Chapter XXII: Front Matter (22)

Split while hot, butter and cut into triangular pieces, six to each cake. Do not divide them until the triangles are drawn from the plate by those who are to eat them.

Tea scones

Mix as directed in recipe for tea cakes, but cut into rounds with a small biscuit cutter. Bake upon a soapstone griddle, upon both sides, to a delicate brown; split and butter while hot. Line a plate or a tray with a napkin, lay in the scones and fold the corners of the napkin lightly over them.

Oatmeal scones

To three cupfuls of oatmeal add one of white flour, a teaspoonful of salt and two of baking-powder. Heat three cupfuls of milk to scalding, not to boiling, stir in a tablespoonful of sugar with two and a half of butter, and mix with a wooden spoon these ingredients into a soft dough.

_Do not touch it with your hands._

Turn out upon a kneading-board, roll into a sheet less than a quarter of an inch thick, cut into rounds with a large biscuit-cutter, and bake upon a hot soapstone griddle, turning to brown. Butter while hot.

Virginia wafers

Rub two tablespoonfuls of butter into a pint of flour, add enough iced water to make a stiff dough, put up on a floured pastry board, and roll out as thin as writing paper in rounds as large as a saucer. Bake in a floured pan in a quick oven.

They should be rough and “bubbly” on top. Eat cold.

Corn-meal tea cakes

Mix fine white corn-meal with boiling milk; gradually add a little salt, and let it simmer half an hour or more, then drop it from a large spoon upon a soapstone griddle, and bake on both sides to an even brown. Butter and eat _hot_.

Bristol tea cakes

Rub two level tablespoonfuls of butter into four cupfuls of sifted flour; mix it with thin cream to a soft dough to roll out; toss the dough upon a floured board, cut with a biscuit cutter into rounds and bake on a hot griddle, or in the oven; split and butter them; serve on a napkin.

Raisin bread

Make as you would ordinary white bread, with the addition of one-half cupful of raisins to a small loaf. Spread thin, triangular slices of this with butter, and then with a layer of cream cheese.

Hot milk tea cakes

Into three well-whipped eggs beat a cupful of sugar, a large cupful of prepared flour, and a teaspoonful of vanilla. Beat hard; add a gill of scalding hot milk, stir in quickly and turn the mixture into greased pâté-pans. These cakes are best if eaten hot, but are also good cold.

Stuffed rolls

Light rolls, shaped like finger rolls, but larger, may be cut open on one side, the crumb dug out and the cavity filled with minced and seasoned chicken, turkey, ham, or tongue. Close the roll and bind it with narrow ribbon tied with a bow and floating ends. You may tie the ham rolls with one color, the chicken with another.

Peanut crisps

One cupful of roasted and chopped peanuts, one cupful of powdered sugar, one tablespoonful of flour and the whites of two eggs. The mixture is dropped on a buttered paper and baked to a light brown in a moderate oven. A quart of unshelled peanuts will yield the necessary cupful of chopped nuts.

Salted almonds

Shell and blanch the almonds by pouring boiling water over them, letting them stand for ten minutes, then stripping off the skins. Dry the nuts between the folds of a clean dish towel, and put them in a baking-pan with a tablespoonful of melted butter. Turn them over and over in this until all are coated, then set the pan in the oven until the nuts are delicately browned, stirring often, that all may brown evenly. Turn into a colander, strew thickly with fine salt, and shake the colander hard to dislodge superfluous salt and grease. When cold, the nuts will be crisp. Keep in a dry place.

Peanut butter for sandwiches

Shell and skin freshly-roasted peanuts and pound or grind them to a fine powder. Mix to a smooth paste, with half as much butter as you have peanut powder. If the butter is rather fresh, add a little salt.

Cream cheese for sandwiches

Into a broad pan pour the fresh warm milk as soon as possible after it is milked; set at the side of the range and bring slowly to the point where it just begins to simmer. Remove at once and set in the ice-box, where it will cool suddenly, and leave it there for six or eight hours. Now skim and press the clotted cream into small jars or deep saucers. Sprinkle the top of the cream with fine salt, and cover. Keep in a cold place until wanted.

Marguerites

The white of one egg, partly beaten; two tablespoonfuls of sugar, and one-half cupful of chopped walnuts. Stir all together and spread on wafers, or upon long narrow crackers. Bake to a light brown.

Ham and chicken sandwiches

Into a pint of cold boiled or roast chicken, chopped very fine, stir a cupful of minced ham; season with a few minced olives, and moisten with salad oil. Add white pepper to taste, and spread between thin slices of crustless white bread, buttered lightly.

Cheese and olive sandwiches

Mix cream cheese and chopped olives together; spread very thin slices of bread with the mixture; serve on a folded napkin.

Egg and olive sandwiches

Boil six eggs hard, remove the shells and chop the eggs very, very fine. Stone and chop eighteen large olives, and mix these with the minced egg. Moisten all with a little melted butter, season to taste and mix to a moist paste. Spread on thin slices of crustless bread, and press the two halves of the sandwich firmly together.

Lettuce and cream cheese sandwiches

Cut white bread into very thin slices and remove the crusts, then butter lightly. Spread with Philadelphia cream cheese. Dip a leaf of crisp lettuce in a French salad dressing, and lay it upon a slice of the bread, then press another slice upon it. With a sharp pair of scissors trim off the projecting leaf of lettuce. Pile these sandwiches on a plate, cover and keep in the ice-box until wanted.

