Harper's cook book encyclopædia

Mixed Preserves. — Take equal quantities of peaches, apples, pears, and quinces that have been pared, cored, and quartered, or, what is better, cut fine. To every 6 lbs. of fruit allow one pint of water. Let them cook thoroughly, but not burn. Take out and mash well together. Clean the kettle and put them back with half or three-quarters their weight in sugar, and let them cook very slowly two hours. Orange Marmalade. — Cut the oranges in halves and remove the pulp with a spoon. Take one lemon to every five oranges and prepare in the same way. Then cut the half-shells of the fruit each into two pieces, and take out as much of the white skin as possible. Put the outside yellow skins on to boil in water. Weigh the pulp, and take half as much sugar, and simmer for fifteen minutes. When the peel is transparent and tender take it up, and, laying several pieces together, cut into fine shreds, first scraping each one thoroughly with a spoon till all the white inside is gone. Mix with the pulp and sugar and cook till very thick, and put in jelly-glasses. This will be found to be a very nice recipe. Oranges and Rhubarb Marmalade. — Peel the oranges thin, throw away the white rind and the seeds. Cut the oranges into small pieces and put them into the preserving-kettle ; add the peel, cut into very fine strips, then the rhubarb, cut into small pieces, and lastly the sugar. To six oranges add 2 lbs. of rhubarb stalks and i J4 lbs. of sugar. Boil until the orange-peel is cooked. Orange Syrup. — This syrup is so easily made, and can be used so con- stantly to advantage, that every housekeeper would do well to make a supply of it at the season when oranges are plentiful and cheap. Select ripe and thin-skinned fruit, squeezing the juice through a sieve. To every pint add I /4 lbs. of powdered sugar, with a very little of the grated orange-peel and the juice of one lemon. Boil the syrup for fifteen minutes, skimming it as long as any scum rises to the top. Then take it off, strain it if it does not look clear, bottle it, and seal up tight. two tablespoonfuls of this syrup mixed with Y\ lb. of creamed butter makes an excellent sauce for a plum or a batter pudding ; a little of it imparts a fine flavor to custards, and, simply mixed with cold water and ice, it furnishes a deliciously cooling drink in summer, or, in some cases, for patients. In hot countries where oranges grow their juice is thought to be a specific in cases of dysentery. Oranges Whole, To Preserve. — Cut a hole in each orange large enough to scoop out the inside ; put in cold water three days to soak, changing the water each day ; then boil slowly until the bitter is extracted, changing the water every half-hour till it no longer tastes bitter. To i lb. of fruit put 2 lbs. of clarified sugar. When the syrup is clear, drop the oranges in and boil until transparent. They will take about four hours to boil.