The representative., 1899-08-10

Household Hints.
CANNING FRUITS.

Household Hints.
CANNING FRUITS.
Good housekeepers all agree that
Tome put-up fruit is far preferable to
actory goods, and more wholesome. 1t
b part of her practical edcation that
|hould not be neglected. To be done
successfully great care should be taken
that the fruit, so far as possible, re-
kains it's original form and flavor.
: ! The more perfect the fruit. the better
Will be the results. Over-ripe fruit
malade. When berries are dead ripe"
they are very apt to mash up and 60 to
Juice. In the smaller fruits it is much
better to can when the least bit under
Where the fruit Is to be used for pies,
such precaution is unnecessary. 1t is
an excellent idea to work up your fruit
That does not just grade up. with view
to pastry uses.
BERRIES. .
1t is more difficult to make berries.
Strawberries in particular, retain their
patural flavor than other fruits. One
'Df the best methods of accomplishing
this is to pour a boiling syrup over the
fruit. That Is, fill the glass bottle or
Mason jar with the fruit, being careful
That there is no unnecessary room left
Then fill to overfowing with a we'll
boiled, well-skimmed syrup, made Of
one pint Of granulated sugar boiled in
sufficient water to fill up two quart bot
Ties of the fruit. Seal at once, and do
not disturb until entirely cold
Where the old method is adhered to,
the fruit should be cropped into the
boiling syrup, thoroughly heated
through, but not cooked, during which
time all scum should be removed; then
carefully placed in the bottle. The juice
should be poured in until the bottle will
hold no more, and then sealed at once
Be sure there is no scum on the top of
the jar when you seal, as this is very
apt to cause the fruit to form a mold
Do not attempt to can fruit in this way
on the wholesale plan, or your success
will be but partial. 1t is much better to
can but one, or at most two, bottles at
time. Where quantity of fruit is
put on at one time, it mashes, some is
overlooked, and some under-done.
CHERRIES.
Although not a berry, they should be
handled in the same way. They are
much more tedious to prepare, but one
always feels repaid when the job is
finished. Under no circumstances can
cherries with the seeds in them When
the fruit is perfect, or free from worms,
a cherry seeder may be used with mod
crate success. But a pair of nimble
hands. with unceasing vigilance on the
part Of their owner, is safer and better
than any machine process of getting rid
of those little nuisances. The rounded
end of common steel or wire hairpin
can be used to good purpose for remov-
Ing the seed. This keeps from MASKING
the fruit, although it retards the speed
somewhat
Some years the cherries are found to
be much juicier than Others Where
there is superfluous quantity of Juice,
this can be drained off, boiled and
skinned, sealed and kept for use in
fruit salad or fruit tapioca pudding. It
also adds much to the flavor of mince-
meat.
PEACHES.
If taken at just the right time the
skin can be removed from peaches with
but very little trouble. They should be
ripe enough to just yield to the pressure
Of the thumb. If softer than this they
will mash too easily, and If harder the
skins adhere too tightly. Fill a colan-
der or wire basket with the fruit, dip
quickly two or three times in boiling
water; then submerge for a minute in
cold water, and then drain. The skins
will peel of quite readily This is for
freestones; you will seldom find cling
stones that can be handled thus.
Many prefer clings, onsaccount of the
superior flavor. While this is quite an
Item, they are more troublesome to pre-
pare for some purposes They make a
very pretty can of fruit when put up
whole, if one does not object to the
seed taste. When freestones are used
they should be halved to remove the
stones. Never leave them in the boil
ing syrup longer than to bring them to
the point where you just begin to pierce
with fork. Place them, piece by piece,
in the bottle till you can get no more
in, then fill in the syrup. Do not at
tempt to prepare nor can more than a
quart at time. Quite quantity may
be scalded at once, but do not remove
the skins except for can at a time, as
they turn brown if exposed to the air