FRAPPÉ BEVERAGES

A pleasant custom prevalent at many summer afternoon teas is that of passing nearly frozen beverages for the refreshment and delectation of the guests. These glacés or frappés are so easily prepared that the veriest tyro in the ice-making art need not be afraid to attempt them. On a warm day they are a refreshing variety upon the conventional cup of tea, and are so light and innocuous as not to interfere with the enjoyment of the dinner which must come an hour or two later. These ices are served in glasses, and with spoons.

Café frappé

Put two cupfuls of finely-ground coffee into a large French coffee-pot, or biggin, and pour upon it two quarts of boiling water. When this has dripped through the strainer, pour it into a pitcher and turn it back into the strainer. Repeat this process four times, then pour the clear coffee into a bowl, and stir into it two large cupfuls of granulated sugar. Stir until the sugar is dissolved and set aside to cool. When cold, add the unbeaten whites of two eggs, turn into a freezer and grind until frozen, but still rather soft. When turned into a glass it should be of about the consistency of soft snow. This rule of consistency applies to all these frozen beverages.

Tea frappé

Scald a china teapot, put into it six teaspoonfuls of the best mixed tea and pour upon it eight cupfuls of freshly-boiling water. Let this stand for six or eight minutes, strain it into a bowl, and sweeten to taste. When cold, turn into the freezer.

Frosted lemonade

Boil together for fifteen minutes two quarts of water, and four cupfuls of granulated sugar. Remove from the fire and when the syrup is lukewarm, add the juice of a dozen lemons. Set aside until cold, then freeze.

Frozen orangeade

Mix together the juice from six oranges and two lemons. Boil together three cupfuls of water and one cupful of sugar for ten minutes; remove from the fire and add the orange and lemon juice. When cold, add the unbeaten white of one egg, and freeze.

Frozen raspberry juice

Mash two quarts of red raspberries and cover them with three heaping cupfuls of granulated sugar. Let this stand in a warm place for an hour, then press through a cheese-cloth bag or a vegetable press to extract all the juice. To this add the juice of three lemons and of one orange, and two quarts of cold water. Stir well together and freeze. Some persons put a spoonful of whipped cream upon each glass of this ice. The contrast of the white with the pink is very pretty.

Ginger ale frappé

Open three bottles of imported ginger ale and turn the contents into a bowl. Add the juice of four lemons and a half cupful of granulated sugar. Stir until the sugar is dissolved; turn the mixture into a freezer, and freeze. This ice is very refreshing.

WAFERS

Graham wafers

Sift three cupfuls of graham flour and one cupful of white flour with a heaping teaspoonful of salt and two teaspoonfuls of baking powder. Melt two tablespoonfuls of butter with one of sugar in a pint of scalding milk. Make a hole in the middle of the flour, and pour this in. Stir to a soft dough, turn upon a floured pastry-board, roll out quickly and lightly into a thin sheet, cut into rounds with a biscuit-cutter, and bake in a floured baking pan until brown and crisp. While hot, spread lightly with butter.

Lemon wafers

Cream a cup of butter with two cups of sugar, work in two beaten eggs, a small cup of cold water and the grated rind and the juice of a large lemon. Add flour to make the dough stiff enough to roll out; roll very thin, cut into rounds and bake. Orange wafers may be made in the same way.

Vanilla wafers

Cream a cup of butter with two cups of sugar, add three well-beaten eggs and vanilla to taste. Stir in just enough flour to make a soft dough that can be rolled. Roll very thin, cut into rounds, and bake.

Peanut wafers

Cream together four tablespoonfuls of butter and a half-cup of sugar. When this mixture is soft and creamy add the well-whipped yolks of two eggs, four tablespoonfuls of milk, a cup of roasted and ground peanuts, and enough flour to make a good dough. Roll into a thin sheet, cut into rounds and bake.

STEWED FRUIT, PRESERVES, FRUIT JELLIES, MARMALADES, ETCETERA

STEWED FRUIT

Much of the excellence of stewed fruit depends upon the manner in which it is cooked. As it is served, in nine cases out of ten, it has a medicated “tang” that is far from agreeable—produced by the cooking of the sugar with the fruit. She who is familiar with this form of the sweetmeat alone has no conception of how palatable a dessert it makes if properly prepared. Served with plain or sponge cake it is a convenient dessert for Sunday night’s supper, or for the dainty family luncheon. But the housekeeper who would have her stewed fruit really good must be willing to be a little careful—perhaps fussy—in the preparation thereof. Apples that are a little tough, pears that are rather tasteless when raw, green or hard peaches and sour plums may, with the help of the stewing kettle and the housewife’s ingenuity, be converted into tender, toothsome morsels. Use always an agate-iron or porcelain-lined preserving kettle, as the action of the acid upon tin or iron darkens the fruit.

Nearly all fruits prepared according to recipes given herewith may be kept for months if sealed hot in glass cans, as one would can vegetables or unsweetened fruits. They are more wholesome than the pound-for-pound preserves.

Stewed apples

Peel and core firm apples, dropping them into cold water as you do so, that the color may be preserved. Put them over the fire with enough boiling water to cover them, and let them simmer gently until very tender, but not broken. With a perforated skimmer remove them carefully from the water and arrange them in a deep dish. Strain the liquor and return it to the fire, putting into it a large cupful of granulated sugar for every dozen apples you have cooked. Boil to a syrup, add the juice of one lemon and pour over the apples. Cover closely and set in a cold place until wanted. These apples will keep in the ice-box for several days.

