Homemade Cumquat Marmalade

There is this very cute 90 years old lady selling jam and homegrown fruit for the church every week.  The fruit of the jam is donated by local farmers and made by volunteers with lots of love and kindness.  Their specialities are rosella jam in March, strawberry jam and cumquat marmalade in August, mango chutney in December. The day I went to visit her, her little store was full with bottles of cumquat marmalade and she was saying delightfully, "there is cumquat everywhere!"

I bought a bottle of marmalade and 1 kg of cumquat from her.  I didn't expect there would so many seeds in cumquat so it took me a while to cut up the fruit.  But it really worth the effort because the jam is tasty (as good as the one I bought) and I am pleased that I finally make jam without using the bread machine. And now, I have jam everywhere in my fridge and pantry!

Cumquat Marmalade
(make about 5x500g bottles)

Ingredients:
1 kg cumquats
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1.25L water
6 cups raw sugar
1 tablespoon jam setta (optional)

Method:

1. Wash cumquats, drain.  Quarter cumquats with knife but not cutting all the way through. Remove seeds and cut off the hard pitt from the centre if needed.  Don't worry if you do not remove all the seeds, it would float out later. 
2. Process cumquats in a blender then combine the cumquats mixture, lemon juice and water in a large saucepan.  Stand for at least 2 hours.
3. Bring the mixture to the boil, then simmer for 30 minutes. Spoon out any seeds if you see them floating at the surface.
4. Add sugar to the mixture and boil for another 30 minutes. Skim scum with a metal spoon if necessary. 
5. The jam should turn thick and bubbling. Test the jam if it is set by dropping 1 tablespoon of hot jam onto a chilled plate, move it with finger after 40 seconds.  If it crinkles and thicken, its done.  If not, add 1 tablespoon jam setta and boil for another 5-10 minutes and repeat the test until the jam is set. 
6. Pour hot jam into sterilised jars, covered with transparent papers that have been dashed with lemon juice then tighten the jars with lids and rubber bands.

Adopted and modified from the cookbook "Classic Preserves Jams Chutneys Relishes" from the Australian Women's Weekly.