Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1926-07-23

Three methods of drying fruits ant
vegetables have been found to give
satisfactory results. These are sur
drying. drying by artificial heat, ant
drying with air blasts, as before al
electric fan. Trays for drying by any
one of these methods as well as ira!
frames for use over stoves OF before
fans, can be made at home. Frames
and trays for use with artificial hea
NAV be purchased complete if desired
Homemade trays may be made CT
side and end boards, three-fourths %
an inch thick and two inches, vide
and bottom boards of lathlnS spaced
one-fourth of an inch. Ii desired, one
fourth-inCh galvanized wire mesh may
be tackled to the side and end boards
to form the bottoms of the trays.
Frames for use before fans may be
made of wood Of a convenient size
Frames for use with artificial heat
should be made of non-inflammable
material to as great an extent as pos
sible. AS many as six trays may bt
placed one above the other when artl-
fetal heat is used When drying
before a fan, the number of trays that
NAV be placed one above the other
will depend, to a large extent, upon
the diameter of the fan. When dry,
ing in the sun, trays as described
may be used, or the products to be
dried may be spread on sheets OF
paper or muslin held in place by
weights.
Preparation for Drying.
Both vegetables and fruits will dry
better if sliced. They should be cut
In slices one-eighth to one-fourth OF
an inch thick. If they are thicker,
they may not dry thoroughly. While
driving, the vegetable or fruit should
be turned or stirred from time to time.
Dried products should be packed tenn
porarily for about four days and pour.
ed each day from one box to another
to bring about thorough mixing, and
so that the whole mass will have a
uniform degree of moisture. If during
this conditioning" any pieces OF the
products are found TO be too moist,
they should be returned to the trays
and dried further. When in condition,
the products may be packed perma-
nently in tight paper bags. insect
proof paper boxes or cartons, or glass
or tin containers.
Spinach and parsley: Spinach that
is in prime condition for greens should
first be prepared by careful washing
and removing the leaves from the
roots Spread the leaves on trays to
dry thoroughly They will dry much
more promptly if sliced or chopped
Beets: Select young, quickly grown,
tender beets, which should be washed,
peeled. sliced about an eighth of an
inch thick and then dried. Turnips
should be prepared in the same way
as beets.
grown, but varieties having a large
ha a
Wash, peel and slice crcsswise into
pieces about an eighth of an inch
thick. Parsnips should be prepared
In the same way as carrots.
Onions: Remove the outside papery
covering. Cut off the tops and roots.
Slice into one-eighth-inch pieces and
dry.
Cabbage: Select well developed
heads of cabbage and remove all loose
outside leaves Split the cabbage, re-
move the hard, woody core and slice
the remainder of the head with
kraut cutter Or other hand-slicing
machine.
Beet tops: Tops of young beets in
suitable condition for greens should
be selected and washed carefully.
Roth the leaf stalk and blade should
he cut into sections about one-fourth
inch long and spread on screens and
dried. Swiss chard and celery should
be prepared in the same way as beet
tops.
Directions for Drying.
In addition to the ways just de-
scribed for drying fruits and Vege-
tables, fruits may also be dried in the
sun until the surface begins to wrin-
kle, then finished by artificial heat
,al1
cherries, apples, pears, ounces and
other fruit should be, fresh, ripe and in
perfect condition before being dried.
Fruit should be entirely free from
moisture when pressed between the
fingers upon removal from the drier.s
Line trays with cheesecloth or wrap
ping paper before spreading fruit on
them.
Berries: Pick over, removing all
leaves and stems. Wash if necessary
and remove the surface moisture,
handling with care TO prevent bruis-
ing Spread in thin layers and dry
slowly. The total drying time is about
five hours, with gradually increasing
temperature. In the case of raspber-
ries, sort out the imperfect berries,
spread select berries on trays and dry.
DO not dry so long that they become
hard enough to rattle. The drying
should be stopped as soon as the ber-
ries fail to stain the hand when
pressed. Pack and condition" as de-
Scribed above.
Cherries: After washing and remov-
ing the surface moisture, spread I'M
pitted in thin layers. Drying time,
from two to four hours, gradually in
creasing the heat. The pits may be
removed, although this causes loss of
juice.
Plums and apricots: Select fruits
which are ripe. Remove the pits by
cutting the fruit open with a sharp
knife. Arrange the halves on trays.
Start drying at low temperature and
raise gradually. These fruits are
usually dried with the skins on.
Apples, pears and ounces: Pare,
core and slice, dropping the slices into
cold water containing eight teaspoon
fuls of salt to the gallon if light
colored product is desired. Leaving
them minute or two in the salt water
viii prevent discoloration. If pre-
ferred, core the whole fruit after peel
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