Dora's cook book

very cool oven, where let remain until the fruit has shrunk away a fourth part. Then take the bottles out, do not _ open them, but immediately beat the corks in tight, cut off the tops, and cover them with melted resin. If kept in a dry place, the fruit will keep good for months; and on this depends principally the success of the preparation, for if stored away in a place that isthe least damp, the _ fruit will soon spoil. TO CAN CORN. Use glass jars. Cut nice green corn from the cob with a sharp knife—with the back of the knife scrape the cob, to get all the sweetness possible—see that your jars are perfect, put in the corn with the small end of your potatomasher and pack it in. A quart jar will take twelve ordinary ears. When the jar is full put on the rubbers, screw on the covers almost perfectly tight. I screw it as tight as I can with the thumb and finger. Put hay ‘or cloths in the bottom of your wash-boiler, lay in the cans of corn, put little cloths in to keep them from hitting ~ each other—fill the boiler as full as you wish, cover over with cold water, set it over the fire. When it begins to boil, boil for three hours without ceasing, then take out, and with your tightener make as tight as possible imme- diately. After they are cold tighten again if you can. Put away in a dark, cool place, but not damp. Beans and peas are delicious, put up the same way. CANNED FRUIT. Pith 251 TO COLOR PRESERVES PINK. By putting in a little powdered cochineal, then finish in the syrup. | TO COLOR FRUIT YELLOW. Boil the fruit with fresh skin lemons in water to cover them until it is tender ; then take it up, spread on dishes — to cool, and finish as may be directed. TO KEEP TOMATOES WHOLE. Fill the stone jar with tomatoes (not over-ripe), add a few whole cloves, and a little sugar ; cover them with equal quantities of vinegar and water; place a piece of flannel over the jar well down in the vinegar ; then tie over with the paper. In this way tomatoes may be kept a year. Ifthe mildew should collect on the flannel, it will not hurt them in the least. ” EXCELLENT CANNED TOMATOES. Pick the apple tomatoes, the smoothest and best shaped; scald and skin them very carefully ; take the stem out with a penknife, taking care not to cut the tomato so as to let the juice out; place them in the cans, some of them with the stem end next to the can and some with blossom ends ; then take the juice that has run out of what you have peeled to cook, having no seeds or pulp, and add a little salt and pour on the whole tomatoes until nearly full, then place them ina kettle of cold water yy CANNED FRUIT. One Ws “and let them cook till they are hot clear through, then ~ seal them. Use nothing but glass jars, and after the cover has been on five minutes, take it off so they will settle, letting the gas out ; then fill up with juice and seal again ; have cans always full to the cover. They will show every vein and _ riband look as if they had been put up raw, and when used they are just as if they had been taken from the vines. * SPICED GRAPES. Five pounds of grapes, three pounds of sugar, two tea~ spoonfuls of cinnamon and allspice, one-half teaspoonful of cloves; pulp grapes ; boil until tender ; cook pulps and strain through a sieve; add to it the spice, put in sugar, spices and vinegar to taste ; boil thoroughly, and cool. BRANDIED BERRIES OR CHERRIES, Make a syrup of a pound of sugar and a-half gill of water for every two pounds of fruit. Heat to boiling, stirring to prevent burning, and pour over the fruit while warm, not hot. Let them stand together an hour; put all into a preserving kettle and heat slowly; boil five minutes, take out the fruit with a perforated skimmer, | and boil the syrup twenty minutes. Add one pint of brandy for every five pounds; pour over the fruit hot