This is a delicious preserve when made with fine ripe morellos. Stone
the fruit, weigh it, heat it rather slowly to draw out the juice, then
boil it quickly for twenty minutes over a very clear fire, add thirteen
ounces of sugar for each pound of the cherries, and boil the jam from
fifteen to twenty minutes longer, being careful to clear off all the
scum. The sugar should be of good quality; it must be beaten to powder
and added gradually to the fruit, and stirred with it off the fire
until it is dissolved. A larger portion may be used when the morellos
are very acid. An equal weight with the cherries will not be too much
for some tastes, but their flavour will be better preserved with less.
A few of the kernels blanched and wiped quite dry may be added a couple
of minutes before the jam is poured out.
RED CABBAGE.
A RECEIPT FROM HALTON CASTLE.
Take two middle-sized close-knit red cabbages, just when the frost has
seasoned them, strip them of all superfluous leaves, cut them across
in slices nearly a quarter of an inch thick, and scatter finely beaten
bay or rock salt over them when laid on large dishes and covered with
cloths; so let them lie twenty-four hours. Next drain the cabbage on a
sieve and let it remain until the next day, still covered over. Put it
into one jar that will contain it without pressure, and strew as you
proceed pretty plentifully the following mixture amongst and finally
upon the cabbage:
Allspice, coarsely beaten 1 oz.
Ginger, sliced 1½ oz.
Black peppercorns 1 oz.
Bay leaves, shred ½ oz.
Laurel leaves, shred ½ oz.
Now pour pure cold best London pickling vinegar into the jar, and take
care that the cabbage is perfectly covered, and to the depth of an
inch or more. Make up the jar with a bung, and secure it with resin or
pitch. In a month you will have perhaps the best article of its kind
to be found anywhere, its excellency consisting in its flavour, its
colour, and crispness.