PLUMS AND PEACHES

New Zealand Listener, Volume 2, Issue 33, 9 February 1940, Page 44

PLUMS AND PEACHES

VERYONE is busy with jammaking and preserving now, and here are some useful recipes for plums and peaches. What a busy time midsummer is -what with hay-making and harvesting, and all the fruit ripening at once, and, of course, dairying at the height of its season. Yet even the country boys and girls find time somehow for swimming and tennis — at the week-ends, at least; and there are picnics in between milking times! New Zealanders .do certainly set themselves to enjoy their leisure and make the most of their chances for sport. We really are a cheerful people. Choose some jam recipes from the following. Always boil jam very rapidly after the sugar is dissolved; and always have plenty of room in the pan for a fast, rolling boil. Plum Jam Allow one pint of water to three pounds of plums, and one and a-quarter pounds of sugar to each pound of fruit. Boil up the fruit first with the water; then add the sugar and boil. until it is a tich colour and. will set when tested. A good old recipe. Peach Jam To three pounds of peaches allow three pints of water and five pounds of sugar, besides a small tablespoon of butter. Cut the peaches up and boil them in the water until soft; then add the sugar and butter and boil hard, stirring very frequently for about fortyfive minutes, or until it sets when tested. This jam sets quite firmly, and is a lovely golden colour. Plum and Loganberry This makes a lovely rich jam. Allow two pounds of loganberries to six pounds of plums, and a pound of sugar to every pound of fruit. Boil up the plums first in just a little water; then add the loganberies and boil till all the fruit is soft. Add the warmed sugar and cook until it will set when tested. Plum and Raspberry Take three pounds of each fruit, and an equal quantity of sugar-six pounds Halve the plums and remove the stones. Put them into the preserving pan with one-third of the sugar, and stir, over the fire, till the juice flows. Let them boil for fifteen minutes, Then add the

raspberries and the rest of the sugar (heated in the oven), and boil very quickly for another ten or fifteen minutes, or until it will set when tested. Plum and Banana Jam This is an original recipe sent in by one of our Daisy Chain. She said it is really lovely, with an absolutely new but beautiful flavour. It will need a big pan to make this quantity. One does get tired of too much ordinary plum jam; yet plums are cheap and plentiful, and must be used. So this banana mixture is a real inspiration. Nine pounds of plums, eight pounds of sugar, two cups of water, two ounces of butter, and one dozen well-mashed bananas, Make the plum jam as usual with the butter in it; but add the mashed bananas twenty minutes before the jam is cooked. Stir the bananas in thoroughly. Pickled Peaches I tasted delicious pickled peaches in Chicago, at a luncheon party arranged for me to meet the editresses of some of the big Women’s Magazines there. The peaches were in slices, arranged in two rows: down a long narrow sandwich dish, each slice resting on the edge of the one behind it (like slices of bread and butter). They looked charming, and tasted: even better than they looked. They were served with an entree which seemed to be composed partly of. salmon and breadcrumbs. This recipe uses whole peaches: though you could adapt it to use sliced ones — xpeeeneye is aot ways intéresting. Preserved Peaches To every eight pounds of peaches, green if. possible, put four. pounds of pale brown sugar, and sufficient vinegar to .cover, Use the best vinegar. Stick four cloves into each peach, place them dry ina jar. Make a syrup of the vinegar and jsugar, and, when boiling, pour it over the peaches; let stand until .cool. Repeat this process three times, and then boil the peaches in the syrup until the skins show signs of breaking. Cover, and use in three months. Put in small jars, Another Method Use firm, half-ripe peaches, fresh from the tree. Wash them, rub off the fluff as much as you ¢an; then boil one pint of vinegar, one teaspoon of cinnamon, one and a-half cups of sugar, and a few cloves, for ten minutes. Then add the peaches to the,.syrup, and boil till tender, but not too soft. Lift the peaches out and fill the jars, then pour over the syrup. Put a few ected in the jars, which need not be senate’ e Plum Sauce Six pounds of plums, six teaspoons of salt, three ‘pints of vinegar, one teaspoon

of cayenne, three pounds of brown sugar, one ounce of cloves, and a handful of bruised ginger. Grease the bottom of the pan, as this greatly lessens the chance of the preserve sticking. Put all the ingredients into the pan together, and boil for two hours, keeping well stirred. Strain through the colander and bottle. Plum Chutney This came from a Christchurch Link in the Daisy Chain, She said she made two lots of half a gallon each, and that it was so popular that she was obliged to hide it away at last, so that some, at least, might be saved for the winter. Six pounds of plums, three pounds of apples, three pounds of onions, two pounds of sugar, quarter of a pound of salt, one level teaspoon of pepper, half a pound each of dates, raisins, and preserved ginger, one level teaspoon of

mustard, one dessertspoon each of whole allspice, and the mixed pickling spices, three cups of vinegar, and a small piece of garlic cut up finely. Peel and core the apples, and then cut them in quarters; cut up the onions finely. Boil the plums in the vinegar: first, and then put them through a colander in order to keep back all the stones and skins. Add the: apples, onions and other ingredients, stir well, and boil for. two hours. Chop the ginger, and,tie the allspice and pickling spices in a bag, and then it can be disposed of after the chutney is cooked. The ginger gives a very nice flavour. Plum and Peach Chutney. Slice and stone two, pounds each of peaches.and of plums. They must be ripe, but firm. Put the slicés in layers into a dish, sprinkling, each layer with a little pepper and salt. Leave for twenty-four hours. Then drain off all the water, and put the fruit into a saucepan with four cups of vinegar, half a pound of brown sugar, three ounces of preserved ginger, two ounces of cloves, and half a pound of onions cut up finely. Boil slowly until the peaches are tender.* Strain. through a, sieve into small jars, The jars must be airtight.