The Caldwell tribune. [volume] (Caldwell, Idaho Territory [Idaho]) 1883-1928, 1915-09-17
WATERMELON SIRUP.

A delicious table strip can be made
from watermelons, and it affords to
the farmer according to the fruit
juice specialists of the department., a
convenient means of using the surplus
watermelons which otherwise are al
lowed to spoil in the field. Such strip
has been made by farmers in a small
way in various parts of the South, and
the department endeavored to work
out exact methods of making it as a
possible by-product from surplus mel
ons. This strip can be used inn
mediately or can be bottled hot in
sterilized jars and kept just as is done
in the canning of fruit. 1t is reddish
brown in color, very sweet and well
favored, and will serve most of the
purposes for which strip is used in
the home 1t has been tried with sat
isfactory results in making ginger cake
homemade candy, and as a sweetening
and flavoring in ice cream.
AS the specialists point out, while
such as the "Tom Watson" contain
on an average only about per cent
of sugar, or less than many other
juices, the ease with which the juice
can be pressed out partly offsets the
low sugar content. The method de-
scribed below calls only for utensils
found in every household.
Directions for Making Table Sirup.
Remove the pink flesh and seeds
from the rind of sweet, fully ripe mel
ons. Crush the flesh with a potato
masher or by running it through a
meat chopper Place the crushed pulp
and seed in cloth bags and squeeze
out the juice, which flows out readily
About hve-sixths of the pulp will all
squeeze out as juice About Is gal
Ions of the juice will make l gallon
of strip. This amount of juice can
ordinarily be secured from 10 water
melons weighing from p to rs pounds
each.
The juice is then boiled down into a
strip in an ordinary preserving kettle
The juice boils without much foam
ing and burning. The red coloring
matter in the juice coagulates during
boiling, and part of it rises to the
surface, where it can be removed BY
skimming. The remainder floats about
in the juice, forming red particles thai
gather near the top. Toward the last
of the boiling the strip must be watch
ed constantly. If the housewife has Z
candy thermometer, she should take
the strip from the fire as soon as il
reaches a temperature of 220 Far.
otherwise she should let it cook un.
til a small sample on cooling is abou
as thick as maple strip.
When the boiling has finished, The
strip can be set aside to cool in GOV
cred vessels or can be poured while
hot into cans or glass containers anc
sealed.
Where cider press is available the
melons can be cut into pieces and ar.
ranged ON the press so that the pres
sure will extract the juice of the pull
before it presses the rind. The juice
of the rind is not so rich in sugar, anC
experiments with rind juice alone in,
dictate that it is not suitable for strip
To Remove Red Coloring Matter.
If it is desired to make strip free
from red particles, start the strip boil
ing, and when some of the coagulateC
matter has been removed by Swimming
transfer the juice to tall glass jars OF
other tall containers and allow it tc
settle and cool for a few hours. Thi.
| allows the red particles to settle tc
the bottom. The upper part Of tht
juice can then be poured off and boil
ed into strip.
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