Steamed apples

From a dozen medium-sized apples remove the peeling with a sharp knife, taking care to have the parings as thin as possible. Take out the cores; put the apples, side by side, in a deep pudding-dish, and pour over them enough water almost to cover them. Invert a plate, or pan, over the pudding-dish, set it in the oven and steam the contents until each apple can be easily pierced with a fork. Remove from the oven and lay the apples carefully in a deep dish. Set the pudding-dish containing the liquor from the apples on top of the range, add to it a cupful of granulated sugar, and bring to a boil. Simmer for twenty minutes, then add a dash of grated nutmeg and a pinch, each, of mace and ground cloves. Boil to a syrup and pour over the apples. Eat cold.

Stewed pears

Peel and quarter a dozen large pears and remove the cores, laying the quartered fruit in cold water as you do so. Put them over the fire with a pint of boiling water and stew until tender. Remove the fruit and add to the liquor a cupful of sugar, a stick of cinnamon, one of mace, and a teaspoonful of lemon juice. Boil until thick, strain the syrup and pour it over the pears. Cover closely until they are cold. Seckel pears, peeled and stewed whole according to this recipe, are delicious.

Stewed peaches

Peel and stone three dozen peaches. Put them over the fire with enough boiling water to cover them and put into the water six peach-pits (crushed) and two slices of pineapple cut into dice. Stew slowly, and when the peaches are tender transfer them to a bowl while you boil the liquor hard for five minutes, then strain it and add three cupfuls of granulated sugar. Boil to a thick syrup and pour over the peaches. Cover while cooking.

Stewed plums

Wipe each plum carefully with a soft damp cloth, and prick it with a fork to prevent bursting. Have the water in the preserving kettle a little more than lukewarm and lay the fruit in it. Bring to a gentle boil, cook just long enough for the plums to become tender, but not long enough for the skins to crack. They must be watched carefully. Remove to a deep dish, add a cupful of granulated sugar to every quart of liquor, boil to a syrup and pour over the plums.

Apple sauce

Wash two dozen firm, juicy apples and cut them—without peeling—into pieces. Put them into a porcelain-lined saucepan with a cupful of cold water and bring to a boil. Cook steadily, stirring frequently, until the fruit is soft and broken into bits. Remove from the fire and run through a colander to free the sauce from all bits of skin. Sweeten the apples to taste, and stir over the fire until the sugar is melted, but do not allow the mixture to boil. Add a teaspoonful of lemon juice and set aside until cold. Apple sauce made in this way is better in flavor and color than that made from the peeled fruit. The best part of the apple is that lying close to the skin, and it consequently loses much of its flavor in the peeling.

If sealed up while hot this will keep through the winter and supply fresh apple sauce when the raw fruit is scarce and expensive.

Stewed evaporated peaches

Wash the sliced peaches carefully and soak for six hours in cold water. Turn the fruit with the water in which it was soaked into a saucepan and bring to a gentle boil. Add a little sugar and stew until the peaches are tender. With a split spoon remove the slices of fruit, add a cupful of granulated sugar to the liquor, and boil quickly to thick syrup. Pour this over the peaches.

Stewed dried pears

Wash and soak the evaporated fruit as directed in the preceding recipe, and put over the fire in the water in which it was soaked. The slices should be just covered by the water. Stew until very tender, then remove the fruit and set aside while you measure the juice. To a half-pint of the liquor add a half-pint of molasses and simmer for twenty-five minutes. Skim the syrup, return the pears to it, add a pinch of powdered ginger, boil up once, and remove from the fire.

Gingered pears

Peel and core and cut in very thin slices. For eight pounds of sliced fruit put into a kettle the juice from five lemons, one cupful of water, seven pounds of sugar and half a pound of ginger-root scraped and cut into thin slices.

Let the sugar dissolve before adding the fruit. Cut the peel of a lemon into long, thin slices and add to the fruit. Let it cook slowly for an hour, uncovered, and can while hot.

Stewed rhubarb

Carefully scrape—not peel—the stalks, cut into inch-lengths, and lay them in cold water for half an hour. Weigh the rhubarb, and to each pound of the fruit allow a half-pound of granulated sugar. Put the rhubarb, still wet, into an agate-lined saucepan, mix the sugar with it, and set it at one side of the range until the sugar melts. Bring slowly to a boil, and stew until the rhubarb is very tender. Eat cold, accompanied by plain cake, or thin bread and butter.

You may seal up while hot in glass jars, wrap in paper to exclude the light, and keep all the year round.

Apple butter

Boil cider down to two-thirds of its original quantity. Into this turn as many peeled and sliced apples as the liquid will cover and simmer, stirring often, until very tender. When the first supply of apples is tender, strain them out, add more and cook in the same fashion until all the cider is absorbed. Take from the fire, put all into a stone crock and set aside for twelve hours, then return to the fire and boil until you have a soft brown mass. Remove and pack in stone jars.

Peach butter

Peel and slice enough peaches to thicken three quarts of cider and boil steadily until the fruit is reduced to a pulp. While cooking, stir frequently. Remove from the fire, let it get cold, return to the fire and stew for an hour longer, or until brown and thick. Pack down in a stone crock.

Plum butter

To every pound of plums allow three-quarters of a pound of sugar. Wash the plums and put them into a preserving kettle, with the moisture still clinging to them. Cover, bring slowly to a boil, and cook until the fruit is broken to pieces and is very soft. Rub through a colander to remove stones and skins; return the juice and pulp to the fire, add the sugar and boil until the mixture is very thick. Put up in jars.

