STATE POMOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 97 



The utensils for cookiug aud straining should not be of metal if the 

 best flavors of the fruit are to be retained. Agate or granite ware kettles 

 are preferable to the heavy iroh ones lined Avith porcelain. Wooden 

 spoons and linen strainers are also desirable for this work. If necessary 

 to use metal anywhere, do it as quickly as possible. Never leave a metal 

 spoon in a kettle of cooked fruit. 



JELLY MAKING. 



The fruit juice should be allowed to drip through the strainer, since 

 pressing will bring pulp through also, which would make the jelly cloudy. 

 A square of linen cheesecloth is a satisfactory strainer; the opposite 

 corners may be tied together aud hung over a rod placed on two supports 

 at convenient distance from the dish beneath, into which the juice drips. 

 Fruits having little pulp may be pressed through the linen strainer and 

 then allowed to drip through a flannel bag. Only enough water should 

 be used in cooking the fruit to keep it from burning, otherwise long boil- 

 ing will be required after the juice is strained to evaporate the water 

 added. If this is necessary, do it before adding the sugar. 



The usual rule in making jelly from any kind of fruit is to use a pound 

 of sugar for every pint of juice, but with a sweet fruit, or with one which 

 is sure to jelly readilj-, less will be required. Only the best granulated 

 sugar should be used. Brown sugar may do for some marmalades, but 

 not for clear jellies. Granulated sugar is usually considered the cheapest 

 form of sweetening ; brown sugars are moister and not always pure. 



Even if but a small quantity of jelly is to be made, a large kettle should 

 be chosen rather than a small one, because it ofiers a greater surface for 

 evaporation, and the quicker the jelly is made the better. Hence it is 

 sometimes easier to prepare several small lots instead of one large quan- 

 tity. Twenty minutes is the average time for boiling after the juice and 

 sugar are put together and begin to boil, but as this depends on the con- 

 dition of the fruit, and the shape of the kettle, it is safe to watch closely 

 after ten minutes have passed. A thick white froth or scum usually 

 appears on the surface aud should be carefully removed before it is mixed 

 with the jelly bj' the force of the boiling syrup. Some directions omit 

 this caution, preferring to pass the jelly through a flannel bag again 

 before putting in glasses, but that is unnecessary and undesirable, as it 

 might harden and refuse to be strained. 



It is not easy for a beginner to decide when the jelly is sufticieutly 

 cooked; the best tests are dependent upon close observation. A few 

 drops on a cold surface will harden quickly if the jelly is done, or the 

 change in texture will show on the spoon in stirring, or around the edge, 

 of the kettle. Over-cooked jelly will be of a gluey consistency, but if 

 underdone the glasses may stand for a day in the sunlight, which wil| 

 usually accomplish the desired result. 



For jelly all sorts and conditions of receptacles may be utilized; gob-^ 

 lets which cannot stand upright can be set in tin cans for support or have 

 the base put into a block of wood, old sugar bowls, odd cups, bowls, mugs 



