Directions for Cookery, in its Various Branches by Eliza Leslie Published: 1840

« Previous Chapter: Pickling  |  Next Chapter: Pastry and Puddings »

SWEETMEATS.

GENERAL REMARKS.

The introduction of iron ware lined with porcelain has fortunately
almost superseded the use of brass or bell-metal kettles for
boiling sweetmeats; a practice by which the articles prepared in
those pernicious utensils were always more or less imbued with the
deleterious qualities of the verdigris that is produced in them by
the action of acids.

Charcoal furnaces will be found very convenient for preserving;
the kettles being set on the top. They can be used in the open
air. Sweetmeats should be boiled rather quickly, that the watery
particles may exhale at once, without being subjected to so long a
process as to spoil the colour and diminish the flavour of the
fruit. But on the other hand, if boiled too short a time they will
not keep so well.

If you wish your sweetmeats to look bright and clear, use only the
very best loaf-sugar. Fruit may be preserved for family use and
for common purposes, in sugar of inferior quality, but it will
never have a good appearance, and it is also more liable to spoil.

If too small a proportion of sugar is allowed to the fruit, it
will _certainly_ not keep well. When this experiment is tried
it is generally found to be false economy; as sweetmeats, when
they begin to spoil, can only be recovered and made eatable by
boiling them over again with additional sugar; and even then, they
are never so good as if done properly at first. If jellies have
not sufficient sugar, they do not congeal, but will remain liquid.

Jelly bags should be made of white flannel. It is well to have a
wooden stand or frame like a towel horse, to which the bag can be
tied while it is dripping. The bag should first be dipped in hot
water, for if dry it will absorb too much of the juice. After the
liquor is all in, close the top of the bag, that none of the
flavour may evaporate.

In putting away sweetmeats, it is best to place them in small
jars, as the more frequently they are exposed to the air by
opening the more danger there is of their spoiling. The best
vessels for this purpose are white queen's-ware pots, or glass
jars. For jellies, jams, and for small fruit, common glass
tumblers are very convenient, and may be covered simply with
double tissue-paper, cut exactly to fit the inside of the top of
the glass, laid lightly on the sweetmeat, and pressed down all
round with the finger. This covering, if closely and nicely
fitted, will be found to keep them perfectly well, and as it
adheres so closely as to form a complete coat over the top, it is
better for jellies or jams than writing-paper dipped in brandy,
which is always somewhat shrivelled by the liquor with which it
has been saturated.

If you find that your sweetmeats have become dry and candied, you
may liquefy them again by setting the jars in water and making it
boil round them.

In preserving fruit whole, it is best to put it first in a thin
syrup. If boiled in a thick syrup at the beginning, the juice will
be drawn out so as to shrink the fruit.

It is better to boil it but a short time at once, and then to take
it out and let it get cold, afterwards returning it to the syrup,
than to keep it boiling; too long at a time, which will cause it
to break and lose its shape.

Preserving kettles should be rather broad than deep, for the fruit
cannot be done equally if it is too much heaped. They should all
have covers belonging to them, to put on after the scum has done
rising that the flavour of the fruit may be kept in with the
steam.

A perforated skimmer pierced all through with holes is a very
necessary utensil in making sweetmeats.

The water used for melting the sugar should be very clear; spring
or pump water is best, but if you are obliged to use river water,
let it first be filtered. Any turbidness or impurity in the water
will injure the clearness of the sweetmeats.

If sweetmeats ferment in the jars, boil them over again with
additional sugar.


CLARIFIED SUGAR SYRUP.

Take eight pounds of the best double-refined loaf-sugar, and break
it up or powder it. Have ready the whites of two eggs, beaten to a
strong froth. Stir the white of egg gradually into two quarts of
very clear spring or pump water. Put the sugar into a porcelain
kettle, and mix with it the water and white of egg. While the
sugar is melting, stir it frequently; and when it is entirely
dissolved, put the kettle over a moderate fire, and let it boil,
carefully taking off the scum as it comes to the top, and pouring
in a little cold water when you find the syrup rising so as to run
over the edge of the kettle. It will be well when it first boils
hard to pour in half a pint of cold water to keep down the bubbles
so that the scum may appear, and be easily removed. You must not
however boil it to candy height, so that the bubbles will look
like hard pearls, and the syrup will harden in the spoon and hang
from it in strings; for though very thick and clear it must
continue liquid. When it is done, let it stand till it gets quite
cold; and if you do not want it for immediate use, put it into
bottles and seal the corks.

When you wish to use this syrup for preserving, you have only to
put the fruit into it, and boil it till tender and clear, but not
till it breaks. Large fruit that is done whole, should first be
boiled tender in a very thin syrup that it may not shrink. Small
fruit, such as raspberries, strawberries, grapes, currants,
gooseberries, &c. may, if perfectly ripe, be put raw into strong
cold sugar syrup; they will thus retain their form and colour, and
then freshness and natural taste. They must be put into small
glass jars, and kept well covered with the syrup. This, however,
is an experiment which sometimes fails, and had best be tried on a
scale, or only for immediate use.


TO PRESERVE GINGER.

Take root of green ginger, and pare it neatly with a sharp knife,
throwing it into a pan of cold water as you pare it. Then boil it
till tender all through, changing the water three times. Each time
put on the ginger is quite cold water to lake out the excessive
heat. When it is perfectly tender, throw it again into a pan of
cold water, and let it lie an hour or more; this will make it
crisp. In the mean time prepare the syrup. For every six pounds of
ginger root, clarify seven pounds of the best double-refined loaf-sugar.
Break up the sugar, put it into a preserving kettle, and
melt it in spring or pump water, (into which you have stirred
gradually the beaten white of two eggs,) allowing a pint of water
to each pound of sugar. Boil and skim it well. Then let the syrup
stand till it is cold; and having drained the ginger, pour the
syrup over it, cover it, and do not disturb it for two days. Then,
having poured it from the ginger, boil the syrup over again. As
soon as it is cold, pour it again on the ginger, and let it stand
at least three days. Afterwards boil the syrup again, and pour it
_hot_ over the ginger. Proceed in this manner till you find
that the syrup has thoroughly penetrated the ginger, (which you
may ascertain by its taste and appearance when you cut a piece
off,) and till the syrup becomes very thick and rich. Then put it
all into jars, and cover it closely.

If you put the syrup hot to the ginger at first, it will shrink
and shrivel. After the first time, you have only to boil and
reboil the syrup; as it is not probable that it will require any
further clarifying if carefully skimmed. It will be greatly
improved by adding some lemon-juice at the close of the last
boiling.


TO PRESERVE CITRONS.

