The best refined sugar, which will require no clarifying, should
invariably be used for this process; but when inferior qualities are
chosen they must be prepared in the following manner: To clarify six
pounds of sugar, break it into large lumps, put it into a preserving
pan, and pour upon it five pints of cold spring water; in another pint
of water beat up lightly the white of one small egg, but not frothing
it very much, add it to the sugar, and stir it to mix it well with
the whole. Set the pan over a gentle fire, when the sugar is nearly
dissolved, and let the scum rise without being disturbed; when the
syrup has boiled five minutes, take it off the fire, let it stand two
minutes, and then skim it very clean, let it boil again, then throw in
half a cupful of cold water, which will bring the remainder of the scum
to the surface; skim it until it is perfectly clear, strain it through
a thin cloth, and it will be ready for use, or for further boiling.
All _unripe_ fruit must be rendered perfectly tender by gentle
scalding, before it is put into syrup, or it will not imbibe the
sugar; and the syrup must be _thin_ when it is first added to it, and
be thickened afterwards by frequent boiling, or with sugar added, or
the fruit will shrivel instead of becoming plump and clear. A pound of
sugar boiled for ten minutes in a pint of water will make a very light
syrup, but it will gradually thicken if rapidly boiled in an uncovered
pan. Two pounds of sugar to the pint of water will become thick with
little more than half an hour’s boiling, or with three or four separate
boilings of eight or ten minutes each; if too much reduced it will
candy, instead of remaining liquid.