Food Preparation
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Central Sierra: Herbed Garden Marmalade Recipe
Preserve it! The county fair is over (did you enter any home canned goods this year?) and gardens are currently exploding with vegetables and herbs. Give this marmalade a try. The recipe comes from Ball Blue Book Guide to Preserving, 2014, edition 37.
Herbed Garden Marmalade Recipe
Yield: about 5 half-pint jars
Ingredients
3 cups chopped, seeded, peeled, and cored tomatoes (about 1 1/2 pounds)
2 tsp slivered lemon peel
¼ cup bottled lemon juice
1 garlic clove, minced (or ½ tsp garlic powder)*
1 Tbsp minced fresh basil (or 1 ½ tsp dried)*
1 Tbsp minced fresh oregano (or 1 tsp dried)*
1 package regular powdered pectin (or 6 Tbsp)
4 ½ cups sugar
Instructions
Prepare boiling-water canner or atmospheric steam canner. Heat cleaned jars in canner until ready to use, do not boil (simmering water at 180 degrees F). Wash lids in warm soapy water and set aside with bands.
Place prepared tomatoes in a large stainless-steel saucepot; cover and simmer for 10 minutes.
Add to the cooked tomatoes: the lemon peel, bottled lemon juice, garlic, herbs, and pectin. Bring mixture to a boil, stirring constantly.
Add sugar, stirring until dissolved, and bring back to a full rolling boil for one minute. Pull off heat. Skim foam, if needed.
Ladle hot marmalade into a hot jar, leaving one-quarter-inch headspace. Remove air bubbles and adjust headspace, if necessary. Clean jar rim. Center lid on jar. Apply band and adjust to fingertip tight. Place jar in canner. Repeat until all jars are filled.
Water must cover jars by at least one inch in boiling water canner or come to the base of the rack in a steam canner. Adjust heat to medium-high, cover canner, and bring water to a rolling boil in a boiling-water canner or until there’s a steady stream of steam coming from the steam canner for 1 minute. Start timing and process pint jars: 10 minutes at 0 – 1,000 feet elevation, 15 minutes at 1,001 – 3,000 feet, 20 minutes at 3,001 – 6,000 feet, 25 minutes 6,001 – 8,000 feet.
Turn off heat. For boiling water canner, remove lid and let jars stand five minutes. For atmospheric steam canner, let canner sit undisturbed for five minutes, then remove lid. Remove jars and cool on a toweled surface 12-24 hours. Check lids for seal. Label, date, and store in a cool dark place.
*Dried herbs and spices are stronger than fresh herbs, requiring less quantity.
This recipe appeared in the Mountain Democrat in July 2026.
For more detailed instructions about canning high-acid foods, such as tomatoes, and information about food safety, please visit our Food Safety page and read further on the subject.
If you have any food safety or food preservation questions, Ask a UC Master Food Preserver in El Dorado County by completing the survey and a volunteer will get back to you!