Easy Carrot And Lemon Marmalade/Jam

Sweet yet tart this deliciously easy carrot and lemon marmalade is just perfect on your toast in the morning or with a cheeseboard in the evening.

What’s to love about this recipe

• No pectin involved!
• This is a super easy jam/marmalade to make, a great one for the preserving novice.
• It’s versatile. Serve this as a sweet treat or move it effortlessly into the savoury line with cheese or as a glaze.
• Don’t you just love a preserve that’s a wee bit different and just look at that amazing colour!

What does this carrot preserve taste like?

Carrots are sweet in their own right. A carrot jam tastes a little like apricot jam. But this is a marmalade so you have that all-important zesty lip puckering kick of the lemons.

Using vegetables in jam making

I’ve made carrot jam before on Larder Love. We’ve had my Carrot Cake Jam which tastes just as the name suggests having all the spices one associates with traditional carrot cake packed into a jar.

I’ve also made Middle Eastern Carrot and Pistachio Jam with Orange.

Ingredients for this carrot and lemon marmalade

• Carrots – nice fresh carrots please. Don’t use any rotting old carrots lurking at the bottom of the fridge. Fresh juicy carrots will give you a better jam.
• Lemons (un-waxed or remove wax yourself – see pro tips)
• Ginger and cardamom are my spices of choice here. They just add some depth and character to this simple carrot jam recipe.
• Sugar of course – just plain white granulated sugar nothing fancy.

Pro Tips

Don’t worry if you don’t have unwaxed lemons. You can very easily remove the preservative wax on fruit by washing it in hot soapy water and giving it a scrub with a nailbrush. Then simply rinse in cold water and pat dry with a clean tea towel.

How to make carrot and lemon marmalade/jam

This is a two part recipe. Simple but in two stages.

Stage 1 – peel and roughly grate the carrots. Cut the lemons lengthways in half and then cut again so that you end up with 4 long pieces of lemon. Then using a very sharp knife slice them as thinly as possible.

Place the carrots and the lemons in a saucepan (mine measured approximately 8″ across and add the water. Cover the pan and leave it for 24 hours.

The reason for this is twofold – it softens the lemon peel and it allows the pectin in the lemon to be released.

Stage 2 – Add the sugar and spices to the pan and heat gently till the sugar has completely dissolved.

Then ramp up the heat to a rolling boil then reduce it to a simmer and let the marmalade cook for 30 minutes.

Now bring it back up to the boil and bring it to the magical setting point of 105C. Allow it to cool just a little before carefully ladelling into sterilised jars.

How to serve carrot and lemon marmalade

Obviously this goes wonderfuly well on your croissants or toast in the morning. That gorgeous colour will add brightness to any day.

Spread it on to a sponge cake or Swiss roll for a sweet and zingy filling. Or as a drizzle on a cake like my Yogurt Cake With Pistachios And Marmalade.

I like to serve a little pot of this marmalade with a cheeseboard. It goes especially well with sharp cheddar cheese.

In a toasted cheese sandwich.

Use this marmalade as a glaze when roasting gammon/ham or pork.

Add some to a stirfry sauce and other Asian inspired dishes.

Use this as the glaze on my Sweet And Sour Pork Marmalade Meatballs recipe.

How much carrot and lemon marmalade does this recipe make?

I got 4 x 200g jars of jam from this recipe. Want more? Then simply multiply your ingredients.

How long will this marmalade keep?

Your carrot and lemon marmalade will keep for up to a year in a cool cupboard. Once opened store in the fridge and use up within a month.

Looking for more super tasty and easy marmalade recipes to try? Then check these out before you go;

Traditional Scotch whisky and ginger marmalade

Orange pomegranate ginger and mint marmalade

Spiced cranberry and orange marmalade

Red pepper marmalade

Mediterranean fig and lemon marmalade

Finally, if you do try this recipe do please leave a comment/star rating below. Want more Larder Love? Then follow me on Instagram, Pinterest and Facebook and sign up for my newsletter too of course.