CANNING AND PRESERVING FRUIT IN THE HOME 
boiling hot, strained tomato, then seal. 
If there is any of the strained tomato 
left, can it for sauces. 
Canned Fruit Cooked in the Oven 
This method of canning fruit, in the 
opinion of the writer, is the one to be 
preferred. The work is easily and quick- 
ly done, and the fruit retains its shape, 
color, and flavor better than when cook- 
ed in the preserving kettle. Cover the 
bottom of the oven with a sheet of as- 
bestos, the kind plumbers employ cov- 
ering pipes. It is very cheap and may 
usually be found at plumbers’ shops. If 
the asbestos is not available, put into 
the oven shallow pans in which there 
are about two inches of boiling water. 
Sterilize the jars and utensils. Make the 
syrup; prepare the fruit the same as for 
cooking in the preserving kettle. Fill the 
hot jars with it, and pour in enough 
syrup to fill the jar solidly. Run the 
blade of a silver-plated knife around the 
inside of the jar. Place the jars in the 
oven, either on the asbestos or in the 
pan of water. The oven should be mod- 
erately hot. Cook the fruit ten minutes; 
remove from the oven and fill the jar 
with boiling syrup. Wipe and seal. Place 
the jars on a board and out of a draft 
of air. If the screw covers are used 
tighten them after the glass has cooled. 
Large fruits, such as peaches, pears, 
quinces, crab apples, etc., will require 
about a pint of syrup to each quart jar 
of fruit. The small fruit will require a 
little over half a pint of syrup. 
The amount of sugar in each quart of 
syrup should be regulated to suit the 
fruit with which it is to be used. 
Canned Fruit Cooked in a Water Bath 
Prepare the fruit and syrup as for cook- 
ing in the oven. 
Fill the sterilized jars and put the cov- 
ers on loosely. Have a wooden rack in 
the bottom of a wash boiler. Put in 
enough warm water to come to about 
4 inches above the rack. Place the filled 
jars in the boiler, but do not let them 
touch one another. Pack clean white 
cotton rags, or perhaps better, cotton 
rope, between and around the jars to pre- 
725 
vent them from striking one another 
when the water begins to boil. Cover 
the boiler and let the fruit cook ten 
minutes from the time the water sur- 
rounding it begins to boil. 
Draw the boiler back and take off 
the cover. When the steam passes off 
take out one jar at a time and place in 
a pan of boiling water beside the boil- 
er, fill up with boiling syrup and seal. 
Put the jars on a board and do not let 
cold air blow upon them. If screw cov- 
ers are used tighten them when the glass 
has cooled and contracted. 
Preserving Fruit 
In the case of most fruits, canning 
with a little sugar is to be preferred to 
preserving with a large quantity of sugar. 
There are, however, some fruits that are 
only good when preserved with a good 
deal of sugar. Of course, such prepara- 
tions of fruit are only desirable for oc- 
casional use. The fruits best adapted for 
preserving are strawberries, sour cher- 
ries, sour plums, and quinces. Such 
rich preparations should be put up in 
small jars or tumblers. 
Strawberries 
Use equal weights of sugar and straw- 
berries. Put the strawberries in the pre- 
serving kettle in layers, sprinkling sugar 
over each layer. The fruit and sugar 
should not be more than 4 inches deep. 
Place the kettle on the stove and heat 
the fruit and sugar slowly to the boil- 
ing point. When it begins to boil skim 
carefully. Boil ten minutes, counting 
from the time the fruit begins to bubble. 
Pour the cooked fruit into platters, hav- 
ing it about 2 or 3 inches deep. Place 
the platters in a sunny window, in an 
unused room, for three or four days. 
In that time the fruit will grow plump 
and firm, and the syrup will thicken al- 
most to a jelly. Put this preserve, cold, 
into jars or tumblers. 
White Currants 
Select large, firm fruit, remove the 
stems, and proceed as for strawberries. 
Cherries 
The sour cherries, such as Harly Rich- 
mond and Montmorency, are best for 
