Mediterranean Fig and Lemon Marmalade
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This Mediterranean Fig and Lemon Marmalade just transports me to sunshine no matter what the weather is like outside. The sweetness of the figs and that tart zing of lemon just lifts my spirits and makes my morning toast a celebration.
I’m off to France tomorrow, so excited. I’m looking forward to catching up with my friends and hopefully enjoying some sunshine to go with the wine, good chat, lots of eating and a bit of brocanting too I hope.
Before I go I thought it would be nice to give you a recipe with a bit of sunshine in it and this delicious Fig and Lemon Marmalade really has a summery zing about it. Figs always make me think of France as my friends at Coye used to have a big fig tree in the garden.
When I spent the summer there a few years ago, I was always out there checking when they were ripe and feasting on their figgy juiciness.
Sweet and sour marmalade
The tanginess of lemon goes so well with the sweetness of figs, the latter almost crying out for a jolt of that lemony freshness to temper the sugariness of the figs, and if this wasn’t enough, I have added in some black pepper for some extra punch and a bit of heat.
I love this mixing of sweet and sour, hot and cool, the dancing of flavours on the tongue makes a simple breakfast treat like marmalade into something really special and worth savouring for an extra few minutes in the morning.
Making this Fig and Lemon Marmalade couldn’t be easier, with only 4 ingredients and little effort involved.
Ingredients
There aren’t many ingredients in this delicious fig and lemon marmalade. There are figs of course and lemons. Then there is sugar and black pepper. That’s it for ingredients!
Lemons
Use unwaxed lemons or normal lemons and remove the protective waxy finish yourself. This is easily done just by scrubbing the lemons under warm water with dish soap and giving them a good scrub. Then rinse and pat dry.
How to make your Fig and Lemon Marmalade;
- Cut the stalks off the figs and cut into quarters.
- Half the lemons length ways and then cut into very thin slices.
- Save the pips and tie these up in a small piece of muslin as they will add flavour to your marmalade)
- Place the fruit in a large bowl and cover with 1 litre/1 3/4 pints water and then cover with a clean tea towel. Leave overnight as this helps the lemon rind to soften a bit.
- Pour the fruity mix into a heavy based preserving pan and simmer for 1 1/2 hours until the lemon is soft.
- Remove the muslin pip bag.
- Add the sugar and black pepper and let this dissolve before bringing up to a rolling boil.
- Boil for about 10 minutes or until it has reached the setting point (see how to check for a good set here in my Setting notes).
- Carefully ladle into sterilised jars (see sterilising information in the resources section) and pop on the lids.
New to preserving? Then don’t panic, I can take you from zero to hero in no time at all.
Just check out these handy articles to get you heading in the right direction fast;
How to make great jam and marmalade
How to make chutney and relish
How to sterilise jars and bottles
How long will this marmalade keep?
Store in a cool cupboard for up to a year. Once opened keep it in the fridge and eat within a month.
How to serve this sweet marmalade
Enjoy this one on toast, crumpets or as a tasty topping for the finest vanilla ice-cream.
It is even good with grilled cheese or as part of a cheese board too.
Fig and lemon marmalade makes a great glaze when roasting a chicken.
Stir into Asian and Middle Eastern sauces when you want some sweet/sour fruity flavour.
This is Mediterranean summer sunshine in a jar.
Looking for more great figgy ideas? Then check out these fun figgy recipes;
Baked figs with feta mint and walnuts
Roasted figs with honey and orange
Fresh fig and feta salad with pine nuts
Greek Fig and feta tarts with thyme and honey
Finally, if you do try this recipe don’t forget to leave a comment/star rating below as I just love to hear from readers. Want more Larder Love? Then follow me on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest and sign up for my newsletter too of course.
Mediterranean Fig And Lemon Marmalade
Ingredients
- 500 g figs
- 3 lemons unwaxed or just scrub well
- 1 kg sugar
- 1 tsp black pepper (I use 1 tsp pepper but you might want to start with 1/2 tsp pepper and try it first then add more)
Instructions
- Cut the stalks off the figs and cut into quarters.