Pare off the outer skin of some fine citrons, and cut them into
quarters. Take out the middle. You may divide each quarter into
several pieces. Lay them for four or five hours in salt and water.
Take them out, and then soak them in spring or pump water
(changing it frequently) till all the saltness is extracted, and
till the last water tastes perfectly fresh. Boil a small lump of
alum, and scald them in the alum-water. It must be very weak, or
it will communicate an unpleasant taste to the citrons; a lump the
size of a hickory nut will suffice for six pounds. Afterwards
simmer them two hours with layers of green vine leaves. Then make
a syrup, allowing a pint of water to each pound of loaf-sugar;
boil and skim it well. When it is quite clear, put in the citrons,
and boil them slowly, till they are so soft that a straw will
pierce through them without breaking. Afterwards put them into a
large dish, and set them in the sun to harden.

Prepare some lemons, by paring off the yellow rind very thin, and
cutting it into slips of uniform size and shape. Lay the lemon-rind
in scalding water, to extract the bitterness. Then take the
pared lemons, cut them into quarters, measure a half pint of water
to each lemon, and boil them to a mash. Strain the boiled lemon
through a sieve, and to each pint of liquid allow a pound of the
best double-refined loaf-sugar, for the second syrup. Melt the
sugar in the liquid, and stir into it gradually some beaten white
of egg; allowing one white to four pounds of sugar. Then set it
over the fire; put the lemon-peel into the syrup, and let it boil
in it till quite soft. Put the citrons cold into a glass jar, and
pour the hot syrup over them. Let the lemon remain with the
citrons, as it will improve their flavour.

If you wish the citrons to be candied, boil down the second syrup
to candy height, (that is, till it hangs in strings from the
spoon,) and pour it over the citrons. Keep them well covered. You
may, if you choose, after you take the citrons from the alum-water,
give them a boil in very weak ginger tea, made of the roots
of green ginger if you can procure it; if not, of race ginger.
Powdered ginger will not do at all. This ginger tea will
completely eradicate any remaining taste of the salt or the alum.
Afterwards cover the sides and bottom of the pan with vine leaves,
put a layer of leaves between each layer of citron, and cover the
top with leaves. Simmer the citrons in this two hours to green
them.

In the same manner you may preserve water-melon rind, or the rind
of cantelopes. Cut these rinds into stars, diamonds, crescents,
circles, or into any fanciful shape you choose. Be sure to pare
off the outside skin before you put the rinds into the salt and
water.

Pumpkin cut into slips, may be preserved according to the above
receipt.


CANTELOPES OR MUSK-MELONS.

Take very small cantelopes before they are ripe. Shave a thin
paring off the whole outside. Cut out a small piece or plug about
an inch square, and through it extract all the seeds, &c. from the
middle. Then, return the plugs to the hole from whence you took
them, and secure them with a needle and thread, or by tying a
small string round the cantelope.

Lay the cantelopes for four or five hours in salt and water. Then
put them into spring water to extract the salt, changing the water
till you find it salt no longer. Scald them in weak alum-water.
Make a syrup in the proportion of a pint of water to a pound of
loaf-sugar, and boil the cantelopes in it till a straw will go
through them. Then take them out, and set them in the sun to
harden.

Prepare some fine ripe oranges, paring off the yellow rind very
thin, and cutting it into slips, and then laying it in scalding
water to extract the bitterness. Cut the oranges into pieces;
allow a pint of water to each orange, and boil them to a pulp.
Afterwards strain them, and allow to each pint of the liquid, a
pound of the best loaf-sugar, and stir in a little beaten white of
egg; one white to four pounds of sugar. This is for the second
syrup. Boil the peel in it, skimming it well. When the peel is
soft, take it all out; for if left among the cantelopes, it will
communicate to it too strong a taste of the orange.

Put the cantelopes into your jars, and pour over them the hot
syrup. Cover them closely, and keep them in a dry cool place.

Large cantelopes may be prepared for preserving (after you have
taken off the outer rind) by cutting them into pieces according to
the natural divisions with which they are fluted. This receipt for
preserving cantelopes whole, will do very well for green lemons or
limes, substituting lemon-peel and lemon-juice for that of oranges
in the second syrup.

You may use some of the first syrup to boil up the pulp of the
orange or lemons that has been left. It will make a sort of
marmalade, that is very good for colds.


PRESERVED WATER-MELON RIND.

Having pared off the green skin, cut the rind of a water-melon
into pieces of any shape you please; stars, diamonds, circles,
crescents or leaves, using for the purpose a sharp penknife. Weigh
the pieces, and allow to each pound a pound and a halt of loaf
sugar. Set the sugar aside, and put the pieces of melon-rind into
a preserving kettle, the bottom and sides of which you, have lined
with green vine leaves. Put a layer of vine leaves between each,
layer of melon-rind, and cover the top with leaves. Disperse among
the pieces some very small bits of alum, each about the bigness of
a grain of corn, and allowing one bit to every pound of the melon-rind.
Pour in just water enough to cover the whole, and place a
thick double cloth (or some other covering) over the top of the
kettle to keep in the steam, which will improve the greening. Let
it simmer (but not boil) for two hours. Then take out the pieces
of melon-rind and spread them on dishes to cool. Afterwards if you
find that they taste of the alum, simmer them in very weak ginger
tea for about three hours. Then proceed to make your syrup. Melt
the sugar in clear spring or pump water, allowing a pint of water
to a pound and a half of sugar, and mixing in with it some white
of egg beaten to a stiff froth. The white of one egg will be
enough for four pounds of sugar. Boil and skim it; and when the
scum ceases to rise, put in the melon-rind, and let it simmer an
hour. Take it out and spread it to cool on dishes return it to the
syrup, and simmer it another hour. After this take it out, and put
it into a tureen. Boil up the syrup again, and pour it over the
melon-rind. Cover it, and let it stand all night. Next morning
give the syrup another boil; adding to It some lemon-juice,
allowing the juice of one lemon to a quart of the syrup. When you
find it so thick as to hang in a drop on the point of the spoon,
it is sufficiently done. Then put the rind into glass jars, pour
in the syrup, and secure the sweetmeats closely from the air with
paper dipped in brandy, and a leather outer cover.

This, if carefully done and well greened, is a very nice
sweetmeat, and may be used to ornament the top of creams, jellies,
jams, &c. laying it round in rings or wreaths.

Citrons may be preserved green in the same manner, first paring
off the outer skin and cutting them into quarters. Also green
limes.


PRESERVED PEPPERS.

For this purpose take the small round peppers while they are
green. With a sharp penknife extract the seeds and cores; and then
put the outsides into a kettle with vine leaves, and a little alum
to give them firmness, and assist in keeping them green. Proceed
precisely as directed for the water-melon rind, in the above
receipt.


PUMPKIN CHIPS.

It is best to defer making this sweetmeat (which will be found
very fine) till late in the season when lemons are ripe and are to
be had in plenty. Pumpkins (as they keep well) can generally be
procured at any time through the winter.