Peach jam

After you have peeled and stoned the fruit, weigh it, and to every pound of fruit allow three-quarters of a pound of sugar. Put the peaches in the kettle at the side of the range and bring very slowly to a boil in the juice that flows from them. Stir often; at the end of three-quarters of an hour drain off superfluous juice and add the sugar. Boil for fifteen minutes, skimming often, then add the juice of a lemon, cook for a minute more, and turn into glasses or small jars. The surplus of liquor will make good jelly.

Berry jam

Pick over and wash the berries, and allow equal weight of fruit and sugar. Put the berries into a preserving kettle, mash them as they heat, and when considerable juice has been drawn out, add the sugar gradually. Let them boil up all over, and then either skim out the fruit, or turn all into a strainer. Set the juice on to boil again, and cook until it is thick or will “jelly;” put the fruit back and let it boil once, and seal up in small jars.

If the fruit be very juicy, drain off half the syrup, strain out the seeds and cook until it jellies. Then, put up in glasses. Do this before adding the fruit for the last boil. A still better plan is to dip out superfluous juice before the sugar goes in. Add pound for pint and make jelly of it.

Orange marmalade

Slice two dozen unpeeled oranges, and remove the seeds. Mix with them two lemons. These, as well as the oranges, must be shredded very thin. Measure the juice and add enough water to make three quarts of liquid. Put all into a stone crock, cover, and set in a cool place all night. Turn into a preserving kettle and bring slowly to the boil. Simmer until the peel is very tender. Now stir in a pound of sugar for every pint of juice, and boil until the skin is clear in appearance. Remove from the fire, and when cool turn into jelly glasses.

Grape marmalade

Stem the grapes and measure them, allowing a cupful of sugar for each half-pint of fruit. Pulp the grapes, keeping the skins for further use. Extract the seeds by boiling the pulp until tender, then rubbing it through a fine colander. Put the pulp, juice and skins over the fire in a preserving kettle and add the sugar. Boil until very thick, pour into jars and seal.

Peach marmalade

Peel, stone and weigh the peaches, and allow three-quarters of a pound of sugar for every pound of fruit. Put the fruit into a preserving kettle and bring gradually to a boil. Stew until tender and broken; drain off superfluous liquid, add the sugar and boil for ten minutes longer. Just before taking from the fire stir in one tablespoonful of lemon juice for every pound of peaches used. Remove at once from the fire, can and seal.

Tutti-frutti

Select your fruits—strawberries, cherries, raspberries, blackberries, pineapple—and shred them with a fork; also, bits of orange or mandarino from which the white skin has been removed; put into wide-mouthed, self-sealing jars. To each jar allow four tablespoonfuls of white sugar and sprinkle with this each layer of fruit. When the jar is filled, pour in slowly white preserving brandy, letting it filter in slowly until every crevice is filled and there is room for not a drop more. Screw down the tops and set the jars in a dark cool place. The fruit should season some weeks before it is used.

Red raspberry jam

Allow three-quarters of a pound of sugar to a pound of fruit. Put the berries on alone and boil for half an hour, stirring hard and often. Dip out the superfluous juice, add the sugar and cook twenty minutes more. Put up in jars or glasses.

Lemon marmalade

Weigh the lemons, and to every pound of them allow a pound and one-quarter of sugar. Grate the rind from half of the lemons, and peel the others. Chop the fruit, removing the seeds as you do so. Press all the juice that you can upon the sugar, add a little water to this, and put it over the fire. Stir until the sugar is dissolved, then boil for five minutes, skimming off the scum. Stir in the chopped lemons and the grated rind, and boil for half an hour. Put up in jelly glasses.

Preserved peaches

Peel, stone and weigh firm white peaches, allowing to each pound of fruit a pound of white sugar. Arrange fruit and sugar in alternate layers in a broad preserving kettle, and set the kettle at the side of the stove where the contents will heat slowly. Stew for about half an hour after the preserves come to a boil, or until the peaches are tender when pierced by a fork. With a perforated skimmer take the peaches from the syrup, and spread them on a platter while you boil the syrup until clear and thick, skimming often. Pack the fruit in jars, fill these to overflowing with the boiling liquid, and seal immediately. Stand the jars in a pan of hot water while filling them.

Preserved citron rind

Peel and cut the rind into pieces of uniform size, rejecting all the seeds. Lay the rind in salted water for two hours, then drain and lay in cold fresh water for six or seven hours, changing the water three times during that period. Drain, put the citron on to boil in a gallon of water, to which you have added two teaspoonfuls of alum. Stew until tender, drain, and lay in cold water.

Make a thick syrup of sugar and water, and when it boils cook the rind in it for fifteen minutes. Remove the rind, pack in jars, add to the syrup in the kettle enough lemon juice and ginger root to flavor it.

When very thick, fill the jars with the boiling syrup, and seal.

Preserved chestnuts

Shell and blanch three dozen large chestnuts, stew slowly until tender, and drain. Make a syrup of a cupful, each, of sugar and of water, and boil until thick. Drop in the nuts, bring to a boil, add a few drops of lemon juice and vanilla, and remove from the fire.

Strawberries, preserved whole (No. 1)

Cap the berries, preserving all the juice that flows from them. Weigh the fruit and allow to every pound of it one pound of granulated sugar. Put the sugar and juice into the preserving kettle and cook slowly until the sugar is entirely dissolved, then carefully lay in the berries. Simmer for seven minutes; turn all into shallow porcelain-lined pans or stoneware dishes, and set in the hot sun, covering each dish with a pane of glass, or with mosquito netting. Leave in the hot sunshine every day until the syrup is thick. Put into preserve jars and keep in a dark, cool, dry place.

