Put two pounds of the best white sugar, with one pint of fresh, clear
water, into a white porcelain saucepan; put it on the fire, and before
the sirup becomes hot mix well into it the partly beaten white of an
egg. When it begins to boil, remove the scum as it rises; watch it
constantly that it does not boil over; and continue to boil it until no
more scum rises.
Now peach, pear, greengage, Siberian crab-apple, and cherry preserves
are all made in the same manner. The peaches are neatly peeled, stoned,
and halved. The pears are peeled, cored, and cut into two. The greengage
makes a prettier preserve without being skinned--pricking them, and
halving the stem. The French preserve greengages in this manner. Some
think the skins of plums are tough in preserves, and throw them into
boiling water to skin them. The Siberian crab-apple, which makes a very
good preserve, is cored with a small tin tube or corer (see page 57).
Half of the stem is cut from cherries. When the sirup is gently boiling,
a few pieces are put into it at one time. They are boiled until they
become just soft. Do not allow them to break. When the pieces are done,
take them carefully out, and put more into the sirup until all are
cooked; pour the sirup over, and put them into jars.
Many add a little juice of lemon to pear, crab-apple, and plum
preserves. I would recommend a very little. In the case of peaches, more
flavor is gained by boiling the pits, if they are cling-stone (which
they should be--the White Heath being the best preserving peach), and
after straining the water using it to make the sirup. They will be
firmer by laying the uncooked peaches into the sirup, and letting them
remain in it overnight, cooking them the next morning. Others harden
fruit by letting it remain ten or fifteen minutes in alum-water. This
impairs the flavor. However, for good, clear preserves, I prefer the
first method of preserving them, using the pits for the water with which
to make peach marmalade. Peach marmalade and peach preserves should be
made at the same time, when the peaches of less pretentious appearance
can be used for the marmalade. Boil preserves without a cover to the
kettle.
CITRON PRESERVES (_Miss Leslie_).
The citrons can be pared, cored, and sliced, or cut into fancy shapes
with cutters which are made for the purpose. To six pounds of the
citron, use six pounds of sugar, four lemons, and a quarter of a pound
of ginger-root.
Put the slices of lemon into a preserving-kettle, and boil them for half
an hour, or until they look clear, in a little clear water; then drain
them. Save the water, and put the slices into another dish with a little
cold water; cover them, and let them stand overnight. In the morning
wrap the root-ginger (bruised) in a thin muslin cloth; boil it in three
pints of clear water until the water is highly flavored, when take out
the bag of ginger. Having broken up the loaf-sugar, put it into the
preserving-kettle with the ginger-water. When the sugar is all melted,
set it over the fire; boil, and skim until no more scum rises. Then put
in the pieces of citron and the juice of the lemons. Boil them in the
sirup till all the slices are quite transparent. Do not allow them to
break. When done, put them into the cans or jars, pouring the sirup
carefully over them. If one desires to imitate the West Indies ginger
preserve, the slices of lemon may not be added; yet they are a pretty
addition.
QUINCE PRESERVES (_Mrs. Hazard_).
Pare, core, and quarter the quinces. Select the best-looking quarters
for the preserves; the inferior-looking ones reserve, with the cores and
skins, for the marmalade.
For the preserves, allow three-quarters of a pound of sugar to a pound
of fruit. Make a sirup as before described (sirup for preserves),
allowing one pint of water to two pounds of sugar. When it is clear, and
still boiling-hot, add the hot quinces, which have been boiled in just
enough clear water to cover them well-boiled until they are tender, or
are easily pierced with a broom-straw--no longer. The preserves are now
ready to be put away. With this proportion of fruit, water, and sugar,
the preserves will not have much juice. What there is will form a thin,
clear jelly around the quinces after they are kept a short time: the hot
sirup will draw juice from the hot quinces to flavor and color it just
enough. There is much difference in the choice of quinces. There is a
kind which makes a white or light-colored preserve, very inferior in
flavor to the large quince, which makes the red.
TOMATO PRESERVES (_Mrs. Wilson_).
Choose little red, plum-shaped tomatoes, if red preserves are desired,
and the small yellow ones for yellow preserves. Peel, and prick them
with a large needle; boil them slowly for half an hour in
preserving-sirup, with the juice of one lemon to every two pounds of
tomatoes; add also a little bag of ginger-root; then skim out the
tomatoes; let them remain two or three hours in the sun to harden. Put
the white of an egg into the sirup; boil and skim well, and pour it over
the tomatoes. The old rule is a pound of sugar to a pound of fruit. I
prefer three-quarters of a pound of the former to a pound of the latter.
The yellow tomatoes are preferable.