Take a fine pumpkin, of a rich deep colour, pare off the outer
rind; remove the seeds; and having sliced the best part, cut it
into chips of equal size, and about as thick as a half dollar.
They should be in long narrow pieces, two inches in breadth, and
six in length. It is best to prepare the pumpkin the day before;
and having weighed the chips, allow to each pound of them a pound
of the best loaf-sugar. You must have several dozen of fine ripe
lemons, sufficient to furnish a jill of lemon-juice to each pound
of pumpkin. Having rolled them under your hand on a table, to make
them yield as much juice as possible, pare off the yellow rind and
put it away for some other purpose. Then having cut the lemons,
squeeze out all the juice into a pitcher. Lay the pumpkin chips in
a large pan or tureen, strewing the sugar among them. Then having
measured the lemon-juice in a wine-glass, (two common wine-glasses
making one jill,) pour it over the pumpkin and sugar, cover the
vessel, and let it stand all night.

Next day transfer the pumpkin, sugar, and lemon-juice to n
preserving kettle, and boil it slowly three quarters of an hour,
or till the pumpkin becomes all through tender, crisp, and
transparent; but it must not be over the fire long enough to break
and lose its form. You must skim it thoroughly. Some very small
pieces of the lemon-paring may be boiled with it. When you think
it is done, take up the pumpkin chips in a perforated skimmer that
the syrup may drain through the holes back into the kettle. Spread
the chips to cool on large dishes, and pass the syrup through a
flannel bag that has been first dipped in hot water. When the
chips are cold, put them into glass jars or tumblers, pour in the
syrup, and lay on the top white paper dipped in brandy. Then tie
up the jars with leather, or with covers of thick white paper.

If you find that when cold the chips are not perfectly clear,
crisp, and tender, give them another boil in the syrup before you
put them up.

This, if well made, is a handsome and excellent sweetmeat It need
not be eaten with cream, the syrup being so delicious as to
require nothing to improve it. Shells of puff-paste first baked
empty, and then filled with, pumpkin chips, will be found very
nice.

Musk-melon chips may be done in the same manner.


TO PRESERVE PINE-APPLES.

Take fine large pine-apples; pare them, and cut off a small round
piece from the bottom, of each; let the freshest and best of the
top leaves remain on. Have ready on a slow fire, a large
preserving kettle with a thin syrup barely sufficient to cover the
fruit. In making this syrup allow a pound of fine loaf-sugar to
every quart of water, and half the white of a beaten egg; all to
be mixed before it goes on the fire. Then boil and skim it, and
when the scum ceases to rise, put in the pine-apples, and simmer
them slowly an hour. Then take them out to cool, cover them
carefully and pat them away till next day; saving the syrup in
another vessel. Next day, put them into the same syrup, and simmer
them again an hour. On the third day, repeat the process. The
fourth day, make a strong fresh syrup, allowing but a pint of
water to each pound of sugar, and to every three pounds the beaten
white of one egg. When this syrup has boiled, and is completely
skimmed, put in the pine-apples, and simmer them half an hour.
Then take them out to cool, and set them aside till next morning.
Boil them again, half an hour in the same syrup, and repeat this
for seven or eight days, or till you can pierce through the pine-apple
with a straw from a corn-broom. At the last of these
boilings enrich the syrup by allowing to each pound of sugar a
quarter of a pound more; and, having boiled and skimmed it, put in
the pine apples for half an hour. Then take them out, and when
quite cold put each into a separate glass jar, and fill up with
the syrup.

Pine apples may be preserved in slices by a very simple process.
Pare them, and out them into round pieces near an inch thick, and
take out the core from the centre of each slice. Allow a pound of
loaf-sugar to every pound of the sliced pine-apple. Powder the
sugar, and strew it in layers between the slices of pine-apple.
Cover it and let it set all night. Next morning measure some clear
spring or pump water, allowing half a pint to each pound of sugar.
Beat some white of egg, (one white to four pounds of sugar,) and
when it is a very stiff froth, stir it gradually into the water.
Then mix with it the pine-apple and sugar, and put the whole into
a preserving kettle. Boil and skim it well, till the pine-apple is
tender and bright all through. Then take it out, and when cold,
put it up in wide-mouthed glass jars, or in large tumblers.


TO PREPARE FRESH PINE-APPLES.

Cut off the top and bottom and pare off the rind. Then cut the
pine-apples in round slices half an inch thick, and put them into
a deep dish, sprinkling every slice with powdered loaf-sugar.
Cover them, and let them lie in the sugar for an hour or two,
before they are to be eaten.


PRESERVED LEMONS.

Take large fine ripe lemons, that have no blemishes. Choose those
with thin, smooth rinds. With a sharp, knife scoop a hole in the
stalk end of each, large enough to admit the handle of a tea-spoon.
This hole is to enable the syrup to penetrate the inside of
the lemons. Put them into a preserving kettle with clear water,
and boil them gently till you find them tender, keeping the kettle
uncovered. Then take them oat, drain, and cool them, and put them
into a small tub. Prepare a thin syrup of a pound of loaf-sugar to
a quart of water. When you have boiled and skimmed it, pour it
over the lemons and cover them. Let them stand in the syrup till
next day. Then poor the syrup from the lemons, and spread them on
a large dish. Boil it a quarter of an hour, and pour it over them
again, having first returned them to the tub. Cover them, and let
them again stand till next day, when you must again boil the syrup
and pour it over them. Repeat this process every day till you find
that the lemons are quite clear, and that the syrup has penetrated
them thoroughly. If you find the syrup becoming too weak, add a
little more sugar to it. Finally, make a strong syrup in the
proportion of half a pint of water to a pound of sugar, adding a
jill of raw lemon-juice squeezed from fresh lemons, and allowing
to every four pounds of sugar the beaten white of an egg. Mix all
well together in the kettle. Boil and skim it, and when the scum
ceases to rise, pour the syrup boiling hot over the lemons; and
covering them closely, let them stand undisturbed for four days.
Then look at them, and if you find that they have not sucked in
enough of the syrup to make the inside very sweet, boil them
gently in the syrup for a quarter of an hour. When they are cold,
put them up in glass jars.

You may green lemons by burying them in a kettle of vine leaves
when you give them the first boiling in the clear water.

Limes may be preserved by this receipt; also oranges.

To prepare fresh oranges for eating, peel and cut them in round
slices and remove the seeds. Strew powdered loaf-sugar over them.
Cover them and let them stand an hour before they are eaten.


ORANGE MARMALADE.

Take fine large ripe oranges, with thin deep-coloured skins. Weigh
them, and allow to each pound of oranges a pound of loaf-sugar.
Pare off the yellow outside of the rind from half the oranges as
thin as possible; and putting it into a pan with plenty of cold
water, cover it closely (placing a double cloth beneath the tin
cover) to keep in the steam, and boil it slowly till it is so soft
that the head of a pin will pierce it. In the mean time grate the
rind from the remaining oranges, and put it aside; quarter the
oranges, and take out all the pulp and the juice; removing the
seeds and core. Put the sugar into a preserving kettle, with a
half pint of clear water to each pound, and mix it with some
beaten white of egg, allowing one white of egg, to every four
pounds of sugar. When the sugar is all dissolved, put it on the
fire, and boil and skim it till it is quite clear and thick. Next
take the boiled parings, and cut them into very small pieces, not
more than, half an inch long; put them into the sugar, and boil
them in it ten minutes. Then put in the pulp and juice of the
oranges, and the grated rind, (which will much improve the
colour,) and boil all together for about twenty minutes, till it
is a transparent mass. When cold, pot it up in glass jars, laying
brandy paper on the top.

