Chapter V: Front Matter (5)

Gather the strawberries in the mid-day, pick out the largest and best, stem them, and to each pound of strawberries put a pound of loaf-sugar and a glass of white wine; let them stand four or five hours; take off the syrup so as not to mash the fruit, and clarify it; then put in the strawberries, and to each pound put as much fine alum as will lay on the blade of a penknife; let them boil up several times, and shake them round in the kettle, but do not stir them with a spoon, as that will mash them; a few minutes boiling is sufficient; after you take out the fruit, let the syrup boil up, and when it is nearly cold pour it over them in the jar; put a piece of white paper over the top, and pour a spoonful of brandy on it; paste several thicknesses of paper over the jar.

If you like your preserved strawberries, cherries, or peaches, to have a fine pale color, allow them to bob half the time recommended in the receipt, then spread the fruit thin on dishes, with but little syrup, pour the rest of the syrup also on dishes, and set them daily in the sun; if the weather be clear and the sun hot, four days will be sufficient. Preserves done in this manner do not ferment. You should spread a piece of gauze or netting over them to keep out insects or dust.

Another Way.

To each pound of the fruit take a pound of crushed sugar; put them in the preserving kettle, a layer of sugar and a layer of fruit; let them stand a little while to make syrup before putting them over the fire; they should boil fast for twenty minutes; watch them all the time, taking off the scum as it rises; stir them gently without mashing the berries; put them in jars, put brandy papers over them and paste or tie them close. Preserves should never be put in jars that have had pickles in them.

Tomatoes.

Take solid round tomatoes, scald and peel them, give them their weight in sugar, put a layer of sugar and of tomatoes alternately; let them boil slowly till the syrup forms, then boil faster, till clear, and the syrup is rich; season with lemon peel, ginger or mace; some prefer the yellow tomato for preserving.

Quinces.

Pick out the finest quinces, pare them, and cut them in halves, or in rings; take the best of the parings and the seed, and boil them in water till they are very soft, strain the liquor, and have the kettle cleaned again, wash and weigh the quinces, and give them their weight in sugar, put the sugar in the water the parings were boiled in--skin it, and put in the quinces, let them boil very slowly till clear, take them up on dishes, and boil the syrup longer.

Green Peppers.

Get peppers that have a sweet taste, take out the seeds, leaving on the stems, lay them in salt and water for three days, changing the water each day, then put them in a kettle with leaves around them, and a small piece of alum, let them scald, but not boil, for two hours, take them out, and let them lay in water three days, changing it twice each day, then boil them in sugar and water fifteen minutes, then make a syrup, allowing them their weight in sugar, and boil them gently in it half an hour, take them out and boil the syrup longer.

Pumpkin.

Choose a fine grained, high colored pumpkin, fully ripe, cut it in thin slices, about four inches long and two wide, to two pounds of pumpkin, put two pounds of sugar in a bowl, cut the peel of two lemons in rings, and squeeze the juice over the pumpkin, let it stand all night, the next day put it on to preserve with two tea cups of water, let it cook gently till the pumpkin seems clear and crisp, take it up, scald the lemon peel, and boil it in the syrup, cool it on dishes, and put it in a jar.

Green Fox-Grape Jelly.

Fill a kettle with grapes, and let them boil with a pint of water till the skins burst, mash and strain them, put a pound of sugar to a pint of juice, and let it boil half and hour. Ripe fox-grapes may be made into very nice jelly in the same way, and is very good to drink in sickness, mixed with water.

Pears.

Pare and core the fruit, but leave the stems on; put them in a syrup of a pound of sugar, and a half a pint of water to a pound of pears, with some green ginger or lemon peel; boil the syrup half an hour after they are done.

Ripe Fox-Grape Jam.

To two quarts of grapes, allow three pounds of brown sugar, and a pint of water; have the grapes picked over and washed; put them all together and let them boil more than an hour; take them up on shallow dishes, and pick out as many seeds as you can with a spoon. This makes a good common preserve when other fruits are scarce; they are also very good for pies.

Currant Jelly.

Pick the leaves from the currants and fill your kettle with them; put a tea-cup of water to keep them from sticking; cover them with a plate and let them boil slowly half an hour; take them out, and strain them through a flannel bag; to every pint of juice put a pound of loaf-sugar; let it boil till it is a thick jelly, which will be in about fifteen minutes, and put it in tumblers or jars.

Lemon Butter or French Honey.

Take half a pound of butter, melt it in an earthen dish and squeeze in the juice of six lemons; beat twelve eggs with two pounds of brown sugar, stir it in with the rind of two lemons grated, mix it all together, and let it boil twenty minutes, when it will be about the consistency of honey; the flavor is agreeable, and it may be eaten on bread, or as a sauce for boiled pudding.

Currant Syrup.

Prepare the currants as for jelly; to every pint of juice put a pint of water and a pound of sugar; let it boil half an hour and skim it well; if the flavor of the raspberry is preferred, it may be added in the proportion of one pint of it to four of currant juice. It is a very pleasant drink mixed with water in warm weather.

