An Excess of Grapefruit

[Thing2]

I was quite pleased that we were able to rent a house with citrus trees, but it does leave me with a large number of rapidly ripening grapefruit which I'm not sure what to do with. We've discovered that juicing them is good (especially with vodka), and I can probably use a few in marmalade. That is not going to use up an entire tree full of them though! The common thing to do around here seems to be to chuck them in with the compost, but that feels like an enormous waste and really annoys me.

I'm thinking I'll freeze some juice and a few whole fruits, but does anyone have any good ideas/recipes to use the rest?

Emma

[vorsprung]

I've not tried "Grapefruit -ade" but here's the recipe for Lemonade, which you could try adopting

4 lemons
100g sugar
750ml water

Peel the zest off the lemons.  Add zest to 750ml boiling water.  Stir in sugar.  Leave to cool.  Remove zest from water.  Add lemon juice to zesty water.  Place in the fridge for a while to get to a cold temperature.  Serve with ice

[Biggsy]

Could be sold to drug users who drink lots of grapefruit juice to potentiate certain drugs. 

[L CC]

I'm waiting from a response from my sister who had a similar 'problem' when she lived in Hornsby (NW Sydney, NSW).
I think she did marmalade, and tried salting them like lemons. Also did tarts, and frozen juice, but I can't remember what else.

[Eccentrica Gallumbits]

Send 'em to me and I'll make marmalade.

I remember a Smash Hits interview with Janet Jackson in which she said that if you throw grapefruits out of a high hotel window, they make an exciting popping noise when they land, so you could try that.

[Thing2]

Send 'em to me and I'll make marmalade.

I remember a Smash Hits interview with Janet Jackson in which she said that if you throw grapefruits out of a high hotel window, they make an exciting popping noise when they land, so you could try that.

That sounds fun! Now where can a find a tall hotel building.....

Marmalade is definitely on the cards. While I can buy marmalade here, it's never as nice as homemade stuff.

[Thing2]

I'm waiting from a response from my sister who had a similar 'problem' when she lived in Hornsby (NW Sydney, NSW).
I think she did marmalade, and tried salting them like lemons. Also did tarts, and frozen juice, but I can't remember what else.

Grapefruit tart sounds interesting boab, do you have a recipe?

[red marley]

Grapefruit-meringue pie looks quite yummy. It might not be the most efficient way to get through your grapefruit surplus, but you could have fun trying.

[Gareth Rees]

Moroccan-style grapefruit pickle?

[Tigerrr]

You could make 'Ting' grapefruit pop - its blooming lovely. Lemonade but with Grapefruits.  Ting tastic.

[Eccentrica Gallumbits]

Juice it, mix it with pineapple juice and you've got flat Lilt!

[a lower gear]

"Grapefruit Wine: cut three grapefruit into thin slices, add two quarts of cold water and let stand for ten days, turning every other day; add 2lb of sugar, and let stand for another eight days; then put through a sieve to another dish, and let stand for another two days. Bottle, and it will be ready for use in three weeks; it is a very good pick-me-up. Mrs. M.P.Davies, Carnarvonshire"

From: "Home-made Country Wines: Recipes from Country Housewives collected by The Farmers Weekly", Hulton Press, London, 1955, p.90.

[padbeat]

If you can make hot lemon pickle and hot lime pickle, there must be room in the market for hot grapefruit pickle surely?

I like the grapefruit wine thing, but I'd be tempted to add a little homebrew yeast to help things along and make the sugar muscavado. Nothing that requires sugar isn't improved by using muscavado!

[L CC]

Sister has just spent 15 minutes waxing lyrical about grapefruit marmalade. Thin shreds, and make sure you remove all the pith.

And then make is into Nigella's marmalade chocolate cake.

Candied peel.

[Thing2]

This all sounds good!

There is a grapefruit drizzle cake in the oven at the moment. Grapefruit meringue pie is on the to-do list next (but not today).

We're having people over in a week or so. There will be grapefruit-ade 

[Thing2]

The first batch of marmalade tastes good  The grapefruit-ade and grapefruit drizzle cake have also been judged a success.
There is a plan for grapefruit margarita this weekend, and candied peel has been added to the to-do list.