Lemon marmalade may be made in a similar manner, but you must
allow a pound and a half of sugar to each pound of lemons.


ORANGE JELLY.

Take fourteen large ripe oranges, and grate the yellow rind from
seven of them. Dissolve an ounce of isinglass in as much warm
water as will cover it. Mix the juice with a pound of loaf-sugar
broken up, and add the grated, rind and the isinglass. Put it into
a porcelain pan over hot coals and stir it till it boils. Then,
skim it well. Boil it ten minutes, and strain it (but do not
squeeze it) through a jelly-bag till it is quite clear. Put it
into a mould to congeal, and when you want to turn it out dip the
mould into lukewarm water. Or you may put it into glasses at
once.

You must have a pint of juice to a pound of sugar.

A few grains of saffron boiled with the jelly will improve the
colour without affecting the taste.


PRESERVED PEACHES.

Take large juicy ripe peaches; free-stones are the best, as they
have a finer flavour than the cling-stones, and are much more
manageable both to preserve, and to eat. Pare them, and cut them
in half, or in quarters, leaving out the stones, the half of which
you must save. To every pound of the peaches allow a pound of
loaf-sugar. Powder the sugar, and strew it among your peaches.
Cover them and let them stand all night. Crack half the peach-stones,
break them up, put them into a small sauce-pan and boil
them slowly in as much water as will cover them. Then when the
water is well flavoured with the peach-kernels, strain them out,
and set the water aside. Take care not to use too much of the
kernel-water; a very little will suffice. Put the peaches into a
preserving kettle, and boil them in their juice over a quick fire;
(adding the kernel-water,) and skimming them all the time. When
they are quite clear, which should be in half an hour, take them
off, and put them into a tureen. Boil the syrup five minutes
longer, and pour it hot over the peaches. When they are cool, put
them into glass jars, and tie them up with paper dipped in brandy
laid next to them.

Apricots, nectarines, and large plums maybe preserved in the same
manner.


PEACHES FOR COMMON USE.

Take ripe free-stone peaches; pare, stone, and quarter them. To
six pounds of the cut peaches allow three pounds of the best brown
sugar. Strew the sugar among the peaches, and set them away. Next
morning add a handful of peach leaves, put the whole into a
preserving kettle, and boil it slowly about an hour and three
quarters, or two hours, skimming it well. When cold, put it up in
jars and keep it for pies, or for any common purpose.


BRANDY PEACHES.

Take large white or yellow free-stone peaches, the finest you can
procure. They must not be too ripe. Rub off the down with a
flannel, score them down the seam with a large needle, and prick
every peach to the stone in several places. Scald them with
boiling water, and let them remain in the water till it becomes
cold, keeping them well covered. Repeat the scalding three times:
it is to make them white. Then wipe them, and spread them on a
soft table-cloth, covering them over with several folds. Let them
remain in the cloth to dry. Afterwards put them into a tureen, or
a large jar, and pour on as much white French brandy as will cover
them well. Carefully keep the air from them, and let them remain
in the brandy for a week. Then make a syrup in the usual manner,
allowing to each pound of peaches a pound of loaf-sugar and half a
pint of water mixed with a very little beaten white of egg; one
white to three or four pounds of sugar.

When the syrup has boiled, and been well skimmed, put in the
peaches and boil them slowly till they look clear; but do not keep
them boiling more than half an hour. Then take them out, drain
them, and put them into large glass jars. Mix the syrup, when it
is cold, with the brandy in which you had the peaches, and pour it
over them. Instead of scalding the peaches to whiten them, you may
lay them for an hour in sufficient cold weak lye to cover them
well. Turn them frequently while in the lye, and wipe them dry
afterwards.

Pears and apricots may be preserved in brandy, according to the
above receipt. The skin of the pears should he taken off, but the
stems left on.

Large egg plums may be preserved in the same manner.

Another way of preparing brandy peaches is, after rubbing off the
down and pricking them, to put them into a preserving kettle with
cold water, and simmer them slowly till they become hot all
through; but they must not be allowed to boil. Then dry them in a
cloth, and let them lie till they are cold, covering them closely
from the air. Dissolve loaf-sugar in the best white brandy, (a
pound of sugar to a quart of brandy,) and having put the peaches
into large glass jars, pour the brandy and sugar over them
(without boiling) and cover the jars well with leather.

Pears, apricots, and egg plums may also be done in this manner.


PEACH MARMALADE.

Take ripe yellow free-stone peaches; pare, stone, and quarter
them. To each pound of peaches, allow three quarters of a pound of
powdered loaf-sugar, and half an ounce of bitter almonds, or
peach-kernels blanched in scalding water, and pounded smooth in a
mortar. Scald the peaches in a very little water, mash them to a
pulp, mix them with the sugar and pounded-almonds, and put the
whole into a preserving kettle. Let it boil to a smooth thick jam,
skimming and stirring it well, and keeping the pan covered as much
as possible. Fifteen minutes will generally suffice for boiling
it. When cold, put it up in glass jars.

Plum marmalade may be made in this manner, flavouring it with
pounded plum-kernels.


PEACH JELLY.

Take fine juicy free-stone peaches and pare and quarter them.
Scald them in a very little water, drain and mash them, and
squeeze the juice through a jelly-bag. To every pint of juice
allow a pound of loaf-sugar, and a few of the peach-kernels.
Having broken up the kernels and boiled them by themselves for a
quarter of an hour in just as much water as will cover them,
strain off the kernel-water, and add it to the juice. Mix the
juice with the sugar, and when it is melted, boil them together
fifteen minutes, till it becomes a thick jelly. Skim it well when
it boils. Try the jelly by taking a little in a spoon and holding
it in the open air to see if it congeals. If you find, that after
sufficient boiling, it still continues thin, you can make it
congeal by stirring in an ounce or more of isinglass, dissolved
and strained. When the jelly is done, put it into tumblers, and
lay on the top double tissue paper cut exactly to fit the inside
of the glass; pressing it down with your fingers.

You may make plum jelly in the same manner, allowing a pound and a
half of sugar to a pint of juice.


TO PRESERVE APRICOTS.