Quince Jelly.

Wash and wipe the quinces; cut them in small pieces, and take out the seeds carefully; have your kettle cleaned and half full of water; throw the quinces and seeds in till you get it full; cover them over and let them boil till very soft; mash them well and strain them; to every pint of juice put a pound of sugar; clean the kettle again, pour in the juice and sugar, and let it boil till it forms a jelly; it should be put into tea-cups, if you want to turn it out whole, with brandy papers on top, and pasted over. It is a nice jelly to use with whips or trifle.

Apple Jelly.

Pare and quarter a preserving kettle full of pippin apples; cover them with water, and lay a plate close over them; let them boil until perfectly soft, taking the plate off to skim them; spread a coarse thin cloth over a large bowl; pour the apples on the cloth, and let the juice run through, without squeezing; hold the towel by the corners, and move it gently; take three-quarters of a pound of loaf-sugar to a pint of the juice, and boil it fast, skimming it, until it becomes jelly, which will be in from ten to fifteen minutes, pour it in tumblers or glass jars, and when quite cold, paste them over. This will keep a year. Red streak apples make a fine red jelly, boiled with the skins on them. If you have currant or grape jelly that has candied, they can be restored by making some apple syrup, and mixing it hot; it will not require any more sugar--about one-third apple juice; let it boil a few minutes. Very sweet preserves that have candied can be improved by this process.

Apple Marmalade.

Apples make a very good marmalade when other fruits are scarce, and can be done at any time through the fall, or winter, pare the apples, cut them up, and put them to boil, with some water and green ginger scraped, and tied up in a bag, after they have boiled an hour, take out the ginger, and put in half a pound of sugar to one of fruit, let it cook an hour longer.

Peach Marmalade.

Take soft yellow peaches, pare them, and cut them in quarters, give them their weight in sugar, put the peaches in the preserving kettle with a pint of water, without the sugar, and let them boil till they are well cooked, covered over with a plate, when done, mash them in the kettle till very fine, and stir in the sugar, let them cook slowly an hour, or they may be finished in a stone jar in the oven, or set in a stove boiler, and the water kept boiling all the time, they are not then so likely to burn as when finished over the fire, they will do with less sugar, if they are dried in the sun two days previous to preserving.

Another Way.

Pare and quarter the peaches, and to eight pounds of peaches, allow five pounds of sugar, put them on, sugar and peaches at once, mixing them through, let them stew slowly until a syrup forms, when they may cook pretty fast for several hours, without once stirring, then take them up, and mash them well, if the marmalade is not thick enough, spread it on dishes, and dry in your oven after the bread is taken out. Quinces and apples may be done in the same way.

Quince Marmalade.

Pare the quinces and cut them up fine, put the parings and cores to boil, then strain them, put in the quinces, and let them boil till soft-when mash them fine, and put in three-quarters of a pound of sugar to a pound of fruit, let them cook gently for two hours, and take them up in pint bowls; when cold, put brandy papers on the top of each, and paste them over, they will turn out whole to put on table.

Marmalade of Mixed Fruits.

Pare equal quantities of peaches, apples, pears and quinces, cut them fine, and put them to boil with a pint of water to six pounds of fruit, let them cook thoroughly, but do not let them burn, take them out, and mash them well, clean the kettle, and put them back, with half their weight in sugar, let them cook very slowly for two hours.

Lemon Marmalade.

Soak the peel of lemons that have been left after making lemonade, changing the water twice a day for three days, to extract the bitter, boil them till soft, then mash and put in enough sugar to make it pleasant to the taste; stew it a short time after the sugar is put in; put it in a bowl, and when cold, cut it in slices for the table; it will keep several weeks.

To Conserve Pears.

Have the nicest pears you can get, pare them, and leave on the stems; take half a pound of loaf-sugar to a pound of pears; put them in the kettle together, with water enough to moisten the sugar; if the pears are very juicy, they will not need any; cover them over with a plate, and let them boil very gently for two hours; take them out on dishes, and boil the syrup to jelly, and put it away by itself; set the pears in the sun, or in a moderately heated oven; when quite dry, sprinkle them with loaf-sugar, and put them away in glass jars.

Peaches in Cider.

Scald and wipe the peaches; cut them from the stone, and dry them in the sun two days; boil a gallon of sweet cider half away; put in the peaches, and let them stew slowly till done; they will keep without any sugar, but you can put some in, if you wish them sweeter.

Pears can be kept in the same way.

Peaches, &c. in Brandy.

Take fresh yellow peaches, or large clingstones, pour boiling water on them, and wipe off the down; make a syrup of half a pound of sugar to a pound of fruit, and boil and skim it; put in the peaches, and let them cook for fifteen minutes; take them up without any syrup, and cool them on dishes; boil the syrup down to half, and put an equal quantity of peach or French brandy, pour this over the peaches after they are in jars.

Plums or cherries may be done in the same way.

Grapes in Brandy.

Put some close bunches of grapes, not too ripe, in a jar, and prick each one with a needle, strew over them half their weight in pounded rock candy, and fill up the jar with brandy.

