Bittersweet tangerine/orange jam

Recently I found good bargains on lemons, oranges, and tangerines.   I have plenty of frozen oranges in the freezer already.  What do I do with a windfall of several oranges and tangerines?  I decided to make tangerine/orange jam.   This is a bittersweet jam. 

This jam can be made with only oranges.

Or it can be made with only tangerines or a combination of both.  Use whatever you find.

Here is the basic ingredient list:

5 oranges (or tangerines or both)

2 lemons

1 1/2 cup honey (or 3 cups sugar)

This basic recipe makes 3 half pints.  I'll explain the recipe but the photos are of a much larger batch.  I had bunches of tangerines and oranges so I multiplied the ingredients to make lots more. 

Take one whole orange, remove the seeds, slice into small sections, rind and all.  Put this into a blender or a food processor and grind it into a paste.  The rind should be very tiny pieces.  In this recipe the rind provides the pectin and the juice provides the acid.

Now peel and remove the seeds of the lemons and the remaining oranges.   Put these through the blender or food processor too.  Put it all into a large pot big enough to allow for expansion of the liquids during cooking.  I'm using a large stock pot for my larger batch.

Add the sugar and stir together. 

Place over high heat and bring to a boil, stirring frequently, until it comes to a boil that can't be stirred down.   It will start to foam but this is ok, do not remove the foam.   Be sure it doesn't boil over.  

Boil at a rolling boil for at least 10 minutes or until it resembles a thick syrup.  Stir frequently.  The foam will eventually die down. 

Turn off the heat and pour jam into jars leaving 1/2 inch headspace.   If you made the small batch then the jars can be allowed to cool and stored in the refrigerator.  Allow the jam to age for atleast two weeks before eating or it will taste very bitter.  Aging improves the taste. 

I made a big batch for long term storage so I processed my jars in a water bath canner for 10 minutes.  My batch made 9 pints. 

I have enough tangerines, oranges, and lemons to make 18 more pints.  Some will be given to neighbors.