Take ripe apricots; scald them, peel them, cut them in half, and
extract the stones. Then weigh the apricots, and to each pound
allow a pound of loaf-sugar. Put them into a tureen or large pan,
in alternate layers of apricots and sugar; cover them, and let
them stand all night. Next morning put all together into a
preserving kettle, and boil them moderately a quarter of an hour.
Then take them out, spread them on dishes, and let them stand till
next day. Then boil them again in the same syrup another quarter
of an hour. Afterwards, spread them out to cool, put them into
glass jars, and pour the syrup over them. Peaches may be preserved
in the same manner. Also large plums or green gages; but to the
plums you must allow additional sugar.


TO DRY PEACHES.

The best peaches for drying are juicy free-stones. They must be
quite ripe. Cut them in half, and take out the stones. It is best
not to pare them; as dried peaches are much richer with the skin
on, and it dissolves and becomes imperceptible when they are
cooked. Spread them out in a sunny balcony or on a scaffold, and
let them dry gradually till they become somewhat like leather;
always bringing them in at sunset, and not putting them out if the
weather is damp or cloudy. They may also be dried in kilns or
large ovens.

Apples are dried in the same manner, except that they must be
pared and quartered.

Cherries also may be dried in the sun, first taking out all the
stones. None but the largest and best cherries should be used for
drying.


TO PRESERVE QUINCES.

Take large, yellow, ripe quinces, and having washed and wiped
them, pare them and extract the cores. Quarter the quinces, or cut
them into round slices an inch thick, and lay them in scalding
water (closely covered) for an hour, or till they are tender. This
will prevent them from hardening, Put the parings, cores, and
seeds into a preserving kettle, cover them with the water in which
you coddled the quinces, and boil them an hour, keeping them
closely covered all the time. To every pint of this liquor allow a
pound of loaf-sugar; and having dissolved the sugar in it, put it
over the fire in the preserving kettle. Boil it up and skim it,
and when the scum has ceased rising, put in the quinces, and boil
them till they are red, tender, and clear all through, but not
till they break. Keep the kettle closely covered while the quinces
are in it, if you wish to have them bright coloured. You may
improve the colour by boiling with them a little cochineal sifted
through a muslin rag.

When they are done, take them out, spread them on large dishes to
cool, and then put them into glasses. Give the syrup another boil
up, and it will be like a fine jelly. Pour it hot over the
quinces, and when cold, tie up the jars with brandy paper.


TO PRESERVE QUINCES WHOLE.

Take those that are large, smooth, and yellow; pare them and
extract the cores, carefully removing all the blemishes. Boil the
quinces in a close kettle with the cores and parings, in
sufficient water to cover them. In half an hour take, them out,
spread them to cool, and add to the cores and parings some small
inferior quinces cut in quarters, but not pared or cored; and pour
in some more water, just enough to boil them. Cover the pan, and
let them simmer for an hour. Then take it off, strain the liquid,
measure it, and to each quart allow a pound of loaf-sugar. Put the
sugar to melt in the liquid, and let it set all night. Next day
boil the quinces in it for a quarter of an hour, and then take
them out and cool them, saving the syrup. On the following day
repeat the same; and the fourth day add a quarter of a pound more
sugar to each pint of the syrup, and boil the quinces in it twelve
minutes. If by this time they are not tender, bright, and
transparent all through, repeat the boiling.

When they are quite done, put quince jelly or marmalade into the
holes from whence you took the cores; put the quinces into glass
jars and pour the syrup over them. If convenient, it is a very
nice way to put up each quince in a separate tumbler.


QUINCE JELLY.

Take fine ripe yellow quinces, wash them and remove all the
blemishes, cut them in pieces, but do not pare or core them. Put
them into a preserving-pan with clear spring water. If you, are
obliged to use river water, filter it first; allowing one pint to
twelve large quinces. Boil them gently till they are all soft and
broken. Then put them into a jelly-bag, and do not squeeze it till
after the clear liquid has ceased running. Of this you must make
the _best_ jelly, allowing to each pint a pound of loaf-sugar.
Having dissolved the sugar in the liquid, boil them
together about twenty minutes, or till you have a thick jelly.

In the meantime, squeeze out all that is left in the bag. It will
not be clear, but you can make of it a very good jelly for common
purposes.


QUINCE MARMALADE.

Take six pounds of ripe yellow quinces; and having washed them
clean, pare and core them, and cut them into small pieces. To each
pound of the cut quinces allow half a pound of powdered loaf-sugar.
Put the parings and cores into a kettle with water enough
to cover them, and boil them slowly till they are all to pieces,
and quite soft. Then having put the quinces with the sugar into a
porcelain preserving kettle, strain over them, through a cloth,
the liquid from the parings and cores. Add a little cochineal
powdered, and sifted through thin muslin. Boil the whole over a
quick fire till it becomes a thick smooth mass, keeping it covered
except when you are skimming it; and always after skimming, stir
it up well from the bottom.

When cold, put it up in glass jars. If you wish to use it soon,
put it warm into moulds, and when if is cold, set the moulds in
lukewarm water, and the marmalade will turn out easily.


QUINCE CHEESE.

Have fine ripe quinces, and pare and core them. Cut them into
pieces, and weigh them; and to each pound of the cut quinces,
allow half a pound of the best brown sugar. Pat the cores and
parings into a kettle, with water enough to cover them, keeping
the lid of the kettle closed. When you find that they are all
boiled to pieces and quite soft, strain off the water over the
sugar, and when it is entirely dissolved, put it over the fire and
boil it to a thick syrup, skimming it well. When no more scum
rises, put in the quinces, cover them closely, and boil them all
day over a slow fire, stirring them and mashing them down with a
spoon till they are a thick smooth paste. Then take it out, and
put it into buttered tin pans or deep dishes. Let it set to get
cold. It will then turn out so firm that you may cut it into
slices like cheese. Keep it in a dry place in broad stone pots. It
is intended for the tea-table.


PRESERVED APPLES.

Take fine ripe pippin or bell-flower apples. Pare and core them,
and either leave them whole, or cut them into quarters. Weigh
them, and to each pound of apples allow a pound of loaf-sugar. Put
the apples into a stew-pan with just water enough to cover them,
and let them boil slowly for about half an hour. They must be only
parboiled. Then strain the apple water over the sugar into a
preserving kettle, and when the sugar is melted put it on the fire
with the yellow rind of some lemons pared thin, allowing four
lemons lo a dozen apples. Boil the syrup till clear and thick,
skimming; it carefully; then put in the apples, and after they
have boiled slowly a quarter of an hour, add the juice of the
lemons. Let it boil about fifteen minutes longer, or till the
apples are tender and clear, but not till they break. When they
are cold, put them into jars, and covering them closely, let them
set a week. At the end of that time give them another boil in the
same syrup; apples being more difficult to keep than any other
fruit.

You may colour them red by adding, when you boil them in the
syrup, a little cochineal.


BAKED APPLES.

