The fruit must be fresh, of fine flavor, without bruise or
blemish, and not over-ripe ; for, contradictory as it may ap-
pear, the moment fruit reaches the point of perfect maturity
it begins to deteriorate in quality. It is a prevalent but mis-
taken notion which man}' economy-loving women hold, that
the canning season should be delayed until fruit is at its
cheapest. If taste is valued, first fruits should always be
obtained for this purpose.
As the acme of flavor and the highest nutritive properties
lie nearest the rind, the most delicious fruits and those which
keep longest are canned without being pared, after a careful
washing and whisking with a stiff brush made for the pur-
pose. If pared fruit is preferred, the thinnest possible rind
should be removed with a silver knife, which does not dis-
color, and the fruit plunged at once into a wooden or earthen
vessel of cold water, as exposure to the air will darken it.
CANNED FRUITS AND PRESERVES 353
BOILING
Such fruits as peaches, pears, and the like, which harden
when dropped into boiling syrup, should be cooked in clear
boiling water until tender, then transferred, using a wire
spoon, to glass jars — standing conveniently to hand in a pan
of warm water — and the boiling syrup, clear as crystal, poured
over them. Only enough fruit to fill one can should be
cooked at a time. Fruit put up in this manner retains both
flavor and shape, thereby being delicious to eat and good to
look upon. Of course, it necessitates a little more time than
to dump the fruit wholesale into a kettle and cook all at once,
but to the woman who is satisfied with none but the best re-
sults in her culinary work, it is time well spent.
A very good proportion for the syrup is a pint of granu-
lated sugar to a quart of water. Use only a porcelain-lined
or granite kettle. Put in the sugar, pour over the water, stir
until dissolved, then put to cook. Bring slowly to boil, and
skim thoroughly before adding to fruit. Make only enough
for two jars at one cooking.
STEAMING
Another method of canning the firmer sorts of fruits, one
which ensures satisfactory results, is steaming. Line the
bottom of a steamer with a clean white cloth, then put in a
small quantity of prepared fruit; cover closely, and stand
over a kettle of boiling water, which must be kept boiling
without cessation until the fruit is tender, but not soft; then
lift out, a piece at a time, and drop into boiling syrup ; cook a
moment, fill cans, pour over syrup and cover closely, but
do not seal. Let stand a moment to settle, uncover, fill up
with boiling syrup, wipe away all moisture from lids and
rim; then seal at once, taking pains to have the rubbei* show
an even edge all around.
On no account should berries intended for canning stand
overnight. They ferment rapidly, even when kept in a cool
place, become soft and mash in cooking'. To the neglect of
854 THE HOME COOK BOOK
this precaution may be traced many a failure. If such fruit
must be utiHzed, make it into jam.
Unless necessary, do not wash berries. Pick off stems
and leaves with care to avoid bruising — for when the skin
of the fruit is broken the syrup wall be discolored. As berries
are by nature soft and mash easily when cooking, they should
be cooked with the sugar, which has a tendency to make
them firm.
SMALL FRUITS
Page 193
Presented as published in 1905. Historical recipes may not meet modern food-safety standards. Cook from the modern interpretation, not the original instructions.
AI-modernized reading of the original text
The fruit must be fresh, of fine flavor, without bruise or blemish, and not over-ripe ; for, contradictory as it may appear, the moment fruit reaches the point of perfect maturity it begins to deteriorate in quality. It is a prevalent but mistaken notion which man}' economy-loving women hold, that the canning season should be delayed until fruit is at its cheapest. If taste is valued, first fruits should always be obtained for this purpose.
As the acme of flavor and the highest nutritive properties lie nearest the rind, the most delicious fruits and those which keep longest are canned without being pared, after a careful washing and whisking with a stiff brush made for the purpose. If pared fruit is preferred, the thinnest possible rind should be removed with a silver knife, which does not discolor, and the fruit plunged at once into a wooden or earthen vessel of cold water, as exposure to the air will darken it.
BOILING
Such fruits as peaches, pears, and the like, which harden when dropped into boiling syrup, should be cooked in clear boiling water until tender, then transferred, using a wire spoon, to glass jars — standing conveniently to hand in a pan of warm water — and the boiling syrup, clear as crystal, poured over them. Only enough fruit to fill one can should be cooked at a time. Fruit put up in this manner retains both flavor and shape, thereby being delicious to eat and good to look upon. Of course, it necessitates a little more time than to dump the fruit wholesale into a kettle and cook all at once, but to the woman who is satisfied with none but the best results in her culinary work, it is time well spent.
A very good proportion for the syrup is a pint of granulated sugar to a quart of water. Use only a porcelain-lined or granite kettle. Put in the sugar, pour over the water, stir until dissolved, then put to cook. Bring slowly to boil, and skim thoroughly before adding to fruit. Make only enough for two jars at one cooking.
STEAMING
Another method of canning the firmer sorts of fruits, one which ensures satisfactory results, is steaming. Line the bottom of a steamer with a clean white cloth, then put in a small quantity of prepared fruit; cover closely, and stand over a kettle of boiling water, which must be kept boiling without cessation until the fruit is tender, but not soft; then lift out, a piece at a time, and drop into boiling syrup ; cook a moment, fill cans, pour over syrup and cover closely, but do not seal. Let stand a moment to settle, uncover, fill up with boiling syrup, wipe away all moisture from lids and rim; then seal at once, taking pains to have the rubber show an even edge all around.
On no account should berries intended for canning stand overnight. They ferment rapidly, even when kept in a cool place, become soft and mash in cooking'. To the neglect of
this precaution may be traced many a failure. If such fruit must be utilized, make it into jam.
Unless necessary, do not wash berries. Pick off stems and leaves with care to avoid bruising — for when the skin of the fruit is broken the syrup wall be discolored. As berries are by nature soft and mash easily when cooking, they should be cooked with the sugar, which has a tendency to make them firm.
SMALL FRUITS