The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1929-08-08
THE HOMEMAKERS CORNER
BY MISS ELSIE BENTHIEN
Home Demonstration Agent
Helps For Jelly Making
Standard

Standard
Perfect jelly must have not only
sparkling clearness but also quivering
tenderness of texture and fresh fruit
flavor.
Requirements For Jelly Making
Fruit juice containing pectin and
acid. Sugar in right proportions
Heat.
Homemade and commercial pectins
can be used with fruit juices deficient
in pectin, but, with the addition of
pectin and necessarily increased
sugar, the fruit flavor is less pro-
nounced.
Kind of Fruits to be Used for Jelly
Making
Apples, tart and firm; currantsr
crab apples, blackberries, red rasp-
berries, black raspberries, some varie-
ties of plums, gooseberries, grapes
Concord, Fox and Chicken; ounce.
Ripe fruit, best flavor. Under-ripe
fruit, more pectin and acid. Over
ripe fruit may be used successfully by
the addition of 1 tablespoon of lemon
juice to 1 cup of fruit juice.
Preparation of Fruit
Hard fruits washed and scrubbed il
necessary. Remove stem and bios
som end and cut in eighths or quar-
tiers, rejecting bruised or rough spots
Drain.
Wash berries in a bowl of cold
water and lift with the hands as a
sieve to a second bowl of water, OF
use colander in a large bowl OF
water, taking care that the fruit is
not bruised, for that will mean the
loss of juice. Continue until the fruit
is clean. Drain.
Prepare from to pounds of fruit
at one time.
Water to use in Extracting the Juice
| Most of the berries without added
water. Exceptions are gooseberries
blackberries, black raspberries, cur
rants, and wild grapes, which are bet
ter with from a to p cup Of water
to the pound of fruit.
Hard fruits, water to cover, which
means one half as much water as
fruit. Stir to prevent burning.
Time of Cooking
Hard fruits, from Is to rs minutes
depending upon the condition OF the
fruit.
Grapes from 10 to Is minutes OF
until the seeds show.
Soft fruits, from 3 to 10 minutes
depending upon the condition of the
fruit.
Straining The Juice
Canton flannel jelly bags are best,
but a double thickness of good quail
ty cheesecloth is good. Suspend from
wire rack or wooden support
When the flow of juice stops, press
the bag lightly with the fiat side of
two knives to start the flow.
A second extraction may be made
by adding water to the pulp and cook
ing from 10 to Is minutes, but per-
haps a more satisfactory use is to
rub the pulp through strainer and
make a spiced butter to be used with
meat or as a spread on bread. If a
good extraction is made, combine
with the first before making the jelly
Method of Cooking the Juice for Jelly
From 4 to 6 cups of juice should be
used at one time. 1t is better to
cook a small quantity twice than a
large quantity at one time. The larg-
er the amount of juice, the slower the
evaporation and the longer time Tor
cooking, which destroys flavor and
color.
A large, fiat bottom pan to allow
rapid boiling is the best. Use either
q or | cup of sugar to each cup OF
Juice mot concentrated). If currant
Juice has been extracted without
water, use IA cups of sugar to each
cup of fruit juice. Stir until the
sugar has dissolved over slow heat
Add lemon juice, if used. Increase
the heat and cook rapidly for the
ielly test. No exact time can be CIV
en- as different juices vary in reach
ing the jelly test A thermometer
can be used, but the temperature
varies with the kind of juice ano
quantity Of sugar.
Watch Carefully for Jelly Test
Dip a long handled spoon into the
hot mixture and when the drops rur
together and from a sheet, take the
Jelly at once from the fire. Remove
the scum.
Kind of Jelly Glass
A low jelly glass is preferred De-
cause the mold of jelly when turned
ont has a broader base and does moi
topple over when served. The glasses
must be clean and hot.
Filling the Glass
Pour the jelly slowly into the steri
lived glass to a of an inch from the