Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1926-07-23
Fruits and Vegetables
Simple Methods of Drying Them for Next Winter
Use Give Satisfactory Results and Offer
4 Pleasant Tasks.

| ing and slice in rings. dipping these
| for a minute or two into cold sailed
water as described above. Remove
| the surface moisture. Drying time,
| from four to six hours, or until leath-
/ cry and pliable. Start at a low tenn
perature and raise gradually. Pears
and ounces may be steamed for ten
minutes after slicing and before
| drying.
Peaches: Dip the peaches into boil
| ing water long enough to loosen the
skins. Then dip in cold water and
peel. Cut in halves or quarters, pit
and dry like apples.
Drying of fruits and vegetables
should not be regarded AS taking the
place of the presel walton of vegeta-
bles and fruits in cans and jars. Dry
ing should be done in addition to the
canning. Practically all vegetables
and fruits may be dried. In every
home the necessary outfit in its sim
plest form is already at hand. Eff
fective drying may be done on plates
or dishes placed in the oven with the
oven door partly open. 1t may be
done on the back of the kitchen
stove with these same utensils while
the oven is being used FOR baking. If
dried on muslin in the sun, it must
be protected from dust.
Fruit Juices for Jelly.
Fruit juices for use later in jelly
making can be steriIized and boiled
without sugar and made into jellies
at your convenience. This will en-
able you to do with fewer jelly glasses
and to distribute your purchases of
sugar for jelly making throughout the
year. Also, with bottled juice at hand,
you can make a greater variety of
jellies, as juices which will not jell
can be put up when the fruit is ripe
and combined later with fruits that
viii jell, or fruits ripening at differ
ent seasons can be combined. For
instance, the juice of Strawberries,
cherries or pineapple can be kept with
out sugar, and later, when apples are
plentiful. can be made into combina-
ton jelly. From the unsugared,
sterilized juices of currants, apples,
crabappleS and grapes which were
kept from 9 to IS months there were
made jellies of excellent texture,
flavor and color.
To put up unsugared fruit juices
for jelly making. proceed exactly as
if jelly were to be made at the time.
Cook the fruits until they are soft
and strain out the juice through
flannel bag. Heat and pour while hot
the bottles full. leaving no air space
between the juice and cork or seal.
Place the filed, sealed bottles on their
sides in water near the boiling point
and keep them in the bath for about
80 minutes. Make sure that the
corked or sealed end is under the hot
water As soon as the bottles are
cool, cover the cork with a paraffin
seal. Thorough sterilization and
sealing are absolutely essential to sue
cess.
To make jelly from the sterilized
juice. test its Telling quality, add the
proper amount of sugar and proceed
as in making jelly from freshly ex-
pressed juice. An old-fashioned rule
for testing jelly to see If 1t has cooked
sufficiently is to try it with q spoon.
If 1t runs off the spoon in one straight
stream 1t has not cooked long enough,
but If 1t runs off in two drops side
by side it may safely be taken from
the fire as cooked.
To Use Later in Desserts.
Huckleberry syrup: Wash the ber-
ries, put in a preserving kettle. add
few spoonfuls of water to start the
steam and cook for a few minutes
until the juice flows freely. Drain
through a jelly bag, bring to a boil,
add three-fourths measure of sugar
and boil for five minutes. This syrup
is very good with few tablespoon
fuls of lemon juice added to a pint
and poured over Clipped ice, and it
is excellent to use in cooking desserts.
Cherry relish: Wash 2 pounds of
ripe, tart cherries. Put into a'pre-
serving kettle, crushing slightly, and
add few spoonfuls of boiling water.
Cook until the stones appear, and
then strain all juice possible through
jelly bag. Return to the stove and
add 2 quarts of mixed berries in sea-
son, such as raspberries, strawberries
or currants, and mix all together.
Cook for five minutes, strain again
and add three-fourths measure of
sugar. Bring to a boil; skim, then
can in hot, sterilized Jars. Delicious
for desserts.