BRANDY PEACHES THE FRENCH WAY.—Put large white peaches (a few at a time) into scalding lye. Let them rest for a minute or two, till the skin loosens so that it can be easily peeled off. Next put the peaches into cold water, and let them remain till you have hot water ready to scald them. After scalding, put into a large, broad preserving kettle as many peaches as will lie side by side in the bottom. Pour on as much cold water as will rather more than cover them; set the kettle over a clear fire; and let them boil till they are soft enough to be easily dented when pressed by your finger. Take them out; place them with the stem end downward, on an inverted sieve set on a large dish. Then put some more peaches into the kettle; add more cold water; boil them; and put them to drain afterwards. Repeat this till all your peaches have had a boil. Spread them on large dishes, and let them stand all night in a cold place. Mix together some of the best white brandy and the best loaf-sugar, powdered fine,—allowing a pound of sugar to every pint of brandy. Stir it well while the sugar is dissolving; and when melted, set it also in a cold place, and let it stand all night. In the morning, put the peaches into glass jars, which should be all of the same size, and fill them up with the brandy syrup; allowing an equal portion to each jar. Cover the jars closely, and paste white paper over their tops.
BRANDY GREEN GAGES.—Take the largest and finest green gages, quite ripe. Prick every one with a needle in several places. Spread fresh grape-leaves over the bottom, and round the sides of a preserving kettle. Put in a layer of green gages and a layer of grape-vine leaves, alternately, adding to each layer a bit of alum but little larger than a grain of indian corn. Cover the last layer of fruit thickly with vine-leaves; fill up the kettle with cold water, and place it over a moderate fire. Simmer the fruit slowly, but do not let it break. When the gages are hot all through, take them out, and throw them into cold water. Afterwards weight them; and to every pound of fruit, allow a pound of the best double-refined loaf-sugar, powdered. Remove the vine-leaves from the preserving-kettle, and put into it the sugar, with barely sufficient water to keep it from burning. Stir the sugar well with the water till it is dissolved, adding to every three pounds the beaten white of an egg. Place the kettle over the fire, and boil and skim till very clear, and the scum ceases to rise. Then take it off, measure it, and to every pint of syrup allow a large half-pint of the best and clearest brandy. Mix the syrup and brandy together. Having well drained the green gages from the cold water, put them (two-thirds full) into glass jars. Fill the jars up to the top with the liquor, poured on warm. Cover them closely, pasting paper over the lids, and set them in a dry, cool closet.
If the gages are not green enough with the first simmering, get fresh vine-leaves, and simmer them again very slowly, hanging the kettle high.
Instead of vine-leaves, you may green any preserves by boiling them with layers of the green husks that surround the ears of young indian corn.
BRANDY GRAPES.—For this purpose the grapes should be in large close bunches, and quite ripe. Remove every grape that is the least shrivelled, or in any way defective. With a needle prick each grape in three places. Have ready a sufficiency of double-refined loaf-sugar, powdered and sifted. Put some of the sugar into the bottom of your jars. Then put in a bunch of grapes, and cover it thickly with sugar. Then another bunch; then more sugar, and so on till the jar is nearly full; finishing with a layer of sugar. Then fill up to the top with the best white brandy. Cover the jars as closely as possible, and set them away. They must not go over the fire. The grapes should be of the best quality, either white or purple.