- Half the lemons length ways and then cut into very thin slices.
- Save the pips and tie these up in a small piece of muslin as they will add flavour to your marmalade)
- Place the fruit in a large bowl and cover with 1 litre/1 3/4 pints water and then cover with a clean tea towel. Leave overnight as this helps the lemon rind to soften a bit.
- Pour the fruity mix into a heavy based preserving pan and simmer for 1 1/2 hours until the lemon is soft.
- Remove the muslin pip bag.
- Add the sugar and black pepper and let this dissolve before bringing up to a rolling boil.
- Boil for about 10 minutes or until it has reached the setting point (see how to check for a good set here in my Setting notes).
- Carefully ladle into sterilised jars (see sterilising information in the resources section) and pop on the lids.
On the fig and lemon marmalade do yo strain the water or use the water?
Hi Marie
You use the water, as recipe says you boil it all up.
K x
This is such a gorgeous recipe, Karon! I’ve been making it every year since you published it and it never disappoints. Just had to pop by and give it five stars. Thank you for producing such fab recipes!
Thanks so much.
K x
Doing this for a friend who had it abroad but cannot find it in shops here. Ingredients in soak for tomorrow boiling. Here’s hoping
Hope you enjoy it
Made this today. Set well and looks lovely. Found the TSP of pepper a bit overwhelming so suggest add less to start. Had to add more lemon juice to knock it back a bit.
Hi Sally
Glad you liked the recipe so much. Pepper and things really are a matter of taste really. Will make note on recipe though to start with less.
K
Hi karen, could I use dry figs instead of fresh here in Australia we can only buy them in summer &then they are quite expensive..Cheers x
Hi Bruna
I haven’t actually tried this with dried figs so I’m sorry I can’t really help on that one.
K
Lovely hint of pepper in this!! Love it. I made this one other time and I dont think I had the balance of lemon to fig right. This is great!!
Hi Angie, So glad you like this recipe, it’s one of my favourite marmalades.
K
Lovely recipe, I’m enjoying it on toast. Also inspired me to add more lemon to my raspberry jam this year – the tang really helps break through the sweetness. Thanks again for publishing!
Hi Julia
So glad you liked the recipe so much and that it has inspired you for other jams.
K
This year is our second year of making this recipe. We love it and our family always ask for jars or the recipe.
That is so good to hear. Glad the family loves this marmalade so muuch.
K
What is a “pip”?
Hi Jen
a pip is a seed.
K
I tried this recipe and my marmalade ended up with a bitter aftertaste. Where could I have gone wrong? I feel like it’s from the lemon/peels… I would love to try again. Any insight?
Hi Maria
Sorry your marmalade had a bitter aftertaste, that’s not a problem I’ve ever had with this recipe. There is plenty of sugar in there. If you haven’t cooked the peels till soft then you can get a bitter taste. A pinch of salt can help if marmalade too bitter.
hope this helps
K
Thank you for your reply, I may try again.
I have a large fig tree and am always looking for new recipes. This came out great, though I made a few adjustments – used less sugar, didn’t “pre-cook” the figs and omitted the pepper. Also added some fresh lemon juice too and didn’t use all the lemon cooking water. I sell my jams to friends and then donate the money to charity. I think this will be a hit!
Hi Alison
Glad you like my recipe
K
Just made this using dried figs from lidl as all shops I tried had no fresh figs .the only problem with using these is the colour not very appealing when you see your lovely red presentation photo .So the remedy I used with the wife’s help was to use sugarflair colour paste Red Extra .using 1/4 of a teaspoon with water mix thoroughly and once happy with the colour add to the mixture after the sugar stir through and continue process .
End result fantastic looking marmalade with glorious wonderful taste I forgot to add the pepper next batch I will try that .
Many thanks for an inspired recipe will make perfect Xmas gifts for my neighbours
Hi John
I like your inventiveness! Hope family and friends are wowed by your foodie gifts.
K
Canning instructions??
Hi Pam,
We don’t do canning here in the UK and Europe, our preserves keep for over a year just fine in sterilised jars.
K