To Conserve Peaches.

Take the yellow peaches, pare them, and cut them from the stone in one piece, to six pounds of peaches have two pounds of sugar, make a syrup of three-quarters of a pound of sugar, and a little water, put them in, and let them stay till they are quite clear, then take them up carefully on a dish, and set them in the sun to dry, pound the sugar fine, and strew over them, turning them over to let each part have some, do not put much on at a time, and if any syrup is made, remove them to fresh dishes, when they are sufficiently dry, lay them lightly in a jar, with a little sugar between each layer.

If the peaches are sweet clings, three pounds of sugar to twelve of peaches will be enough, if you dry them a day in the sun before they are stewed.

Sauce of Cherries, or Damsons.

Allow half a pound of brown sugar to every pound of fruit, and to each seven pounds a pint of molasses, and one of strong vinegar, let them cook slowly, so as not to break the skins, take them up in a jar, put in a few cloves, let the syrup boil longer, and pour it over.

Frosted Fruit.

Take large ripe cherries, apricots, plums or grapes; if cherries, cut off half of the stem; have in one dish some white of an egg beaten, and in another some powdered loaf-sugar; take the fruit, one at a time, and roll them first in the egg, and then in the sugar; lay them on a sheet of white paper in a sieve, and set it on the top of a stove or near a fire till the icing is hard.

Grapes for Pies.

After the first frost, pick the wild grapes, and put them in a jar, free from stems; fill it with boiling molasses, and tie it up close; set it on a hot hearth, or on the top of a stove, in a pan of water, for several days. These are very useful to make common pies in the winter.

Green Tomatoes for Pies.

Pick the green tomatoes before they are much frosted; scald them and take off the skins; put them in your kettle and let them boil for half an hour; cut them up, and put in a pound of sugar to three pounds of tomatoes, and let them cook for half an hour longer; season them with the juice and peel of a lemon, and put them away in jars. They make very good pies in the winter, and resemble gooseberries.

Conserve of Roses.

Gather the leaves of the damask rose, while they are fresh; spread a pound of loaf-sugar on your cake-board, and roll in about half a pound of rose leaves, or as many as will work into it, have your kettle cleaned, and stew them in it very gently for about half an hour; put it in tumblers to use when you have a cough. It is very good for children that are threatened with the croup; you should have some by the side of the bed to use at night.

To keep Damsons for Pies.

To every twelve pounds of damsons take seven pounds of brown sugar; put them together in a stone jar, a layer of fruit and a layer of sugar; tie it up close, and set it in a heated oven; let it stay till it is cold, and continue to set it in, after every baking, for several weeks; or you can cook them on the top of a stove, in a pan of hot water.

Dried Cherries, &c.

Dried cherries should be kept in a jar, with sugar sprinkled among them; they are very useful in sickness; a tea-cupful of cherries, with a quart of boiling water poured on them, and left to draw for half an hour, with sweetening, makes a very agreeable drink when you cannot get lemonade.

When stewed for pies you should allow them plenty of water, and not put in the sugar till they are nearly done.

Boiling water poured on dried apples also makes a good drink in sickness.

Apple Butter.

_With Remarks on the Use of Earthen Vessels_

Have your kettle well cleaned, and fill it early in the morning with cider made of sound apples, and just from the press; let it boil half away, which may be done by three o'clock in the afternoon; have pared and cut enough good apples to fill the kettle; put them in a clean tub, and pour the boiling cider over; then scour the kettle and put in the apples and cider, let them boil briskly till the apples sink to the bottom; slacken the fire and let them stew, like preserves, till ten o'clock at night. Some dried quinces stewed in cider and put in are an improvement. Season with orange peel, cinnamon or cloves, just before it is done; if you like it sweeter, you can put in some sugar an hour before it is done. If any thing occur that you cannot finish it in a day, pour it in a tub, and finish it the next day; when it is done put it in stone jars. Any thing acid should not be put in earthen vessels, as the glazing is poisonous. This way of making apple butter requires but little stirring; you must keep a constant watch that it does not burn.

Pears and peaches may be done in the same way, and if they are sweet, will not require sugar.

Another Way.

It is important to have a large copper or bell-metal kettle, into which put the cider as soon as it comes from the press; put it over a brisk fire, and boil it half away; then put the cider from the kettle into clean stone jars, (warm the jars to prevent the danger of breaking them;) have your apples pared and cut over night, as many as would fill your kettle twice; have the kettle well cleaned, and in the morning put in half the cider, and fill the kettle nearly full of apples, and put it over a brisk fire; when they begin to boil up, stir them down, which may be done two or three times, before you put in your stick to stir constantly; then put in the rest of the apples and cider, as fast as the kettle will take them, and boil it four hours after the last apples are put in, stirring it all the time; you should have for the purpose a stick made of hickory wood, somewhat like a common hoe, with holes in it.

Candied Preserves, &c.

