Begin with the earliest fruits and can some of the juice of each kind
through the summer until you come to grapes and apples in the autumn.
When diluted with water, these juices are delightful beverages for sick
or well. A little lemon juice gives character to the drink. Without
diluting, they make nice flavorings for fruit salads, egg creams and
pudding sauces. Blueberry, black raspberry and other sweet juices make
excellent dressings for grains instead of milk or cream.
=Grape Juice=
Concords or some of the dark purple grapes are the richest and most
satisfactory for juice. Pick the grapes from the stems, wash and drain,
put into a preserving kettle without water, cover and put on back of
stove on an asbestos pad or a ring so they will heat slowly. When the
skins are broken and the juice is free, bring just to the boiling
point, put into jelly bags and drain without squeezing. To each quart
of juice add from ½ to 1 cup of sugar. Very ripe grapes will require no
sugar. Heat to boiling and can the same as fruit.
Add more water to the pulp that is left in the jelly bag, reheat,
strain, boil and put into large jars for a drink, or, rub the pulp
through a colander, sweeten, heat and can for marmalade.
_To Bottle Juices_--Nearly fill bottles, standing on cloth wrung out
of cold water, with boiling juice, through hot funnel. Press clean
cork into bottle, cut off even with the top of the bottle and cover
immediately with sealing wax made by melting together resin and oil.
Use only enough oil to make the resin soft enough to spread over the
cork and around the edges of the bottle. If too soft, the wax will run
off.
=Condensed Fruit Juices=
Cook apple and other fruit juices rapidly until thick, then simmer
slowly over the fire or in the oven until as thick as desired. Seal in
jars or put into glasses or cups as jelly. Convenient for travelling,
diluted.