Buckeye cookery

Dried fruits are much better and require less boiling, if clean soft water is poured over them and allowed to stand over night. In the morning boil until tender in the water, sweetening five minutes before removing from the stove. To dry corn or fruits nicely, spread in shallow boxes or box covers, and cover with mosquito netting to prevent flies reaching them. When dry, put up in jars and cover closely, or in paper sacks. Dried peaches are better when halved and the cavities sprinkled with sugar in drying. The fruit must be good, however, as poor fruit can not be redeemed by any process. Another excellent way is to dry them in the oven, and, when about half done, place in a crock a layer of peaches alternately with a layer of sugar. Cherries _ and currants are excellent dried as follows: Put in jars first a layer | of fruit, then a layer of sugar, in the proportion of half a pound sugar to pound of fruit, let stand over night, place them to boil, skimming off all scum, let boil ten or fifteen minutes, skim out and spread on dishes to, dry in the sun, or by the fire, turning frequently until dry; then place on pans in oven, stirring with the hand often until the heat is too great to bear. They may then be packed in_ jars with sugar, or put away in paper sacks, or stone crocks with a cloth tied close over the top, and are an excellent substitute for raisins in puddings or mince-pies. The secret of keeping dried fruit is to exclude the light, and to kept in a dry and cool place. Paper sacks, or a barrel or box lined with — paper, are secure against moths. Reheating fruit makes it dark in color, and impairs its flavor. Always fill a fruit-can, and not for | present use, to avoid opening the large jars often. APPLE PRESERVES. Take three-quarters of a pound sugar to each pound apples; make a syrup of the sugar and water in which root ginger (bruised and BG Coie oT OAS TE) PRES RR Vig ol ee wc hte ee _ tied in a bag) has been boiled until the strength is well extracted, add a little lemon-juice or sliced lemon, skim off all scum, and boil | in the syrup a few apples at a time, until they are transparent, and place in jar. When all are done, boil the syrup until thick, pour, _ boiling hot, over the apples, and cover closely. Well-flavored fruit, a ‘not easily broken in cooking, should be used. The ginger may be ‘mitted if disliked. CARROT SWEETMEATS. Boil small fine-grained carrots in water till tender; peel and grate, add sugar, slips of citron, spices if preferred, and wine; simmer slowly together and put away in jars. Very wholesome for chil- dren and very much liked. The juice from any canned fruit sold would take the place of the simple wine used here—the alcoholic mixtures sold in America being utterly unfit for household consumption. —Mrs. 8. Williston, Heidelberg, Germany. CHERRY PRESERVES. Choose sour ones—the early Richmond is good—seed all very carefully, allow an amount of sugar equal to the fruit; take half the sugar, sprinkle over the fruit, let stand about an hour, pour into a preserving-kettle, boil slowly ten minutes, skim out the cherries, add rest of sugar to the syrup, boil, skim and pour over the cher- ries; the next day drain off the syrup, boil. skim if necessary, add | the cherries, boil twenty minutes, and seal up in small jars. —Mrs. J. M. Southard. CITRON PRESERVES. Pare off rind, seed, cut in thin slices two inches long, weigh, and put in preserving kettle with water enough to cover; boil one hour, take out the melon, and to the water in kettle add as much sugar as there is melon by weight, boil until quite thick, replace melon, add two sliced lemons to each pound of fruit, boil twenty minutes, take out, boil syrup until it is very thick molasses, and pour it over fhe fruit.—Mrs. J. H. Robinson,