Peaches and pears should be thinly peeled and halved, then dropped into a thick sirup made by boiling four parts granulated sugar to one part water. The fruit juice will thin this considerably, but the fruit should be boiled gently until thoroughly cooked and transparent. Then lift it carefully into the jars, set in a pan of boiling water, out of a draft, to avoid breaking, pack to the top, and fill to overflowing with the sirup. Screw tops on immediately as tight as possible. This is the great secret of successful canning.
PRESERVED PLUMS
Damson plums make a rich, old-fashioned preserve if washed, pricked, and allowed to stand a few hours, mixed with an equal quantity of sugar—pound for pound—then put on the stove where they will gently simmer until cooked down quite thick. They must be watched carefully, however, to prevent scorching. Such rich fruit is best put up in pint jars, as usually only a small quantity is needed at a time.
CANNED CHERRIES
Seed the cherries after washing them, watching carefully to see that none are wormy, and measure. Take half the quantity of sugar, moisten with just enough water to melt, boil to a thick syrup, and then add the cherries. Cook fifteen minutes, and seal.
RASPBERRY JAM
Pick over the berries, measure, wash and then crush. Put on to boil, and cook ten minutes, stirring to keep from sticking to the pan. Then add three-quarters the amount of heated sugar, cook twenty minutes longer and pour into small jars, or in glasses that can be covered with paraffin as soon as the jam is cold.
BAR-LE-DUC CURRANTS
Wash, stem, and measure the currants. Take three-quarters the amount of sugar, moisten with barely enough water to melt, boil to a thick syrup, turn in the currants, and cook twenty minutes. Pour into small glasses, and as soon as cool cut rounds of white paper to fit tops, wet in brandy, and lay over the fruit. Cut larger circles of the paper, wet thoroughly on one side with white of egg, and paste over the glass carefully, to make air-tight. This sounds like going back to the days of our grandmothers, but these currants are too rich to be put up in larger quantities, and jelly tumblers do not have tight tops.
APPLE JELLY