If your preserves candy, set the jars in hot water for half an hour; if they are in glass jars put them in something else, as glass cracks easily, when exposed to heat. Preserves made with white Havana sugar are not so liable to candy as others. Common preserves are improved, and are more certain to keep well, by being placed on flat dishes and set in a brick-oven after the bread is taken out: they may remain two or more hours without injury. When preserves are about to boil over, you should have a common fan at hand and fan them, which will sometimes answer instead of taking them from the fire.

Cider Marmalade.

Boil two gallons of sweet cider down to one gallon; have ready two gallons of apples, pared and cut; pour the cider out of the kettle, and clean it; then put in the apples, and pour the cider in, and two or three pounds of sugar; if it will not hold all conveniently, add at intervals; let them stew four hours; do not stir till they are nearly done--stirring makes fruit stick to the kettle and burn; if you stir once you must keep on. This is a pleasant sauce for dinner, or eaten with bread and butter at tea, and will keep in a cool place through the winter.

Tomato Figs.

Take six pounds of sugar, to one peck (or sixteen pounds) of ripe tomatoes--the pear-shaped look best; put them over the fire (_without peeling_) in your preserving kettle, their own juice being sufficient without the addition of water; boil them until the sugar penetrates and they are clarified. They are then taken out, spread on dishes, flattened and dried in the sun, or in a brick-oven after the bread is taken out. A small quantity of the syrup should be occasionally sprinkled over them whilst drying; after which, pack them down in jars, sprinkling each layer with powdered sugar. The syrup is afterwards concentrated and bottled for use. They retain surprisingly their flavor, which is agreeable and somewhat similar to the best figs. Ordinary brown sugar may be used, a large portion of which is retained in syrup.

Molasses Candy or Taffy.

Put a quart of good molasses (not sugar house) in a dutch-oven or iron pot, having previously greased it with butter; let it boil very fast, stirring it all the time for fifteen minutes; then put in a tea-cup of sugar and let it boil fifteen minutes longer, stirring all the time; take a little out on a plate, and when it is brittle, pour it while hot into tin plates rubbed with butter; put it in a cold place and break it up when you want it for use; never put taffy in china or earthen plates, as they would probably be broken in taking it out. Some think it an improvement to add the kernels of black walnuts, nicely picked--put them in just as you take up the taffy and give it one stir; a tea-cup of kernels to a pint of molasses is a good proportion.

Walnut Cheese.

Take a pint of nice kernels and pound them in a mortar with two tea-cups of brown sugar, and a table-spoonful of water; put it in cups or small bowls and it will turn out like other cheese. It is a favorite refreshment with some country children.

CORDIALS, WINES, VINEGAR, PICKLES, &c.

Peach Cordial.

Put a gallon of peach brandy into a wide-mouthed vessel, and five pounds of fine flavored peaches, cut from the stone; boil five pints of water with two pounds of loaf-sugar and a pound of peaches, till it is a clear and rich syrup; pour this boiling hot on the brandy and stir it well; put in two dozen peach kernels, blanched and pounded, and a little mace; let it stand three weeks covered tight--at the end of which time, bottle it for use. It is a nice seasoning for cake.

Quince Cordial.

Grate the quinces and strain them; to every quart of juice, put a pound of loaf-sugar and a pint of spirits; boil, strain and bottle it.

Cherry Cordial.

Mash and strain the cherries, boil the juice, and to a gallon, put two pounds of sugar, and half a pint of spirits; the sugar should be boiled in it; skim and strain; when cold, bottle it.

Lemon Brandy.

Have a bottle three-quarters full of brandy; when you use lemons for other purposes, pare off the yellow skin very thin, cut it small and drop it in the bottle, till you get it full. Be careful not to put in any of the tough white part, as that will give it a bitter taste; cork the bottle and keep it to season cakes and puddings.

Rose Brandy.

Fill a large bottle with damask rose leaves, picked while they are fresh; fill the bottle with brandy, or good spirits of any kind; cork it tightly and set it away for use. It will bear filling up several times.

Blackberry Cordial.

Mash and strain the blackberries; put the juice on to boil in a brass or bell-metal kettle; skim it well, and to each gallon of juice put three pounds of sugar and a quart of spirits; bruise some cloves and put in. This is valuable as a medicine for children in summer.

Rose Water.

Gather the damask rose leaves; have a tin pan that will fit under your warming-pan; wring a thin towel out of water, spread it over the pan, and put rose leaves on this about two inches thick; put another wet towel on top of the leaves, and three or four thicknesses of paper on it; put hot embers in the warming-pan, and set it on top of the paper, propped up so as not to fall; when you renew the coals, sprinkle the towel that is at the top of the rose leaves; when all the strength is out of the leaves, they will be in a cake; dry this, and put it in your drawers to scent the clothes; put another set of leaves in, sprinkle the towels, and so till you have used up all your rose leaves. Rose water is a very nice seasoning for cake or pudding; it should be kept corked tightly.

Cologne.

Put into a bottle half an ounce of oil of lavender, one drachm of oil of rosemary, two of essence of lemon, two of essence of bergamot, forty drops of oil of cinnamon, and a little musk, if you like it; pour on it three pints of best alcohol.