Take a dozen fine large juicy apples, and pare and core them; but
do not cut them in pieces. Put them side by side into a large
baking-pan, and fill up with brown sugar the holes from whence you
have extracted the cores. Pour into each a little lemon-juice, or
a few drops of essence of lemon, and stick in every one a long
piece of lemon-peel evenly cut. Into the bottom of the pan put a
very little water, just enough to prevent the apples from burning.
Bake them about an hour, or till they are tender all through, but
not till they break. When, done, set them away to get cold.

If closely covered they will keep, two days. They may be eaten at
tea with cream. Or at dinner with a boiled custard poured over
them. Or you may cover them with, sweetened cream flavored with a
little essence of lemon, and whipped to a froth. Heap the froth
over every apple so as to conceal them entirely.


APPLE JELLY.

Take twenty large ripe juicy pippins. Pare, core, and chop them to
pieces. Put them into a jar with the yellow rind of four lemons,
pared thin and cut into little bits Cover the jar closely, and set
it into a pot of hot water Keep the water boiling hard all round
it till the apples are dissolved, Then strain them through a
jelly-bag, and mix with the liquid the juice of the lemons. To
each pint of the mixed juice allow a pound of loaf-sugar. Put
them into a porcelain kettle, and when the sugar is melted, set it
on the fire, and boil and skim it for about twenty minutes, or
till it becomes a thick jelly. Put it into tumblers, and cover it
with double tissue paper nicely fitted to the inside of the top.
The red or Siberian crab apple makes a delicious jelly, prepared
in the above manner.


APPLE BUTTER.

This is a compound of apples and cider boiled together till of the
consistence of soft butter. It is a very good article on the tea-table,
or at luncheon. It can only be made of sweet new cider
fresh from the press, and not yet fermented.

Fill a very large kettle with cider, and boil it till reduced to
one half the original quantity. Then have ready some fine juicy
apples, pared, cored, and quartered; and put as many into the
kettle as can be kept moist by the cider. Stir it frequently, and
when the apples are stewed quite soft, take them out with a
skimmer that has holes in it, and put them into a tub. Then add
more apples to the cider, and stew them soft in the same manner,
stirring them nearly all the time with a stick. Have at hand some
more cider ready boiled, to thin the apple butter in case you
should find it too thick in the kettle.

If you make a large quantity, (and it is not worth while to
prepare apple butter on a small scale,) it will take a day to stew
the apples. At night leave them to cool in the tubs, (which must
be covered with cloths,) and finish next day by boiling the apple
and cider again till the consistence is that of soft marmalade,
and the colour a very dark brown.

Twenty minutes or half an hour before you finally take it from the
fire, add powdered cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg to your taste. If
the spice is boiled too long, it will lose its flavour.

When it is cold, put it into stone jars, and cover it closely. If
it has been well made, and sufficiently boiled, it will keep a
year or more.

It must not he boiled in a brass or bell-metal kettle, on account
of the verdigris which the acid will collect in it, and which will
render the apple butter extremely unwholesome, not to say,
poisonous.


TO PRESERVE GREEN CRAB APPLES.

Having washed your crab apples, (which should be full grown,)
cover the bottom and sides of your preserving kettle with vine
leaves, and put them in; spreading a thick layer of vine leaves
over them. Fill up the kettle with cold, water, and hang it over a
slow fire early in the morning; simmer them slowly, but do not
allow them to boil. When they are quite yellow, take them out,
peel off the skin with a penknife, and extract the cores very
neatly.. Put them again into the kettle with fresh vine leaves and
fresh water, and hang them again over a slow fire to simmer, but
not to boil. When they have remained long enough in the second
vine leaves to become green, take them out, weigh them, and allow
a pound and a half of loaf-sugar to each pound of crab apples.
Then after the kettle has been well washed and wiped, put them
into it with a thick layer of sugar between each layer of apples,
and about half a pint of water, for each pound and a half of
sugar. You may add the juice and yellow peel of some lemons. Boil
them gently till they are quite clear and tender throughout. Skim
them well, and keep the kettle covered when you are not skimming.
When done, spread them on large dishes to cool, and then tie them
up in glass jars with brandy papers.


TO PRESERVE RED CRAB APPLES.

Take red or Siberian crab apples when they are quite ripe and the
seeds are black. Wash and wipe them, and put them into a kettle
with sufficient water to cover them. Simmer them very slowly till
you find that the skin will come off easily. Then take them out
and peel and core them; extract the cores carefully with a small
knife, so as not to break the apples. Then weigh them, and to
every pound of crab apples allow a pound and a half of loaf-sugar
and a half pint of water. Put the sugar and water into a
preserving kettle, and when they are melted together, set it over
the fire and let it boil. After skimming it once, put in the crab
apples, adding a little cochineal powder rubbed with a knife into
a very small quantity of white brandy till it has dissolved. This
will greatly improve the colour of the apples. Cover them and let
them boil till clear and tender, skimming the syrup when
necessary. Then spread them out on dishes, and when they are cold,
put them into glass jars and pour the syrup over them.

The flavour will be greatly improved by boiling with them in the
syrup, a due proportion of lemon-juice and the peel of the lemons
pared thin so as to have the yellow part only. If you use lemon-juice
put a smaller quantity of water to the sugar. Allow one
large lemon or two smaller ones to each pound of crab apples.

If you find that after they have been kept awhile, the syrup
inclines to become dry or candied, give it another boil with the
crab apples in it, adding a tea-cup full of water to about three
or four pounds of the sweetmeat.


TO PRESERVE GREEN GAGES.

Take large fine green gages that are not perfectly ripe. Weigh
them, and to each pound of fruit allow a pound and a half of loaf-sugar.
Put a layer of fresh vine leaves at the bottom of a
porcelain preserving kettle, place on it a layer of gages, then
cover them with a layer of vine leaves, and so on alternately,
finishing with a layer of leaves at the top. Fill up the kettle
with hard water, and set it over a slow fire. When the gages rise
to the top, take them out and peel them, putting them on a sieve
as you do so. Then replace them in the kettle with fresh vine
leaves and water; cover them very closely, so that no steam can
escape, and hang them up at some distance above the fire to green
slowly for six hours. They should be warm all the time, but must
not boil. When they are a fine green, take them carefully out,
spread them on a hair sieve to drain, and make a syrup of the
sugar, allowing a half pint of water to each pound and a half of
sugar. When it has boiled and been skimmed, put in the green gages
and boil them gently for a quarter of an hour. Then take them out
and spread them to cool. Next day boil them in the same syrup for
another quarter of an hour. When cold, put them into glass jars
with the syrup, and tie them up with brandy paper.

To preserve them whole without peeling, you must prick each at the
top and bottom, with a large needle.


TO PRESERVE PLUMS.

