September 1901 



THE GARDEN MAGAZINE 



71 



94. Make light vvorK by being outdoors. With an 

 oil stove in a shady corner prepare another batch 

 of fruit while one is sterilizing 



cook small fruits forty minutes and large 

 fruits until they can be pierced with a straw. 

 For the vacuum jars the fruit should be boiled 

 in the syrup five minutes, then packed in the 

 jars and the jars boiled twenty minutes. 

 Many preserves are improved by the addi- 

 tion of lemon or Erinsjer, or both. Tomatoes 

 are delicious prepared in this manner, and 

 if the small yellow or red fruit is used and 

 covered with some of the sugar before cook- 

 ing the form is retained. 



Authorities disagree as to the amount of 

 sugar to use in making jams; the proportion 

 varies from equal weights to one pound of 

 fruit to three-quarters of a pound of sugar. 

 Split the difference, if you wish, and I think 

 vou will come out all riarht. The onlv differ- 



ence between jam and preserve is that the 

 former is "boiled down" a little more than 

 the latter. 



Jellies are made from the juice of fruit 

 only, with equal weight of sugar. Clear 

 jell} - is made by crushing the fruit while it 

 is heating slowly, then allowing it to drain 

 through a cheesecloth or coarse muslin bag 

 over night. You can get more jelly from 

 a given quantity of fruit by squeezing the 

 juice, but the jelly will not be so clear. 



THE ART OF CLEAR JELLIES 



If the jelly is being made from berries, 

 such as currants, raspberries, strawberries, 

 crush them thoroughly and heat slightly to 

 start the juices flowing. From apples, 

 quinces, etc., quarter the fruit, but do not 

 seed it or pare it; heat in the preserving 

 kettle, mashing the whole until the juices 

 flow freely, then drain through the jelly bag. 

 Do this preferably over night, for the pre- 

 paring can take place in the afternoon 

 and the finishing the following morning. 



Measure the juice and take equal measure 

 of sugar, placing the juice in the preserving 

 kettle and the sugar in shallow dishes; 

 place the former over a good fire to boil 

 and the latter in the oven to heat through. 

 Do not let it scorch, however, but stir it 

 often and if the oven be very hot leave the 

 door ajar. 



The juice must boil exactly twenty minutes, 

 removing the scum as it rises; then pour 

 in the hot sugar, stir thoroughly, let the whole 

 boil two minutes, take from the fire, and 

 pour at once into jelly tumblers. 



Now if your fruit (especially berries and 



95. Under the grape arbor a single oil stove will 

 suffice to " do up" plenty of fruits, and the labor is 

 not a burden. Do a little each day 



grapes) is the least bit too ripe (in fact it is 

 almost necessary to have a little green fruit), 

 the jelly may not be quite stiff, but don't 

 be discouraged; just put the tumblers on a 

 tray, cover them with a piece of glass, and set 

 in the sun for several days. 



The ordinary jelly bag is conical, so the 

 juice drips from the end, and is very satis- 

 factory if the pulp is to be squeezed. The 

 other, a bag hung from a stout hoop and 

 suspended by four strings, is particularly 

 handy for clear juice; the weight can be 

 shifted and the pulp stirred. 



96. All these vegetables may be canned, and it is worth while to save some of them for winter. Vegetables should be parboiled in salted water before being placed 



in the jars; this removes any acrid quality, without destroying the flavor 