Strawberries, preserved whole (No. 2)

Sort the berries, reserving those of uniform size and perfect shape, and use the remainder for the juice. Mash them thoroughly and let them drip through a flannel bag. Measure the strained juice and allow one pound of sugar to one pound of juice, put over the fire in a preserving kettle and let them boil twenty minutes or until the syrup begins to jelly.

Weigh the reserved whole berries and allow an equal amount of sugar. Add both to the hot syrup in the kettle and let them simmer carefully. If it soon becomes firm, the mixture is cooked sufficiently. The berries should be cooked through, yet not long enough to shrivel. Fill jelly glasses with it while hot, and seal.

Ripe tomato preserves

Peel the tomatoes, and to every pound of them allow a pound of granulated sugar. Cover the tomatoes with the sugar and set aside over night. In the morning drain off the syrup and boil it, skimming frequently. Lay in the tomatoes and simmer for twenty minutes, then remove them and spread on platters in the sunshine while the syrup boils until thick. Add the juice of three lemons to seven pounds of sugar just before taking from the fire. Pack the tomatoes in jars, and fill these to overflowing with the boiling syrup. Seal immediately.

Preserved rhubarb

Cut the rhubarb into inch-lengths, wash and cook according to the recipe for preserved tomatoes, adding a very little water to the fruit and sugar. When thick, pour into jars and seal.

Imitation East India sweetmeats

Pare and slice two dozen Bartlett pears when ripe, but not mellow. Cut into thin strips, about two inches long, and half an inch wide. Weigh the pears, and for four pounds of fruit allow three pounds of sugar, three lemons, two ounces of green ginger, and one-half cupful of water.

The green ginger must be scraped thoroughly and cut into shreds. If this can not be procured, use the candied ginger root, also shredded.

Cut the yellow part of the lemon rind into short shavings, boil until tender, strain, and cover with the lemon juice.

Put the water into the preserving kettle, then a layer of pears, sugar, lemon and ginger, and repeat until all are used. Cover and set on the back of the stove until the sugar melts, and a syrup has formed, then boil gently until the pears are tender and clear. When tender, take up with a skimmer, pack into hot jars and boil the syrup down a little, then fill and seal as usual.

Watermelon rind preserves

Remove the outside rind of the melon and scrape out the soft inside. Cut the rind into strips. Line a kettle with vine-leaves, lay in the rind in alternate layers with more grape-leaves, sprinkle each layer lightly with powdered alum, pour in a very little cold water, cover the kettle closely, and steam the contents for three hours. Do not let the rind boil during this time. Drain the rind, and throw into cold water. Soak for four hours, draining and adding fresh, cold water every hour.

Put into the preserving kettle two and a half pounds of granulated sugar and a quart of water, and bring to a boil, skimming off the scum as it rises to the surface. When the scum no longer rises drain the rind and drop it into the boiling syrup. When the rind is clear and very tender, but not broken, remove, and lay upon platters, while you add to the syrup a sliced lemon and a little sliced ginger root. Boil for ten minutes. Pack the rind carefully in jars; fill these to overflowing with the boiling syrup and seal.

Preserved pears

Peel the pears, but do not remove the stems. Allow a pound of sugar to each pound of fruit, and put in alternate layers in the preserving kettle. Set at the side of the range where the contents will heat so slowly that the sugar will not scorch. Gently stew the pears until they are clear and tender, then lay them carefully on platters in the sun while you boil the syrup until thick and clear, skimming off any scum that arises. Put the pears into jars, fill these with the boiling syrup, and seal.

Preserved plums

Wipe the plums carefully, and prick each one with a fork to prevent bursting. Weigh the fruit, and to every pound of it allow a pound of sugar and a pint of water. Cook the sugar and water to a clear syrup, then lay in the plums and boil very gently for twenty minutes. Remove the fruit carefully, not to break it, and lay on dishes to cool. Boil the syrup until thick, pack the plums in glass jars, fill to overflowing with the scalding syrup, and seal immediately.

Preserved ginger root

Peel the green ginger roots and lay in cold water for fifteen minutes, then boil, changing the water twice, until very tender. Drain the ginger and weigh it before laying it in iced water. Allow a pound and a quarter of sugar to each pound of ginger. Wet each pound of sugar with a cup of water and put the sugar and water into the preserving kettle. Boil and skim until the scum ceases to rise, then remove the syrup from the fire and set aside until cold. Wipe each piece of ginger and lay it in the cold syrup. Stand for twenty-four hours, drain the ginger and reheat the syrup. Take from the fire again, and when blood-warm put in the ginger. Leave it for two days. Then take out the ginger and put the syrup over the fire. Boil up and remove and add the roots at once. Now set aside for a week before draining the ginger once more, boiling the syrup, dropping in the ginger and putting in jars. Do not use for a month.

Preserved crabapples

Select firm, sound crabapples, wash them and examine them for any sign of decay or spot. Weigh them, and to each pound of fruit allow a pound of sugar. Arrange fruit and sugar in a preserving kettle in alternate layers, beginning with the sugar. Let the contents of the kettle heat slowly at the side of the stove. When the fruit is tender—it should not require over an hour after the fruit has boiled to accomplish this—take out the apples with a perforated skimmer, and spread them on flat dishes, laying them so that they will not touch each other. Leave the syrup over the fire in a place where it will boil rapidly, skimming it frequently. At the end of fifteen minutes it should be thick and clear. Pack the fruit into wide-mouthed, self-sealing jars and pour the syrup over the apples. Close the jars while the contents are still hot.