Blackberry Wine.

Gather the fruit when fully ripe, but before the sun has had time to dry the juice; put it in a tub and pour in clear cold water enough to cover it; mash it to a pulp with a wooden masher; strain it through a linen bag or towel; a deal of juice will remain in the pulp, which in order to get you must add some sugar to it, and boil it in your preserving kettle, when you may strain again, and will have little left but seeds; to every gallon of the liquor, add three pounds of good brown sugar; pour it in a keg, (which should stand in a cellar, or cool dry place:) let it stand two or three weeks, with the bung laid loosely on; as the froth works out fill it up, (with some of the liquor kept out for the purpose.) French brandy in the proportion of a quart to five gallons, is an improvement. At the end of three or four weeks, it may be closely bunged and put away in a safe dry closet, where it should remain undisturbed for a year, when it may be racked off, bottled and sealed over.

Gooseberry Wine.

Put three pounds of lump sugar in a gallon of water; boil and skim it; when it is nearly cold, pour in it four quarts of ripe gooseberries, that have been well mashed, and let it stand two days, stirring it frequently; steep half an ounce of isinglass in a pint of brandy for two days, and beat it with the whites of four eggs till they froth, and put it in the wine; stir it up, and strain it through a flannel bag into a cask or jug; fasten it so as to exclude the air; let it stand six months, and bottle it for use; put two or three raisins in each bottle, and cork it up.

Currant Wine.

Pick and mash the currants, either with your hands or a clean block, in a tub; strain them, and to one gallon of juice, put two gallons of water; and to each gallon of the mixture, put three pounds of sugar; stir it until the sugar is dissolved, then put it in a clean cask that has never been used for beer or cider; put it in a cellar or cool place, and let it work out at the bung for several weeks; have a gallon of it saved in a jug to fill up with, as it works out. When it is done working, bung it up.

You may rack it off towards spring, or it will not hurt it to stand a year.

If you want a barrel of wine, you must have eight gallons of currant juice, sixteen of water, and seventy-two pounds of sugar; put in a quart of brandy after it has done working; if you can get a clean brandy barrel to put it in, it is better than a new one.

Another Way.

Mash well together equal quantities of currants and water, strain the juice and to every gallon add three pounds of best brown sugar; fill the cask two-thirds full, bung it tight and put clay over; by this means the air is excluded while the process of fermentation is going on; the cask should be iron-bound; rack it off and bottle or put in demijohns the next spring after making.

Elderberry Wine, &c.

To each gallon of berries, put one of water; mash them in a tub, and leave them two days, stirring them frequently; then strain them, and to each gallon of juice put three pounds of brown sugar, and to every five gallons, two ounces of bruised ginger, and one of cloves, which tie up in a bag, and boil in the wine for an hour, and put it in a cask; when it is nearly cold, put in two spoonsful of lively yeast; let it ferment two days, and put in a pint of spirits with the bag of spice, and close it up. This is excellent as a medicine for delicate or elderly persons.

Fill a bottle with elderberries, with a dozen cloves, and fill it up with spirits. It is good to give children that have the summer disease; mix a tea-spoonful of it with sugar and water for a child, or a table-spoonful for a grown person.

Ginger Wine.

Boil nine quarts of water with six pounds of lump sugar, the rinds of three lemons very thinly pared, and two ounces of face ginger pounded; when it has boiled half an hour, skim it, and pour it on the juice of two lemons: when nearly cold, add two spoonsful of yeast; put a pound of raisins in the cask, with a half a pint of brandy, and half an ounce of shaved isinglass; strain it in the cask, and stop it tight; bottle it in six or seven weeks.

Raspberry Wine.

Pick over the raspberries, and to every quart put a quart of water; bruise them, and let them stand two days; strain off the liquor, and to every gallon put three pounds of lump sugar; stir it till the sugar is dissolved, and put it in a clean barrel, or keg; at the end of two months, bottle it, and put a spoonful of brandy, or a glass of wine in each bottle.

Raspberry Vinegar, and its uses.

Put two pounds of raspberries in a large bowl, and pour on them two quarts of white-wine vinegar; the next day, strain the liquor on two pounds of fresh raspberries; let this stand a day, and strain it into a stone jar; to each pint of the liquor put a pound of loaf sugar; stir till it is dissolved, and put the jar in a sauce-pan of water, which keep boiling for an hour; skim it, and bottle it when cold. This is used not only as a refreshing drink, mixed with water, but is said to be of use in complaints of the chest. No glazed or metal vessels should be used in making it.

Spruce Beer.

Boil some spruce boughs with some wheat bran, till it tastes sufficiently of the spruce; bruise some allspice, and put in; strain it, and put two quarts of molasses to half a barrel; when it is nearly cold, put in half a pint of yeast; after it has worked sufficiently, bung up the barrel.

To Make Two Gallons of Beer.

Put two pounds of brown sugar in a jug, with a heaped spoonful of ginger, and a pint of strong hop tea; pour in a gallon and a half of warm water, and a tea-cup of yeast; leave out the cork a day--then fasten it up, and set it in a cool place; or if you bottle it, put two or three raisins in each bottle.