Take fine ripe plums; weigh them, and to each pound allow a pound
and a half of loaf-sugar. Put them into a pan, and scald them in
boiling water to make the skins come off easily. Peel them, and
throw them as you do so into a large china pitcher. Let them set
for an hour or two, and then take them out, saving all the juice
that has exuded from them while in the pitcher. Spread the plums
out on large dishes, and cover them with half the sugar you have
allotted to them, (it must be previously powdered,) and let them
lie in it all night. Next morning pour the juice out of the
pitcher into a porcelain preserving kettle, add the last half of
the sugar to it, and let it melt over the fire. When it has boiled
skim it, and then put in the plums. Boil them over a moderate
fire, for about half an hour. Then take them out one by one with a
spoon, and spread them on large dishes to cool. If the syrup is
not sufficiently thick and clear, boil and skim it a little longer
till it is. Put the plums into glass jars and pour the syrup warm
over them.

The flavour will be much improved by boiling in the syrup with the
fruit a handful or more of the kernels of plums, blanched in
scalding water and broken in half. Take the kernels out of the
syrup before you pour it into the jars.

You may preserve plums whole, without peeling, by pricking them
deeply at each end with a large needle.

Green gages and damsons maybe preserved according to this receipt.


PLUMS FOR COMMON USE.

Take fine ripe plums, and cut them in half. Extract all the
stones, and spread out the plums on large dishes. Set the dishes
on the sunny roof of a porch or shed, and let the plums have the
full benefit of the sun for three or four days, taking them in, as
soon as it is off, or if the sky becomes cloudy. This will half
dry them. Then pack them closely in stone jars with a thick layer
of the best brown sugar between every layer of plums; putting
plenty of sugar at the bottom and top of the jars. Cover them
closely, and set them away in a dry place.

If they have been properly managed, they will keep a year; and are
very good for pies and other purposes, in the winter and spring.

Peaches may be prepared for keeping in the same manner.


EGG PLUMS WHOLE.

Take large egg plums that are not quite ripe, and prick them all
over with a small silver fork. Leave on the stems. To three pounds
of plums allow three pounds and a half of loaf-sugar, broken small
or powdered. Put the plums and sugar into a preserving kettle, and
pour in one half pint of clear hard water. Hang the kettle over a
moderate fire, and boil and skim it, As soon as the skin begins to
crack or shrivel, take out the plums one at a time, (leaving the
syrup on the fire,) and spread them on large dishes to cool. Place
them in the open air, and as soon as they are cool enough to be
touched with your fingers, smooth the skin down where it is broken
or ruffled, When quite cold, return them to the syrup, (which in
the mean time must have been kept slowly simmering,) and boil the
plums again till they are quite clear, but not till they break.
Put them warm into large glass or queen's-ware jars, and pour the
syrup over them.


TO PRESERVE PEARS.

Take large fine juicy pears that are not perfectly ripe, and pare
them smoothly and thin; leaving on the stems, but cutting out the
black top at the blossom end of the fruit. As you pare them, lay
them in a pan of cold water. Make a thin syrup, allowing a quart
of water to a pound of loaf-sugar. Simmer the pears in it for
about half an hour. Then pat them into a tureen, and let them lie
in the syrup for two days, There must be syrup enough to cover
them well. After two days, drain the syrup front the pears, and
add to it more sugar, in the proportion of a pound to each pint of
the thin syrup. Stir in a very little beaten white of egg, (not
more than one white to three or four pounds of sugar,) add some
fresh lemon-peel pared thin, and set the syrup over a brisk fire.
Boil it for ten minutes and skim it well. Then add sufficient
lemon-juice to flavour it; and put in the pears. Simmer them in
the strong syrup till they are quite transparent. Then take them
out, spread them to cool, and stick a clove in the blossom end of
each. Put them into glass jars; and having kept the syrup warm
over the fire while the pears were tooling, pour it over them.

If you wish to have them red, add a little powdered cochineal to
the strong syrup when you put in your pears.


BAKED PEARS.

The best for baking are the large late ones,
commonly called pound pears. Pare them, cut them in half, and take
out the cores. Lay them in a deep white dish, with a thin slip of
fresh lemon-peel in the place from which each core was taken.
Sprinkle them with sugar, and strew some whole cloves or some
powdered cinnamon-among them. Pour into the dish some port wine.
To a dozen large pears you may allow half a pound of sugar, and a
pint of wine. Cover the dish, with a large sheet of brown paper
tied on; set it in a moderate oven, and let them bake till tender
all through which you may ascertain by sticking a broom twig
through them. They will he done in about an hour, or they may
probably require more time; but you must not let them remain long
enough in the oven, to break or fall to pieces. When cool, put
them up in a stone jar. In cold weather they will keep a week.

To bake smaller pears, pare them, but leave on the stems, and do
not core them. Put them into a deep dish with fresh lemon, or
orange-peel; throw on them some brown sugar or molasses; pour in
at the bottom a little water to keep them from burning; and bake
them till tender throughout.


TO PRESERVE GOOSEBERRIES.

The best way of preserving gooseberries is with jelly. They should
be full grown but green. Take six quarts of gooseberries, and
select three quarts of the largest and finest to preserve whole,
reserving the others for the jelly. Put the whole ones into a pan
with sufficient water to cover them, and simmer them slowly till
they begin to be tender; but do not keep them on the fire till
they are likely to burst. Take them out carefully with a
perforated skimmer to drain the warm water from them, and lay them
directly in a pan of cold water. Put those that you intend for the
jelly into a stew-pan, allowing to each quart of gooseberries half
a pint of water. Boil them fast till they go all to pieces, and
stir and mash them with a spoon. Then put them into a jelly-bag
that has been first dipped in hot water, and squeeze through it
all the juice. Measure the juice, and to each pint allow a pound
and a half of loaf-sugar. Break up the sugar, and put it into a
preserving kettle; pour the juice over it, and let it stand to
melt, stirring it frequently. When it has all dissolved, set it
over the fire, put the gooseberries into it, and let them boil
twenty minutes, or till they are quite clear, and till the jelly
is thick and congeals in the spoon when you hold it in the air. If
the gooseberries seem likely to break, take them out carefully,
and let the jelly boil by itself till it is finished. When all is
done, put up the gooseberries and the jelly together in glass
jars.

Strawberries, raspberries, grapes, currants or any small fruit may
in a similar manner be preserved in jelly.


TO STEW GOOSEBERRIES.

Top and tail them. Pour some boiling water on the gooseberries,
cover them up, and let them set about half an hour, or till the
skin is quite tender, but not till it bursts, as that will make
the juice run out into the water. Then pour off the water, and mix
with the gooseberries an equal quantity of sugar. Put them into a
porcelain stew-pan or skillet, and set it on hot coals, or on a
charcoal furnace. In a few minutes you may begin to mash them
against the side of the pan with a wooden spoon. Let them stew
about half an hour, stirring them frequently. They must be quite
cold before they are used for any thing.


GOOSEBERRY FOOL.

Having stewed two quarts of gooseberries in the above manner, stir
them as soon as they are cold into a quart of rich boiling milk.
Grate in a nutmeg, and covering the pan, let the gooseberries
simmer in the milk for five minutes. Then stir in the beaten yolks
of two or three eggs, and immediately remove it from the fire.
Keep on the cover a few minutes longer; then turn out the mixture
into a deep dish or a glass bowl, and set it away to get cold,
before it goes to table. Eat it with sponge-cake. It will probably
require additional sugar.