Preserved green grapes

Cut each grape in half, remove the seeds and weigh the fruit. Allow a pound of granulated sugar to every pound of the fruit. Put all into a preserving kettle and bring very slowly to a boil. Cook until thick, then pour, boiling hot, into jars and seal.

Preserved cherries

Stone and stem tart cherries, saving all the juice. To every pound of fruit allow a pound of sugar. Put the sugar and juice in the preserving kettle over the fire, and when the sugar is entirely dissolved, add the cherries. Cook until the syrup is very thick; put into glass jars and seal.

BRANDIED PEACHES GARNISHED WITH LEAVES

MOULD OF JELLY GARNISHED WITH ROSES]

Preserved pineapple

After you have peeled the fruit and removed the “eyes,” weigh it and allow a pound of sugar to every pound of the fruit. Slice the pineapple and put it and the sugar in the kettle in alternate layers. Pour in a cup of water to prevent burning, and bring slowly to a boil. Remove the pineapple, spread on platters to cool, and boil the syrup for fifteen minutes more. Pack the fruit in jars and fill these with the boiling liquid. Seal immediately.

Brandied peaches

Choose firm, white fruit for this purpose. Peel and weigh the peaches. To every four pounds of fruit allow three of sugar, a pint of brandy and a half-pint of water. Put the sugar and water in the preserving kettle, and, when they begin to boil, drop in the peaches. Let these boil gently for twenty minutes, then remove the fruit with a perforated spoon and pack in glass jars. Let the syrup cook ten minutes longer, add the brandy, and, just as the boiling point is reached, remove the kettle and fill the jars with the scalding liquid. Seal at once.

Candied peaches

Slice them thin and boil until clear in a syrup made with half their weight in sugar; lay them on dishes in the sun and turn them until dry. Pack them in jars with powdered sugar over each layer. They are very nice if made with pure honey instead of sugar.

Fox grape jelly

Stem and wash the grapes, and put them into the preserving kettle, with the water still clinging to them. When the grapes are broken to pieces strain through a jelly-bag, measure the juice, and to each pound of this allow a pound and a half of sugar. Bring the juice to a boil, cook for fifteen minutes, add the sugar, which should be heated dry in the oven, and when this is dissolved fill glasses with the jelly.

Quince jelly

Wash the quinces, but do not peel them. Cut in quarters and remove the cores. Put over the fire in porcelain kettle; add a very little water; cover closely and stew until the fruit is tender and broken. Strain and press through a jelly-bag, but do not squeeze the pulp. The juice must be allowed to drip through. Allow a pound of sugar to each pint of the juice. Return the juice to the fire and, as soon as it boils, pour in the sugar. Boil all hard until the juice begins to “jelly,” skimming off the scum as it rises to the surface. Test the juice occasionally by pouring a spoonful upon a chilled plate. As soon as this quantity begins to jelly about the edge the kettle may be removed from the fire. Put at once into jelly-glasses.

Grape jelly

Put your grapes over the fire in a large double boiler, without water. Cover closely and cook until the fruit is broken to pieces. Rub through a colander, then squeeze through a flannel bag. Measure the juice, and to each pint allow a pound of sugar. Put the sugar in pans and set in the oven to heat, but not to melt. Stir it from time to time to prevent scorching. Return the juice to the fire in a porcelain-lined kettle, and bring to a boil. Cook for twenty minutes, add the heated sugar, boil up just once and pour the jelly into glasses set in a pan of hot water.

Currant jelly

Wash the fruit, put it over the fire in an agate-lined kettle, and let it heat very, very slowly. When the fruit is hot and broken, remove from the fire and squeeze it through a jelly-bag. Measure the juice and allow a pound of granulated sugar to each pint of the liquid. Return the juice to the fire and set the sugar in shallow pans in the oven to heat. When the juice has boiled twenty minutes skim it; add the heated sugar, stir until this has dissolved, bring to the boiling point, and take from the fire. Fill your jelly-glasses while they stand in a pan of hot water.

Peach jelly

Peel, stone and quarter a peck of peaches and put over the fire with a cupful of water. A dozen cracked peach pits added to the fruit will improve the flavor of the jelly. Cook steadily until the peaches are broken and soft; strain and return the juice to the fire, with the strained juice of a lemon for every three pounds of fruit. Let it boil for twenty minutes, and add a pound of heated sugar for every pint of the juice. When it boils up once more, remove from the fire and fill the glasses.

Crabapple jelly

Cut juicy crabapples into quarters and put over the fire in a preserving kettle. Cover; bring slowly to a boil and stew for several hours, or until broken all to pieces. Strain and press without squeezing, through a jelly-bag, and proceed as with peach jelly. The juice procured by squeezing what is left in the bag will make a good second-best jelly, well flavored but not clear.

Cranberry jelly

Wash a quart of cranberries, drain them and put them into a double boiler with the moisture still clinging to them. Cover and cook until broken to pieces. Turn the fruit into a jelly-bag and squeeze hard to extract all the juice. Measure this, and to a quart of it add four cups of granulated sugar. Return to the fire, boil up once, and turn into a mold wet with cold water. It should form into a firm jelly.

Rhubarb jelly

Cut the rhubarb into inch lengths, and to two quarts of this add a scant cup of water. Put into a porcelain-lined kettle, cover closely and simmer until very soft. Put a small quantity at a time into a jelly-bag and squeeze out all the juice. Measure this and return to the kettle and fire. Allow a pound of granulated sugar for each pint of juice. Heat the sugar in pans in the oven, taking care that it does not scorch or melt. Boil the juice for ten minutes, adding, as it cooks, a little lemon juice. At the end of twenty minutes add the hot sugar slowly, that it may not lump, and as soon as it is dissolved pour the jelly into glasses that have been dipped into hot water. When firm and cool, cover, first with tissue paper that has been dipped in brandy, then with tin covers, or with stiff paper securely fastened down.