Harvest Beer.

To make fifteen gallons of beer, put into a keg three pints of yeast, three pints of molasses, and two gallons of cold water; mix it well, and let it stand a few minutes; then take three quarts of molasses, and three gallons of boiling water, with one ounce of ginger; mix them well, and pour into the keg, and fill it up with cold water.

A decoction of the root of sassafras is good to put in beer.

Porter Beer.

A pleasant drink in summer is to take one bottle of porter, five bottles of water, and a pint of molasses, or a pound of sugar; make a spoonful of ginger into a tea, and mix all well together; have seven clean bottles, with two or three raisins in each; fill them, cork them tight, and lay them on their sides on the cellar floor.

Molasses Beer.

Take five pints of molasses, half a pint of yeast, two spoonsful of pounded ginger, and one of allspice; put these into a clean half-barrel, and pour on it two gallons of boiling water; shake it till a fermentation is produced; then fill it up with warm water, and let it work with the bung out, a day, when it will be fit for use; remove it to a cold place, or bottle it. This is a very good drink for laboring people in warm weather.

To Make Cider.

To make cider that will keep sweet for a length of time, requires particular attention to all the points. All the works and utensils in use must be perfectly clean, so that nothing acid shall come in contact with the pulp or liquor while pressing. The casks should be cleaned in the following manner:

After washing each barrel clean, put in a lump of unslaked lime, and pour in a gallon of boiling water; bung it up, and roll the barrel several times a day, letting it lay with the bung down; in the evening, empty out the lime-water, and wash the barrel clean in several waters; after the water is drained out, burn a brimstone match in it, made of a piece of coarse muslin one inch broad, and four long, dipped in melted brimstone; light one end of the match, and put it in; put the bung on slightly, so as to hold the other end, and allow air sufficient to make it burn; when the rag has burned out, drive in the bung to keep in the sulphuric gas, which, if allowed time, will condense on the sides.

The apples should be kept under cover, and secured from rain. After they have laid to mellow for two or three weeks, select those that are sound; break off the stems and leaves; have the trough perfectly clean, and after they are ground, keep them from the sun and rain for twenty-four hours; then press them, and fill into the casks; the first running is always the best; each cask that is filled should be numbered, so as to know the quality; and after they are all filled, draw off and mix them, the weak with the strong; keep the casks filled up with cider while they are fermenting; when the fermentation is subsiding, there will be a thin white scum rise slowly: when this is all off, lay on the bung lightly; rack it off in a few days in barrels, in which brimstone has been used, and bung it tight; rack it off again in March, and keep the bungs in tight.

To Make Vinegar.

You may always have good vinegar for pickling, and other purposes, by taking a little pains. Get a tight whiskey barrel, if it is clean you need not rinse it, and put into it ten gallons of the best vinegar you can procure, with one quart of whiskey and one quart of molasses; every day for a week, add a gallon of good cider that has not been watered, and shake the barrel each time; let it stand in this state two weeks, shaking the barrel frequently. After this, you may put in a gallon of cider occasionally, with any that has been left at table, or the settlings of decanters or bottles that have had wine in, but do not put in any water. It will make much sooner in the garret or a warm place, but if the barrel is fixed early in the summer, you will have plenty to pickle with in the fall; taste it so as not to add cider too fast. Have a phial with a string attached to it that you can put in at the bung. You should have a barrel of good hard cider before you begin to make vinegar. If you are in want of vinegar, fill a jug from the barrel, and set it in the hot sun, where it will turn sour much quicker. It is a good plan to keep a jug in a closet, where you can empty all the slops of cider and wine; and when you get it full, empty it in the barrel.

After the pickling is done, you can put as much hard cider in the barrel, a gallon at a time, as you have taken out, with a little molasses, and half a pint of whiskey; if you put too much of the latter it will prevent it from getting sour, but a little gives strength to the cider, and the molasses increases the acidity, and helps to color it. If you should have any juice of cherries, currants, or blackberries, put it in, or if you can get cheap sour raisins, they will be an improvement to the flavor of the vinegar; a tea-cup of burnt sugar will give it a good color.

Vinegar made in this way will keep pickles good for several years. If the cider has not sufficient strength it will take longer to make.

To Pickle Mangoes.

Pick your musk-melons at a proper age, before they get too hard; make a slit in the sides and take out the seeds with a tea-spoon; boil a pickle of ground alum salt, that will bear an egg, and let the melons lay in this a week; then make a new pickle, and let them lay in it another week; then wash them, and scald them in weak vinegar, or sour cider, with cabbage leaves around the kettle; put them in a jar, and put the vinegar and leaves in with them; leave them two days, then wipe them carefully, and to two dozen mangoes, have an ounce of mace, one of cloves, some nasturtions, small onions, scraped horse-radish, and mustard seed sufficient to fill them; fill up the inside of each one, and tie them round with strings. Put them in your kettle with strong vinegar, and let them scald a few minutes; then put them in a wide-mouthed jar, and pour the vinegar over; have them covered close, and they will keep good for several years. Large green tomatoes make good mangoes, previously salted and drained, when fill them as other mangoes.

