Home Preserving

New Zealand Listener, Volume 6, Issue 151, 15 May 1942, Page 23

Home Preserving

Here is an excellent letter from a housewife, who is a successful fruit preserver. Dear Aunt Daisy, I am very interested in all fruit preserving, and I do well over 100 bottles a year-rhubarb, apples, apricots, red and black currants, also tomatoes and beans; in fact, anything I can procure. I have been very lucky indeed, and I did not have one bottle go wrong last year.

The fruit I pick and wipe, cut if necessary, and place it in bottles, which have already been cleaned, and wiped. When full, I put 2 dessertspoons of sugar on top, then fill the bottles up with water that has been boiled and allowed to cool. I then place my bottles in a preserving pan, seeing the bottles do not touch, by putting newspapers between them, Fill up the pan with water about 1% inches from the tops of the bottles, and place the lids on loosely. When the fruit starts to cook, I add more fruit, as it shrinks in the cooking. It is surprising how much more rhubarb or gooseberry can be added to each bottle. I do not wait for this top fruit to get as cooked as the lower fruit in the bottle, as when screwed down, the heat in the bottle cooks it; and again one nearly always re-cooks the fruit when one uses it. I then pour boiling water over each bottle, and screw down at once. I stand the bottles upside down till next day; and should any of them leale; you can see air bubbles rising to the top. Tomatoes,-I do them in same way by first peeling, and then putting them into the bottles, and cooking like the fruit; only I do not add any water at all until the last, just to overflow the bottles for screwing down. I just keep on adding tomatoes till the bottles are full, and pressing down a little; and as they cook, the juice from them helps to fill the bottles, and no water is needed. I do not add pepper and salt until I am going to use them. Would you please tell me the way of preserving beans in salt and sugar, using a stone jar? I should also be very glad of that recipe you gave, for an easy home-made wholemeal loaf, which needed no kneading. I hope my way of doing fruit is clearly explained, and that you can follow my method. |

Vera

(Marton).