Apple jelly

Quarter without peeling or coring them, tart, juicy apples. Drop the apples, as you cut them, into cold water. When all are done put the fruit, with the moisture upon it, in the preserving kettle, and simmer very gently until the juice flows freely. Boil slowly until the apples are tender and broken. Turn, a little at a time, into a flannel jelly-bag, and allow the juice to drip through. If the bag is squeezed the jelly will be cloudy. Measure the juice and to each pint of it allow a pound of granulated sugar. Put the sugar in pans in the oven to heat. Return the juice to the fire and boil for twenty minutes; skim it, pour into it the sugar and stir until this is dissolved, bring again to the boil, and remove the kettle from the fire. Set jelly glasses on a wet cloth to prevent their cracking, and fill at once.

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NOTE.—I am often asked by those who wish to make genuine Dundee orange marmalade where the bitter Seville oranges may be procured that impart the distinctive flavor to the Scotch marmalade. In answer I will suggest the use of grape fruit—one large “shaddock” to a dozen oranges substituted for the Seville oranges. The flavor is delicious.

PICKLES

In the warm days when the thought of “sweets” brings no desire, but rather an aversion for them, it requires courage to put up preserves, and a certain amount of faith is necessary to make the housewife feel that she will ever want to eat the rich and cloying dainties. But with pickles it is another story. During the dog-days the thought of the biting acid is pleasing, and the recollection of pungent spices tempts the appetite. So the housewife enters into the preparation of her pickles with zest that makes the task a pleasure.

To be on the safe side one should, in making pickles, always use a porcelain or agate-lined preserving kettle, as the action of sharp acid upon a copper vessel may, unless great care be practiced, produce a corroding poison.

Wax for sealing jars and bottles

Make a mixture of one-third resin and two-thirds beeswax. Heat together, mix well and put away until needed. When it is to be used lay a lump of it on top of the jar or bottle to be sealed, and press it down with a hot shovel. This will melt it, and thus seal the cork.

Cucumber pickles

Choose only small cucumbers, as they make pretty, as well as tender, pickles. Lay one hundred and fifty small cucumbers in cold water for an hour. Remove and drain, then turn into a perfectly clean stone crock, and pour over them cold brine, so strong that an egg will float on the surface. After standing in this for three days the pickles may be removed, drained and dried on a clean towel. Wash the stone crock and return the cucumbers to it. Cover with pure water until the next day. Have ready on the range hot vinegar in which you have boiled two minced onions, twenty cloves, an ounce, each, of mustard and celery seed and a few blades of mace. Fill the jar with this boiling mixture, and add a cupful of sugar, stirring the cucumbers up from the bottom. Cover tightly. In a week scald the vinegar again, and return to the jar. Let the pickles stand for six weeks before using. Six months is even better.

Sliced cucumber pickles

Slice three dozen large yellow cucumbers and boil them for half an hour in enough vinegar to cover them. Meanwhile, into a gallon of cold vinegar stir a tablespoonful, each, of onion juice, ground horseradish, cinnamon, black pepper, ginger, a half-teaspoonful of paprika, a tablespoonful of celery seed and a half-pound of sugar. Drain the boiled cucumbers, turn them into the spiced vinegar, put all into a kettle and simmer for two hours before putting into glass jars.

Pickled onions

Select the small white “button onions” for pickling. Lay them in a strong brine for four or five days. Drain and put into a fresh supply of brine boiling hot. Cook five minutes. Drain and lay in clear, cold water for a day. Drain once more, turn the onions into pint jars and pour scalding spiced vinegar upon them. Allow them to become tender before using.

Pickled butternuts

These should be picked when tender enough to be pierced with a needle. Cover with very strong brine and keep the nuts in this for three days; drain and recover with brine. At the end of three days drain again and leave in fresh cold water for six hours. Bring to a boil a gallon of vinegar in which you have stirred a cupful of sugar, two tablespoonfuls, each, of whole cloves and peppercorns, a tablespoonful of allspice and eight blades of mace. Boil for ten minutes, pack the nuts in a crock and pour the scalding vinegar over them. At the end of three days drain off the vinegar, bring it to the boil, and pour it again over the nuts. Cover and set aside for six weeks before eating.

Peter Piper’s pickled peppers

Cut a slit in the sides of large green peppers and extract the seeds. Lay in strong brine for three days and in cold water for one. Make a stuffing of eight tablespoonfuls of chopped cabbage, four tablespoonfuls of English mustard seed, a teaspoonful of celery seed, two teaspoonfuls of chopped onion, a teaspoonful, each, of grated horseradish, whole peppercorns and ground mace, a half-teaspoonful of ground mustard and a heaping tablespoonful of brown sugar. Moisten to a paste with salad oil and stuff the peppers with it, closing the slit afterwards, and wrapping with soft string. Pack in a stone crock and fill the crock with scalding vinegar to which has been added a half-cup of brown sugar. Scald the vinegar a week later and return to the crock. Cover and let it stand six months before using.

