Mad for Marmalade, Crazy for Citrus

If you happen to be a jamming and canning fan, the Culinary Historians of Ontario have an event for you! Their third annual Mad for Marmalade, Crazy for Citrus, coming up on Saturday, February 27 from 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m., is an all-day celebration of the art of marmalade and related preserves. Last year's event was packed with about 100 passionate preservers; I'm betting this year's will be even bigger.

Taking place at Fort York, Mad for Marmalade costs $39.81 (taxes included), with discounts for students, seniors, children and members of the Culinary Historians of Ontario, the Volunteer Historic Cooking Group at Fort and Friends of Fort York. The fee includes lectures and workshops, tours of the historic Fort York kitchens and a lunch. There's also a marmalade-theme marketplace and (for a nominal entry fee), a marmalade competition. Pre-registration is advised, through Kelly Nesbitt, who can be reached by phone at 416-392-6907, extension 221 or via email.

Of course the lunch is made up of contemporary and antique recipes that relate to marmalade: Marmalade Chicken (2006), Citrus Risotto (2006), Fancy Citron Preserves (1880), Green Salad with Citrus Dressing (2006), Peach Marmalade Tarts (1744), Quince Marmalade Tarts (1769), Pear Marmalade Tarts (1824) and Rich Bread and Butter Pudding (1845). Guest speaker Mary F. Williamson will discuss Canadian marmalading traditions "from apples to oranges, pumpkin and quince". There will also be sampling tastes of sherbet from 1769, lemonade from 1827 and negus ice from 1833.

The workshops, many of which include tastings and cooking demonstrations, will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis; they include:

• Bridget Wranich of Fort York discussing how candied peel was made and used in the 18th and 19th centuries
• Pat Crocker of Riversong Herbals on the definitive qualities of a great marmalade (tastings included)
• Shirley Lum of A Taste of the World Tours on Asian fruit marmalades like kumquat, pineapple and yuzu
• Donna Penrose of Lyndon Gardens on working with historical recipes in the contemporary kitchen
• Mya Sangster of Fort York's Volunteer Historic Cooks discussing antique methods of sealing jars of preserves, including pig bladders, sheep suet and Napoleon brandy
• Carolyn Blackstock of Woodside National Historic Site, offerings tastings and the recipe for marmalade made by Isabel Grace Mackenzie King, "daughter of a rebel and mother of a prime minister"
• Rosemary Kovac of the Volunteer Historic Cooks on Sussex Pond Pudding
• Janet Kronick of Dundurn National Historic Site on North America's mid-19th century tomato mania, with a hands-on tomato marmalade-making lesson

To find out more about the preserve competition, which allows for entries of pure Seville orange marmalades, other fruit and vegetable marmalades and marmalade baking, contact Kelly Nesbitt at 416 392-6907, extension 221. The registration deadline is Thursday, February 25 at 4 p.m.

Photo: Toronto greenhouse-grown Seville oranges courtesy Culinary Historians of Ontario