For Pickling Mangoes with Oil and Vinegar.

Cut a square piece out to remove the inside; lay them in salt and water nine or ten days, and afterwards green them as any other pickle. For stuffing, take two ounces of garlic, dried and pulverized, two ounces of horse-radish, prepared as the garlic, two ounces of nutmegs, two ounces of cloves, two ounces of mace, two ounces of whole mustard seed. When the mangoes are large, put a small cucumber, and two beans in each. Wipe each mango perfectly dry before the stuffing is put in; sew each up, and tie twine around it; then put them in a pot, and pour the pot two-thirds full of sharp vinegar; pour sweet oil on the top till covered. The ingredients must be mixed with sweet oil. The spices, &c. mentioned, are sufficient for a dozen mangoes.

Cucumbers.

Gather the cucumbers while they are small, lay them in a jar with salt enough to make a pickle; pour in a little water, and if there is not salt enough to cover them, in a few days put in more. At the end of two weeks put them in a kettle, with cabbage leaves around and through them; fill it up with weak vinegar, and let them scald three hours; put all in a jar for three days, then take out the cucumbers, pour out the vinegar and leaves; put them back in the jar, with some cloves, peppers, horse-radish and mustard; boil some strong vinegar and pour over them.

Small Cucumbers.

Wash small cucumbers from two to four inches long; put a gallon of very strong vinegar in a large jar, with mustard seed, scraped horse-radish, and celery seed, a small portion of each, and a tea-cupful of salt; put the cucumbers in the jar; tie them close. Martina's may be pickled in the same way, or in the old way of pickling cucumbers.

To Pickle Cherries or Peaches.

If peaches, wipe them well with a coarse towel; if cherries, cut the stems half off, but do not stone them; put them in jars, and to every half gallon of vinegar it takes to cover them, put a pound of sugar, and cloves and cinnamon to taste; boil and skim it well, and when nearly cool pour it over the fruit; for three successive days pour off the vinegar, and boil and pour it on again.

Peaches.

Pick out sound clingstone peaches; lay them in salt and water for a day, then wipe them on a coarse cloth: boil up some strong vinegar, with a little ginger, whole pepper and mustard seed; put the peaches in a jar and pour this over.

White Walnuts.

Take full grown white walnuts, or butter-nuts, before the shells get so hard that a pin will not run through easily; put them in a jar; boil a pickle of ground alum salt that will bear an egg, skim it, and when it gets cold; pour it on the walnuts; let them lay in this ten days; then make another pickle as strong as the first, and leave them in it ten days longer; then scrape each one carefully, until you get all the rough skin off, wipe them with a very coarse cloth, and let them soak in cold water two days; boil them in weak vinegar, and let them lay in this a week; boil enough good vinegar to cover them; mix together scraped horse-radish, mustard seed, cloves, red pepper, onions and garlic; put a layer of the walnuts in a jar, and sprinkle the spice over; pour the boiling vinegar over the top.

English Walnuts.

Gather them when nearly full grown, but not too hard; pour boiling salt and water on them; let them be covered with it nine days, changing it every third day; then take them out on dishes, and put them in the sun to blacken, turning them over; then put them in a jar and strew over them pepper, cloves, garlic, mustard seed and scraped horse-radish; cover them with cold strong vinegar and tie them up.

Black Walnuts.

Gather the walnuts while you can run a pin through them; boil them in an iron pot three hours, to soften the shell; put them in a tub of cold water, hull and wash them, and put them in your jars; pour salt and water over them, and change it every day for a week; at the end of that time scald them in weak vinegar; let them stand in this three days, then pour it off, and for half a bushel of hulled walnuts, have quarter of a pound of cloves, a tea-cup of mustard seed, two spoonsful of black pepper, a pint of scraped horse-radish, two pods of red pepper, some sliced onions and garlic; put these in the jars with the walnuts, and fill them up with strong cold vinegar.

Pickled walnuts will keep for six or seven years, and are as good at the last as the first.

Virginia Yellow Pickles.

To two gallons of vinegar, put one pound of ginger, quarter of a pound of black pepper, two ounces of red pepper, two of cloves, a tea-cup of celery seed, a pint of horse-radish, a pint of mustard seed, a few onions or garlic, and three ounces of turmeric to turn them yellow. The above ingredients should be mixed together in a jar, and set in the sun by the first of July, tied up close, with a block over each jar to keep out the rain. Put whatever you intend to pickle in salt and water for two or three days; then pour boiling salt and water on them; wash them and drop them in the jars of vinegar.

You can pickle any thing in this way but walnuts. The same pickle, by adding more vinegar to it, will do for two years; if the jars are set by a fire, a much less time will do to take the strength out of the spices; the turmeric should be tied up in a bag.

Tomatoes.

