check lids for seal after 24 hours. (Although most seal within 2-3 minutes).