Let's make a simple homemade dessert: apple marmalade with gelatin. Apples are naturally rich in pectin, especially in the skin, which helps this purée become thick and pliable even without extra additives. A touch of food coloring gives the marmalade a vibrant emerald hue, making the treats look like precious gemstones, though you can keep its natural amber shade or use a splash of spinach juice for a completely natural tint. Blending the mixture aerates it with tiny bubbles, transforming a dense purée into a delicate, melt-in-your-mouth cloud bursting with fruit flavor.
The finished apple marmalade turns out incredibly tender, aromatic, and vibrant. A perfect natural treat!
Ingredients
- 1 kg (2.2 lbs) apples
- 150 g (5.3 oz) granulated sugar
- 2 tbsp gelatin
- 100 g (3.5 oz) water
- green food coloring
- vegetable oil, parchment paper
How to make apple marmalade
Core and trim the apples of any blemishes, leaving the skin intact. Almost any apples work for this marmalade, even the least presentable ones. Chop the prepared apples finely. Pour a splash of water into a saucepan and add the chopped apples.
Chop the apples roughly; leave the skin on, as it is packed with pectin that helps the marmalade set beautifully.
Cover the saucepan with a lid. Simmer the apples over low heat until they are completely soft and broken down. The cooking time will depend on the apple variety and the size of your pieces.
Simmer the apples covered over low heat until they are completely soft and easy to mash.
Press the cooked apples through a fine-mesh sieve using a spoon, leaving the apple skins behind. We only need the smooth apple purée to make the marmalade.
Press the cooked apples through a fine-mesh sieve to remove the skins and achieve a perfectly silky purée.
Transfer the smooth apple purée to a saucepan and add granulated sugar. Adjust the sugar to your taste. If you prefer a very sweet marmalade, use a 1:1 ratio. If you want a less sweet treat and your apples are already sweet, just two tablespoons of sugar will suffice. Stir the apple purée and sugar together.
Adjust the amount of sugar to your taste and the natural sweetness of your chosen apple variety.
Pour cold boiled water over the gelatin and let it bloom at room temperature for 20 minutes.
Cover the gelatin with cold water and let it bloom. This guarantees the marmalade achieves the right bouncy texture.
Stir green food coloring into the apple purée. Gel food coloring can be added directly. If using powdered coloring, dissolve it in a little water before adding it to the saucepan.
Food coloring adds a brilliant hue to the marmalade. Both gel and powdered colorings work wonderfully here.
Whisk the purée until the color is evenly distributed, then bring it to a boil. Remove the saucepan from the heat.
Bring the colored purée to a boil, stirring constantly to ensure the sugar fully dissolves.
Cool the green apple purée to approximately 80 degrees Celsius (175 °F). Fold in the bloomed gelatin.
Fold the gelatin into the hot, but not boiling, mixture to preserve its setting properties.
Blend the marmalade mixture with an immersion blender for a few minutes until it becomes completely smooth, creamy, and aerated.
Blend the mixture until perfectly smooth to give the marmalade a lighter, softer texture.
Lightly grease a sheet of parchment paper with a drop of refined vegetable oil. Line a shallow rectangular dish with the paper, letting the edges hang over the sides. Pour the marmalade into the dish. Let it set at room temperature for an hour. Once completely cooled, transfer it to the refrigerator and chill for 24 hours.
Pour the mixture into the prepared dish and let it set at room temperature before chilling in the refrigerator.
Remove the set marmalade from the dish, place it on a cutting board, and peel off the parchment paper.
Gently peel the parchment paper off the fully set marmalade. It should hold its shape perfectly.
Cut the marmalade into bite-sized squares.
Cut the marmalade into bite-sized portions. You can also use decorative cookie cutters for fun shapes.
Store the finished marmalade in the refrigerator. You can also prepare this marmalade in jars. For an extra touch, toss the finished marmalade candies in cornstarch or sugar right before serving. Keep in mind that the moisture from the marmalade will dissolve the sugar over time, so only coat them in small batches as needed.
Our homemade apple marmalade is ready! Keep it in the refrigerator until you are ready to serve.
Delicious, beautiful, and refreshing, this apple marmalade with gelatin is a fantastic alternative to heavy pastries. For an impressive presentation, toss the finished cubes in a blend of cornstarch and powdered sugar to create a lovely matte finish that keeps the pieces from sticking together. If you want to experiment, add a pinch of cinnamon or a bit of lemon zest to the purée: these spicy and citrusy notes perfectly highlight the tartness of the apples and give the dessert a deeper flavor profile. Store the finished marmalade in an airtight container in the refrigerator to prevent it from drying out or absorbing other food odors. When kept cool, this sweet treat maintains its delicate texture for up to two weeks. This recipe is also wonderful for preserving marmalade in small jars; simply pour the hot mixture into containers and let it set so you always have a wholesome companion for your tea time.
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