Allow the same weight of sugar as of pulp. Put the former into the jam-saucepan, together with a small glassful of water; let it dissolve, and cook it to the [small-ball] stage (see the cooking of sugar); taking care to skim it well as soon as it begins to boil. A stick of vanilla may be put with the sugar before boiling it; or the jam may be flavoured with a good tablespoonful of vanilla sugar when it is taken off the fire; in any case, the jam ought to be flavoured with vanilla.
When the sugar has reached the [small-ball] stage, add the tomato pulp to it, and one-fourth pint of red-currant juice per lb. of pulp. Owing to the fact that tomato pulp of itself has no cohesive properties the mixing of red-currant juice with it is essential.
[825]
]Set the preserving pan upon a fierce fire, stirring incessantly the while, until the “[nappe]” stage is reached; then let the jam cook for a few more minutes.
[2963—BLACK-CURRANT JELLY]
Take some very ripe black-currants: clean them; put them into the preserving-pan with half a glassful of water per two lbs. of fruit, and let them boil.
While this preparatory operation is in progress, the skins of the currants burst, and their juice flows into the pan. At this stage, transfer the fruit to a sieve lying on a bowl—a much simpler method than crushing and pressing them in a twisted towel.
Allow as many lbs. of sugar as there are quarts of juice; put this sugar into the preserving-pan; dissolve it, and cook it to the [small-ball] stage; thoroughly skimming the while. Add the black-currant juice, combined per quart with half pint of white-currant juice.
Move the utensil to the side of the stove for a few minutes, that the sugar may dissolve, and then cook the jelly on a fierce fire, carefully skimming the while, until the “[nappe]” stage is almost reached.
Remarks: The object of adding the white-currant jelly is to modify the blackness of pure black-currant jelly.