Homemade Orange Peel Jam

I said in this thrifty tips post that I wanted to try making Orange Peel Jam, and this was the weekend! I was pretty scared, to tell you the truth, because I hadn't been able to find an actual "recipe" online. Just, cut off the white parts of the peel, cook with sugar and water, then put in the refrigerator and... JAM! I was a little weary with the lack of, you know, measuring.

But, I've been saving orange peels for about a week, and wanted to use them. So I took a deep breath, and here's what I did...

Orange Peel Jam

peel from 4 oranges, cut into thin strips (with white pith cut off)

1 1/2 c sugar

1 1/2 c water

1 T orange juice concentrate, thawed

1 t vanilla extract

You also need:

glass canning jar (I used a sterilized pasta jar)

candy/meat thermometer (optional)

Add orange peel, sugar and water to a pot over medium heat. Bring to a low boil until the mixture thickens slightly, about 15 minutes. The temperature should be between 200-220 degrees F. Remove from heat and stir in orange juice concentrate (the original instructions I read said to use lemon juice) and vanilla. Pour into jar and place in refrigerator.

I was all set to add in some Knox gelatin, since I was pretty skeptical that the thick sugar water would really become jam, but found a message board that said adding gelatin can foster bacterial growth. Since I plan on feeding this to my two year-old, that seemed like a bad idea. I figured if it didn't gel, we could have orange flavored syrup on pancakes some morning this week. :-)

I'm happy to report that after about 6 hours in the refrigerator, the mixture firmed up, and was very yummy, to boot! It's VERY sweet, to the point that next time I'll reduce the sugar by half, if that doesn't affect the consistency. The texture is more like honey than true jam, but Jack and I enjoyed it with peanut butter on our sandwiches for lunch. 

**After making this, I found this resource for making jam without added pectin, which has specifics on quantities, temps, etc.**