I’ve gathered some amazing recipes for unusual lemon-based jams. Enjoy!
Lemon Honey and Coffee
For 2 lemons:
- 3 tbsp coffee beans
- 0.5 liters of water
- 400-500 grams of sugar.
It’s better to crush the coffee beans in a mortar or grind them in a coffee grinder to a state slightly coarser than powder, so they can be placed in a muslin bag. Chop lemons in a blender or into small cubes, toss with sugar, add water, and simmer for 30 minutes. Place the prepared coffee in a muslin bag (to avoid straining later) and add it to the lemon syrup. Bring to a boil and immediately remove from heat (coffee doesn’t like being boiled). Let it rest a bit and return it to the stove until the first signs of boiling, then remove—repeat this process 3 times. Allow it to steep, remove the bag of coffee, and reheat the jam before storing it in jars, if desired.
Recommendations: In the original recipe, the lemons are boiled without sugar for 20 minutes, then removed. The coffee is added, brought to a boil 3 times (like Turkish coffee), and strained. Next, sugar is added, and the mixture is simmered to the desired consistency. I personally prefer the version with lemon chunks. The jam is highly caffeinated and gives a powerful energy boost! :)
Vanilla Tangerine with Lemon
For 1 kg of tangerines:
- Vanilla to taste (pods, vanilla sugar, vanilla powder)
- 1 lemon
- 700-800 grams of sugar
- 0.5 liters of water (can use more depending on desired thickness).
Peel the tangerines to avoid excessive bitterness, but save one peel. Remove the zest from the lemon, ensuring to avoid the white pith—it needs to be scraped away. Chop the fruits to your liking. Scrape out the seeds from the vanilla pod and add them to the fruits, or add vanilla powder or vanilla sugar along with the regular sugar.
Pour water over the fruits, add the chopped tangerine peel and lemon zest, and simmer on low heat for 1 hour. Add sugar and, stirring, cook for another hour. Pour into jars and seal.
Recommendations: The original recipe calls for 1 liter of water. I find it too watery, though this is subjective. In the original, tangerines are chopped and cooked with the peel, resulting in bitterness. To reduce this, you can blanch the fruit in boiling water—this will partially remove the bitter taste. Whether or not to cook with the peel is a matter of preference. This recipe is a great way to use up leftover holiday treats :). And of course, you can skip the vanilla, but…
Mint Lemon and Apple
For 1.5 kg of apples:
- 4 lemons
- 1.5 kg of sugar
- 3-4 sprigs of fresh mint
- 3 cups of water.
Core the apples and, if desired, peel them. Slice into wedges. Cut the lemons into quarters and then into smaller slices. Pour water over the lemons and boil for 10 minutes. Add the apples and sugar to the lemons, cook for 30 minutes, add the mint sprigs, cook for another 5 minutes, remove the mint, and pour the jam into jars.
Recommendations: Do not cook this jam for more than 40 minutes; otherwise, the lemon pectin will break down and the essential oils will evaporate. The jam should turn out like marmalade. You can easily skip the mint in this recipe.