Stuffed mangoes or peppers

Cut the tops from green peppers, and with a sharp knife remove the seeds. Fill the peppers with salt and cover with cold water. Let them stand thus for two days, then drain; leave in cold water for a day and fill with a stuffing made of two tablespoonfuls of minced cabbage, two tablespoonfuls of horseradish, grated, a teaspoonful of minced onion, a half-teaspoonful, each, of powdered mace, nutmeg and ginger, a teaspoonful, each, of celery seed, peppercorns and ground mustard, a teaspoonful of sugar and a tablespoonful of salad oil. When the peppers are stuffed tie on the tops with soft twine, pack in a crock and fill the crock with boiling vinegar. Repeat the scalding a week later. Cover, and let them stand for several months before using.

Pickled pepper hash

Wash and dry five large green peppers and one red one, cut them open and remove all the seed, then chop the shells quite fine. Next, take a good-sized head of cabbage, remove all imperfect leaves, cut it up and chop fine. Place both cabbage and peppers in a bowl and mix well together; add two tablespoonfuls of brown mustard seed, three tablespoonfuls of salt, one of sugar and enough good cider vinegar to cover the whole; stir all well together and put into pickle bottles. This will be ready for use in two days, or it will keep for winter use.

Pickled cherries

Bring to the boiling point a pint and a half of vinegar, into which you have stirred half a cupful of brown sugar, a tablespoonful of whole cloves and a dozen blades of mace. Boil all together for five minutes, and set aside to cool.

Have ready three quarts of firm, tart cherries (leaving the stones in them) and put them into glass jars. Strain the spices from the cold vinegar, and pour the vinegar over the fruit, filling the jars to the brim. Seal at once.

Martinia pickles

Gather when a needle will pierce the vegetables; wash and pack down in a stone jar, then cover with cold brine strong enough to bear up an egg. Let the pickles stand in this for three days, stirring them up each day from the bottom. Drain and pour cold water over them, letting them stand for twenty-four hours in it. Drain this off, and pack the pickles in quart jars. Have ready scalding vinegar in which you have boiled for ten minutes a dozen whole cloves and peppercorns, four blades of mace and two teaspoonfuls of mustard seed. Fill the jars with the boiling vinegar, add a tablespoonful of sugar for each quart of vinegar, and screw on the covers. Let the pickles stand for six weeks before using.

Pickled string beans

Remove the strings and boil the beans until tender in slightly salted boiling water; put into glass jars, pour heated spiced vinegar over them and seal up tightly, as you would canned beans.

Green tomato pickle

Slice a gallon of unpeeled green tomatoes and six large onions and mix them together. Stir into these a quart of vinegar, one cupful of brown sugar, a tablespoonful, each, of salt, pepper and mustard seed, and a half-tablespoonful, each, of ground allspice and cloves. Stew all until the tomatoes are very tender, then put into glass jars and seal.

India relish (No. 1)

One pint of young string beans, cut into inch lengths; one pint of very small cucumbers (an inch long), each cut into three pieces; three sliced cucumbers, one pint of button onions (peeled), four long red peppers, cut small; one cup of green nasturtium seed, one medium-sized cauliflower, cut into _small_ clusters.

Put all these ingredients into a stone crock in layers thickly strewn with salt, the uppermost layer being of salt. Cover with cold water, put a plate on top, weighted with a stone to keep the vegetables from floating, and leave in the cellar for three days.

Drain off the brine, rinse with cold water by putting the vegetables in a colander and holding it under the faucet; return to the crock, cover with cold fresh water and leave for twenty-four hours.

Have ready three quarts of vinegar, one teaspoonful of Hungarian sweet pepper (paprika), one teaspoonful of cloves, one teaspoonful of celery seed, two tablespoonfuls of curry powder, one teaspoonful of ground mustard, one teaspoonful of mace, one teaspoonful of grated horseradish, one and a half cupfuls of brown sugar. Let this mixture come to a boil, put in the drained vegetables, and simmer ten minutes after it begins to boil. Turn into a stone crock; cover closely and let all stand forty-eight hours.

Drain off the vinegar and bring it to a boil; pour over the pickles and leave them for a day longer. Fill small glass jars with the relish, cork and seal. Keep in a dark closet. It will not be ready for use under three weeks. Six weeks are better.

India relish (No. 2)

Two pounds of citron melon or watermelon rind, two heads of cabbage, white and firm; six white onions, one large cupful of sugar, one heaping teaspoonful, each, of ground cinnamon, mace, paprika (Hungarian sweet pepper), mustard and powdered alum, one tablespoonful of curry powder, one quart of vinegar, two tablespoonfuls of celery seed, one tablespoonful of salt.

Prepare the melon by cutting off the green rind and scraping away the softer inner coating, leaving less than an inch, firm and white, to be treated. Cut into thin strips, put into an agate-iron or porcelain-lined kettle, cover with cold water and sprinkle a tablespoonful of powdered alum over it. Cover closely and cook gently—never fast—for three hours. Drain well and cover with ice-water. Change the water twice in four hours, and then wipe the melon dry.

Cut the cabbage into quarters, cook in boiling water slightly salted for fifteen minutes. Let it get perfectly cold. Parboil the onions and allow them also to get cold and stiff.

Now chop cabbage, melons and onions separately, and very fine. Mix all together in a large crock, and pour over them the scalding hot vinegar, in which have been boiled for one minute the spices, sugar and celery seed.

Leave the crock covered twenty-four hours, strain off the vinegar, bring it to a boil and pour again over the mixture in the crock. Repeat this for three days in succession, after which pack in small jars, cover closely and set away to ripen. It will be ready for use in six weeks, but improves by keeping. The result will repay the housewife for the trouble of making.

Pickled watermelon rind