THE VINE AND THE FIG TREE

New Zealand Listener, Volume 14, Issue 352, 22 March 1946, Page 22

THE VINE AND THE FIG TREE

EQUESTS for recipes using what may be called the less universal fruits have come in from different parts of the country; so this week we have a rather mixed bag: figs and grapes and passion fruit. Figs These may be dried, preserved, or made into jam. Dried Fruits (This South African method is the same for any fruit.) Sun drying is the least expensive and easiest method, but the product must not get damaged by rain. If fruit once gets wet, colour is partly ruined, and it becomes useless. One must be careful when drying fruit in the sun to see that flies and insects do not lay eggs, etc., in the fruit. The essential things are heat and free circulation of air. Both are necessary. The fruit must be halved-there are more or less natural dividing lines with most fruit-and then laid in the sun, on a frame is best, so that the air can circulate. Fruit can be dried by using an electric fan-leave it for three or four days. Drying in the Oven

When the oven has been used, instead of wasting the heat, take out the oven shelf, put in the drying tray with the fruit, and leave it all night with the oven door ajar. If contents are not thoroughly dry, repeat until they are. It is essential that the heat should not be sufficient to scorch the fruit. The drying process must not be too rapid, as this often means that the fruit is cooked on the outside and not touched inside. | To Prepare the Fruit Fruit must be ripe (though not overripe), not bruised; and absolutely clean. To Test for Dryness If it is not certain that the fruit is sufficiently dry to keep, place some overnight in.a clean dry glass jar, 4nd add a crisp cracker biscuit. If the cracker is soft in the morning, there is wyill moisture left in the fruit. Preserved Fruits (South African Method) Ripe Fig Preserve (a): Peel figs thinly, then leave overnight in a salt water solution, using one tablespoonful to about three pints of water. Next day rinse well in clear water, and prick with a darning-needle; then drop into a thick boiling syrup, made of sugar and aretet allowing 4lb. of sugar to every 5lb. of fruit, and 1 cup of water to every cup of sugar. Cook until figs look clear and transparent. Instead of salt water, figs may be steeped. for 1 hour in lime-water, using 1 tablespoon lime to 6 pints water. Ripe Fig Preserve (b): Peel off the skin, then put in the sun where there is no dust flying about,’ and leave until slightly dry. Then drop into a thick boiling syrup, using the same proportiong as in the preceding recipe.

Green Fig Preserve: Select firm, well swollen-out figs, make an incision on the top of each with a sharp knife in the form of a cross, and steep them overnight in brine, using 2 tablespoons of salt to every 6 pints of water. Next day rinse thoroughly in fresh water and boil for half an hour or more until quite tender, then drain from the water. Make a syrup of sugar and water, using the water in which figs have been boiled, and allow the same weight of sugar as fruit, and 3 cups water to every cup of sugar. Put figs into the boiling syrup, together with a piece of stick cinnamon, and allow to cook fairly rapidly for a couple of hours, or until the fruit looks clear and transparent. If liked figs may be pared thinly. Another way is to make a solution of boiling water and washing soda, in the proportion of % tablespoon soda to about 2 quarts of water, to which add \% tablespoon salt. Boil the figs in that until tender, then drain off the water, and cook in syrup as above. Fig Conserve (with lemons): Peel enough figs to make 8lb. when finished, and cut into halves or quarters. Put into pan with 534]bs. sugar and a pound of preserved ginger, cut up; and pour over the juice of 3 large lemons. Heat slowly until sugar is well dissolved, stirring and lifting spoon through it steadily for it burns easily. Then boil fast till it will set when tested, about 114 hours. Lift the spoon gently through while boiling, so as not to break the fruit,

Passion Fruit (no cooking) Although you may preserve passion fruit by boiling with sugar, it is then practically a jam, though very nice indeed. (Boil only for 10 to 15 minutes, and allow a bare cup of sugar to each cup of passion fruit pulp). But the method which has been proved over many years, and by which the fruit tastes exactly like fresh passion fruit, is to simply stir together the pulp and sugar (in the proportion of % .cup of sugar to each cup of pulp), and leave in a bowl or in jars for 24 hours, stirring frequently to make sure that the sugar is properly dissolved, and to get out air bubbles. Then seal down AIRTIGHT, preferably in small jars, so that all will be used when opened. (GRAPES AND MORE FIGS NEXT WEEK),