Marmalade is generally distinguished from jam by its fruit peel. Marmalade is a fruit preserve made from the juice and peel of citrus fruits boiled with sugar and water. It can be produced from lemons, limes, grapefruits, mandarins, sweet oranges, bergamots and other citrus fruits, or any combination thereof.
That’s more or less exactly what I posted in the reply immediately above yours.
To an American English speaker (which the OP obviously is or else they wouldn’t have lumped jelly in with marmalade and jam), your post wouldn’t have made any sense unless they already knew about the difference between the two meanings of the word. Gelatin desserts are not commonly eaten with ice cream in the US, which makes it even more confusing.
Also, I’m pretty sure you can’t make marmalade without sugar.
I’m not sure how it could be unclear since I specifically described Jelly as a gelatinous dessert food, clearly differentiated from things which go on toast or in sandwiches (ie jam and marmalade).
Just to be more clear: In the US ‘jelly’ is similar to jam, preserves, marmalade etc. in that it’s sold in jars, is spreadable (though not quite as easily as the others) and is what you put on toast and/or make peanut butter & jelly sandwiches with (although you can also make them with jam or preserves, but not marmalade). It’s also what’s inserted inside various pastry desserts, like jelly donuts (although again, this form of it is more smooth & liquidy, not gelatinous). Arguably one of the most popular brands of jelly is Welch’s Grape Jelly.
Jell-O™, although it’s a brand-name item it long ago became a generic term (like Kleenex or Band-Aid) for any & all fruit-flavored, ‘set’ gelatine desserts. In the US it’s usually served by itself (without ice cream or whipped cream etc.) though occasionally with pieces of fresh fruit either actually set in it or served along side it.
And, if my son is correct, “jelly” usually would mean what Americans call Jello (a gelatin based dessert) in most of the rest of the English speaking world. As evidenced by the post above my first one that I failed to comprehend the significance of.
Many, if not most Americans are familiar only with the American usage of the word “jelly” and are unaware of the fact that gelatin desserts and ice cream are a popular English dessert combo. They also may not even know that you are English. Because of these things, it may not be immediately obvious to us what substance you are describing in your post.
…And once again we see a classic example of “two nations seperated by a common language”.
Glad we got that cleared up…it could have led to an international incident. The jelly wars?
While I knew the UK English usage of the term, I had no idea people eat jello with ice cream. (And, yes, I agree that the post was unclear if you were not familiar with the UK use of the term and/or that the poster was from the UK, or a Commonwealth country [excepting Canada, most likely], etc., or wherever s/he’s from where they speak a non-North American flavor of English.)
ok but what the hell does the word “pickle” mean in the UK? I was reading the back of a box of Ritz crackers marketed for the UK and it said to “spread your favorite pickle” onto the crackers. It was also accompanied by some sort of red sauce that looked like preserves. So is pickle a word for preservers in the UK? And if so, where does pickle fall on the jam/jelly/preserves/marmalade spectrum?
It’s nothing like them. It’s a savoury spread a bit like chutney for use on sandwiches and cold cuts. The commonest are Branston Pickle, Ploughman’s Pickle, and Piccalilli .
One form is what we’d call Pickle Relish, and some older Americans still call it Piccalilli (wow, I’ve never seen that in writing. What a weird looking word!) But UK “pickle” can be made with other vegetables, chopped up into bits, and preserved in salt and vinegar.
“Relish” is probably the best American translation. We technically have relishes other than pickle in our culinary history, although you hardly see them anymore, at least in my region.
When I was a kid, I thought Rat and Mole (Wind in the Willows) were eating sandwiches with big ol’ gherkins sticking out! But “pickle sandwiches” are bread and relish, usually with cheese. 
Sugar still must be added in order for the pectin to set. In this case it’s in the form of fruit syrup, which is primarily sugars. There is significantly more sugar than in the original fruit.
It’s a gimmick. But apparently it works. I nod to their marketing team.
It’s the same trick used in “100% fruit juice”. You take some sweet juice with relatively little flavor, like pear or white grape, and concentrate it down into a syrup, then add that to whatever juice you’re using to get the flavor. Net result is a drink that has far more sugar than any natural juice, but which is still technically 100% fruit juice.
Oh, and on the language usage point: While some Americans do know the distinction between jelly and jam, and those who know the distinction all agree on what it is, the majority of Americans use the two terms interchangeably. Thus, for instance, a PBJ is still “peanut butter and jelly”, even if the “jelly” is actually strawberry jam.
Finally, for the sake of completeness, there’s also apple butter, which I suppose should be considered a form of jam, but which is always put in its own separate category (though it’s used in about the same way as other jellies and jams).
I don’t think apples have enough pectin to gel, so I wouldn’t lump it in with the others.
I thought you were saying that you eat jelly (jam) as a dessert and put it on ice cream. And I actually know the British usage. I think it’s because you said “gelatinous” instead of “gelatin.” Jelly (jam) IS kind of gelatinous, but it’s not gelatin dessert. And I’ve never seen ice cream served with gelatin dessert.
Actually, they do. Apples are relatively high in pectin. They actually are a commercial source of pectin, along with citrus.
Now, somebody define “lemon curd” for me.
It’s a spread made of fruit juice thickened with eggs and butter instead of pectin, and has a consistency like thick custard or soft frosting. For whatever reason, “curd” is usually made with tart fruit - such as lemons of course, or gooseberry or currant.
It’s very easy to make and impressively delicious.
Can’t hardly let this thread go by without mentioning John F. Kennedy’s famous (mis)statement at the Berlin Wall “Ich bin ein Berliner” which literally translates (or so I’ve heard) as “I am a jelly donut”. Really. I read it somewhere so it’s gotta be true.