Scald and peel a peck of ripe tomatoes; lay them on dishes, and strew salt thickly over them; let them stand for twenty-four hours, occasionally pouring off the liquor that the salt extracts; then drain them on a sifter, and gently squeeze them, as it is this juice that weakens the vinegar and makes the pickles spoil; take a large jar, put in a layer of tomatoes, then a layer of sliced onions, mustard seed, cloves and white pepper, or whole black pepper; (you may if you like, break two pods of red pepper and put in each jar.) When the jar is full, pour very strong vinegar over, and in a few days they will be ready for use, and will keep all winter. They retain much of the tomato flavor, and should be kept in a cool place.

Another Way.

Take small round tomatoes when they are not too ripe; stick them with a needle in several places, to keep the skin from bursting, and let them lay a week in salt and water; then wash them and put them in a jar with some cloves, pepper and small onions; cover them with strong cold vinegar, and tie up the jar.

Pepper Mangoes.

Take fully grown green peppers, cut a slit in the side of each and take out the seeds; make a strong brine and lay them in it for three days; then soak them in clear water a day and night; pack them in a jar, and pour boiling vinegar over them with a piece of alum; let them stay in this three days, when boil the vinegar again, and pour over them; when they are green, stuff them with chopped cabbage, mustard seed, cloves, horse-radish, pepper, and a small onion in each; tie them up, put them in a jar; boil fresh vinegar and pour over.

Observe always to have the kettle you boil vinegar in well cleaned; never put pickles in common earthen-ware, as the glazing is poisonous.

Onions.

Peel small white onions and pour boiling milk and water over them; when cold, put them in a jar, and make a pickle of strong vinegar, a little mace, ginger, white mustard seed, and horse-radish; boil it and pour over them.

If you want them to be white, do not put in black pepper or cloves.

Mushrooms.

Take the small round mushrooms that are pale pink underneath, with white tops, and peel easily; put them in a jar with a little mace, white mustard seed and salt; cover them with cold vinegar, and tie them close. If you put in black pepper or cloves, it will turn them dark.

Nasturtions.

Have some strong vinegar in a jar with a little salt, and as you gather the nasturtions, put them in, and keep the jar tied close.

Cherries.

Take sound morel cherries with the stems on, and put them in a jar; boil spices in strong vinegar, and pour over them hot. Damsons may be done in the same way. A little sugar improves the pickle.

Cabbage.

Take firm heads of purple cabbage, quarter them, sprinkle them with salt, and let them lay three or four days, when shave them fine, drain off the salt and put them in a jar, boil enough vinegar to cover them, with horse radish, pepper and cloves, when nearly cold pour it on the cabbage, and put in a little cochineal tied up in a bag, it will he fit for use in a week.

Another Way.

Cut hard cabbage fine as for slaw, sprinkle salt through it, and let it lay under a moderate pressure for twelve hours, then drain well through a colander, slice a dozen raw onions, have a large jar in readiness, put in a layer of cabbage, strew in some of the onions, a few cloves, a tea-cupful of mustard seed, some whole black pepper, cut six half ripe red pepper pods, and sprinkle in; add a little more salt, boil vinegar and pour on sufficient to cover the mixture.

Cut Cucumbers.

Slice large cucumbers lengthwise--do not pare them--then cut them half an inch thick; if you have small ones, slice them across, put them in a large jar, and sprinkle them well with salt, after standing a day or two, pour off the liquid the salt has extracted, drain them, and wash the jar, and put the cucumbers in alternately, with sliced onions, mustard seed, white pepper, whole black pepper and a few cloves, pour over them strong vinegar, and tie close, keep them in a cool place, but do not allow them to freeze in severe weather, as freezing spoils the flavor of pickles. When pickles do not keep well, pour off the vinegar, and put more on, but if the vinegar is of the best quality, there is little fear of this. Putting alcohol on over paper, will prevent their moulding.

Cucumber Catsup.

Take full grown cucumbers, pare them, and cut out the lines of white pith, which are on three sides; cut them in slices about half an inch thick; to six cucumbers, put one onion, sliced fine; then sprinkle them with salt, placing the fruit in layers, with salt between;--next morning, press the liquor from them; put them in _small jars,_ and fill up with strong vinegar, seasoned with pepper, mustard seed, and salt, if necessary. The small jars are recommended--as the cucumbers do not keep well after they have been exposed to the air.

Tomato Catsup.

Take a peck of ripe tomatoes, wash and cut out the stems, but do not peel them; put them over the fire in your bell-metal kettle, cover them, and let them boil till soft enough to mash, when pour them in a colander placed over a pan; drain them and throw away the liquid; then mash and strain the tomatoes, a few at a time, through a ball sifter: this is rather a tedious process; but, as the waste liquor has been previously drained off, the catsup will require but about twenty minutes boiling; throw in the spices before you take it up, fine pepper and salt, mustard, and a few whole cloves, and sliced onions, if you like their flavor; allow a tea-cup of strong vinegar to each bottle of catsup; part of which may be put in with the spices, and the rest in each bottle on top of the catsup, before you cork and seal them.

Walnut Catsup.