SELECTION AND HANDLING OF FRUIT FOR JELLY MAKING.
An acid fruit is the most suitable for jelly making, though in some of the acid fruits, the strawberry, for example, the quantity of the jelly-making pectin is so small that it is difficult to make jelly with this fruit. If, however, some currant juice be added to the strawberry juice a pleasant jelly will be the result; yet, of course, the flavor of the strawberry will be modified. Here is a list of the most desirable fruits for jelly making. The very best are given first: Currant, crab apple, apple, quince, grape, blackberry, raspberry, peach.
Apples make a very mild jelly, and it may be flavored with fruits, flowers, or spices. If the apples are acid it is not advisable to use any flavor.
Juicy fruits, such as currants, raspberries, etc., should not be gathered after a rain, for they will have absorbed so much water as to make it difficult, without excessive boiling, to get the juice to jelly.
If berries are sandy or dusty it will be necessary to wash them, but the work should be done very quickly so that the fruit may not absorb much water. ([See washing fruit, p. 13.])
Large fruits, such as apples, peaches, and pears, must be boiled in water until soft. The strained liquid will contain the flavoring matter and pectin.
It requires more work and skill to make jellies from the fruits to which water must be added than from the juicy fruits. If the juicy fruits are gathered at the proper time one may be nearly sure that they contain the right proportion of water. If gathered after a rain the fruit must be boiled a little longer that the superfluous water may pass off in steam.
In the case of the large fruits a fair estimate is 3 quarts of strained juice from 8 quarts of fruit and about 4 quarts of water. If the quantity of juice is greater than this it should be boiled down to 3 quarts.
Apples will always require 4 quarts of water to 8 quarts of fruit, but juicy peaches and plums will require only 3 or 3½ quarts.
The jelly will be clearer and finer if the fruit is simmered gently and not stirred during the cooking.
It is always best to strain the juice first through cheese cloth and without pressure. If the cloth is double the juice will be quite clear. When a very clear jelly is desired the strained juice should pass through a flannel or felt bag. The juice may be pressed from the fruit left in the strainer and used in marmalade or for a second-quality jelly.
To make jelly that will not crystallize (candy) the right proportion of sugar must be added to the fruit juice. If the fruit contains a high percentage of sugar, the quantity of added sugar should be a little less than the quantity of fruit juice. That is to say, in a season when there has been a great deal of heat and sunshine there will be more sugar in the fruit than in a cold, wet season; consequently, 1 pint of currant juice will require but three-quarters of a pint of sugar. But in a cold, wet season the pint of sugar for the pint of juice must be measured generously.
Another cause of the jelly crystallizing is hard boiling. When the sirup boils so rapidly that particles of it are thrown on the upper part of the sides of the preserving kettle they often form crystals. If these crystals are stirred into the sirup they are apt to cause the mass to crystallize in time.
The use of the sirup gauge and care not to boil the sirup too violently would do away with all uncertainty in jelly making. The sirup gauge should register 25°, no matter what kind of fruit is used. ([See p. 15.])
Jellies should be covered closely and kept in a cool, dry, dark place.