Fruit recipes

Place the limes in boiling water and keep them cooking at this temperature until tender enough to pierce readily, when place in fresh water and let just come to boiling point. Have ready a syrup made as for ices (see Introductory Recipes) and when the limes are ready dash cold water over them and drain on a cloth, laying another over them. Then place in the boiling syrup and cook gently for twenty minutes when remove and let fruit stand in the syrup over night. Heat next day, letting boil and stand (in syrup) an hour several times after repeating the boiling. Then remove limes from the syrup to heated jars and after cooking down the syrup till quite thick (add more sugar if necessary) pour over the fruit and seal. CHAPTER XIX THE PINEAPPLE (Ananas ananas: Nat. Ord. Bromeliacee) UTSIDE of the citrus fruits none is to be found which is more entirely beneficial to the human system, more simple and direct in wholesome effect than the pineapple when in perfect condition: not the stunted, woody specimens too often sold as pineapple. It has not so much nutritive value as some other fruits but is rich in mineral salts and these, with the water which forms so large a percentage of pine-pulp, and the fruit-sugar, purify the system and soothe the stomach. The active principle of the fruit, ananasine, may be very properly considered a vegetable counterpart of the gastric juice since, as discovered by Sefior V. Marcano, the juice of the ordinary pineapple possesses the ‘‘power of digesting proteid vegetable and animal substances.’’ Chittenden, who, with others, followed up the investigations, found, in addition, that this digestant is active with “either acids “or alkaline carbonates’’ and that ‘‘the ferment, to which the name “‘bromelin’ has been given, is more nearly related to trypsin than to pepsin.” The simple fact that pineapple juice will, for instance, digest beef, is very interesting to even the simplest understanding. The juice is extremely healing in catarrhal affections: and physicians recommend its use as a gargle for ordinary sore throats and even for diphtheria. For the greatest benefit to be secured the pineapple is of course best in simplest form, uncooked, but when eaten as often as fruit should be eaten, sameness sometimes palls with even the most delicious of foods and of this there is no necessity as there are many tempting ways of preparing and serving the pineapple. TO PROPERLY PARE AND THUS PREPARE An almost invariable mistake is made by Northerners in the peeling of this fruit whole and the attempt to remove the eyes with the peel. The pineapple should first be sliced across, rind and all, according to the thickness desired, then each slice taken in turn, in the left hand, held with the rind toward one and pared with the right hand by means of a slim, sharp knife, inserting point and peeling downward, toward one, close to the rind. The eyes may now (left exposed without the hard skin) be easily and quickly removed with none of the usual awkward hacking and loss of juice attendant upon the ordinary method. AS A SIMPLE BREAKFAST OR LUNCHEON DISH