Gooseberries prepared in this manner make a very good pudding,
with the addition of a little grated bread. Use both whites and
yolks of the eggs. Stir the mixture well, and bake it in a deep
dish. Eat it cold, with sugar grated over it.


TO BOTTLE GOOSEBERRIES.

For this purpose the gooseberries must be large and full grown,
but quite green. Top and tail them, and put them into wide-mouthed
bottles as far up as the beginning of the neck. Cover the bottom
of a large boiler or kettle with saw-dust or straw. Stand the
bottles of gooseberries (slightly corked) upright in the boiler,
and pour round them cold water to each, as far up as the fruit.
Put a brisk fire under the boiler, and when the water boils up,
instantly take out the bottles and fill them up to the mouth with
boiling water, which you must have ready in a tea-kettle. Cork them
again slightly, and when quite cold put in the corks very tight
and seal them. Lay the bottles on their sides in a box of dry
sand, and turn them every day for four or five weeks. If properly
managed, the gooseberries will keep a year, and may be used at any
time, by stewing them with sugar.

You may bottle damsons in the same manner; also grapes.


PRESERVED RASPBERRIES.

Take a quantity of ripe raspberries, and set aside the half,
selecting for that purpose the largest and firmest. Then put the
remainder into your preserving pan, mash them, and set them over
the fire. As soon as they have come to a boil, take them out, let
them cool, and then squeeze them through a bag.

While they are cooling, prepare your sugar, which must be fine
loaf. Allow a pound of sugar to every quart of whole raspberries.
Having washed the kettle clean, put the sugar into it, allowing
half a pint of cold water to two pounds of sugar. When it has
melted in the water, put it on the fire, and boil it till the scum
ceases to rise, and it is a thick syrup; taking care to skim it
well. Then put in the whole raspberries, and boil them rapidly a
few minutes, but not long enough to cause them to burst. Take them
out with a skimmer full of holes, and spread them on a large dish
to cool. Then mix with the syrup the juice of those you boiled
first, and let it boil about ten or fifteen minutes. Lastly, put
in the whole fruit, and give it one more boil, seeing that it does
not break.

Put it warm into glass jars or tumblers, and when quite cold cover
it closely with paper dipped in brandy, tying another paper
tightly over it.

Strawberries may be done in the same manner; blackberries also.


RASPBERRY JAM.

Take fine raspberries that are perfectly ripe. Weigh them, and to
each pound of fruit allow three quarters of a pound of fine loaf-sugar.
Mash the raspberries, and break up the sugar. Then mix them
together, and put them into a preserving kettle over a good fire.
Stir them frequently and skim them. The jam will be done in half
an hour. Put it warm into glasses, and lay on the top a white
paper cut exactly to fit the inside, and dipped in brandy. Then
tie on another cover of very thick white paper.

Make blackberry jam in the same manner.


TO PRESERVE CRANBERRIES.

The cranberries must be large and ripe. Wash them, and to six
quarts of cranberries allow nine pounds of the best brown sugar.
Take three quarts of the cranberries, and put them into a stew-pan
with a pint and a half of water. Cover the pan, and boil or stew
them, till they are all to pieces. Then squeeze the juice through
a jelly-bag. Put the sugar into a preserving kettle, pour the
cranberry juice over it and let it stand till it is all melted,
stirring it up frequently. Then place the kettle over the fire,
and put in the remaining three quarts of whole cranberries. Let
them boil till they are tender, clear, and of a bright colour,
skimming them frequently. When done, put them, warm into jars with
the syrup, which should be like a thick jelly.


RED CURRANT JELLY.

The currants should be perfectly ripe and gathered on a dry day.
Strip them from the stalks, and put them into a stone jar. Cover
the jar, and set it up to the neck in a kettle of boiling water.
Keep the water boiling round the jar till the currants are all
broken, stirring them up occasionally. Then put them into a jelly-bag,
and squeeze out all the juice. To each pint of juice allow a
pound and a quarter of the best loaf-sugar. Put the sugar into a
porcelain kettle, pour the juice over it, and stir it frequently
till it is all melted. Then set the kettle over a moderate fire,
and let it boil twenty minutes, or till you find that the jelly
congeals in the spoon when, you hold it in the air; skim it
carefully all the time. When the jelly is done, pour it warm into
tumblers, and cover each with two rounds of white tissue paper,
cut to fit exactly the inside of the glass.

Jelly of gooseberries, plums, raspberries, strawberries,
barberries, blackberries, grapes, and other small fruit may all be
made in this manner.


WHITE CURRANT JELLY.

The currants should be quite ripe, and gathered on a dry day.
Having stripped them from the stalks, put them into a close stone
jar, and set it in a kettle of boiling water. As soon as the
currants begin to break, take them out and strain them through a
linen cloth. To each pint of juice allow a pound and a quarter of
the best double refined loaf-sugar; break it small, and put it
into a porcelain preserving pan with barely sufficient water to
melt it; not quite half a pint to a pound and a quarter of sugar;
it must be either clear spring water or river water filtered. Stir
up the sugar while it is dissolving, and when all is melted, put
it over a brisk fire, and boil and skim it till clear and thick.
When the scum ceases to rise, put in the white currant juice and
boil it fast for ten minutes. Then put it warm into tumblers, and
when it is cold, cover it with double white tissue paper.

In making this jelly, use only a silver spoon, and carefully
observe all the above precautions, that it may be transparent and
delicate. If it is not quite clear and bright when done boiling,
you may run it again through a jelly-bag.

White raspberry jelly may be prepared in the same manner. A very
nice sweetmeat is made of white raspberries preserved whole, by
putting them in white currant jelly during the ten minutes that
you are boiling the juice with the syrup. You may also preserve
red raspberries whole, by boiling them in red currant jelly.


BLACK CURRANT JELLY.

Take large ripe black currants; strip them from the stalks, and
mash them with the back of a ladle. Then put them into a
preserving kettle with a tumbler of water to each quart of
currants; cover it closely, set it over a moderate fire, and when
the currants have come to a boil, take them out, and squeeze them
through a jelly-bag. To each pint of juice you may allow about a
pound of loaf-sugar, and (having washed the preserving kettle
perfectly clean) put in the sugar with the juice; stir them
together till well mixed and dissolved, and then boil it not
longer than ten minutes; as the juice of black currants being very
thick will come to a jelly very soon, and if boiled too long will
be tough and ropy.

Black currant jelly is excellent for sore throats; and if eaten
freely on the first symptoms of the disease, will frequently
check, it without any other remedy. It would be well for all
families to keep it in the house.


GRAPE JELLY.

Take ripe juicy grapes, pick them from the stein

« Previous Chapter: Pickling  |  Next Chapter: Pastry and Puddings »