APRICOTS, NECTARINES, PASSION-FRUIT

New Zealand Listener, Volume 20, Issue 504, 18 February 1949, Page 26

APRICOTS, NECTARINES, PASSION-FRUIT

for bottling. Make a rich syrup- lb. sugar to 1 pint water-by bringing slowly to the boil, stirring, and then boiling for 3 to 5 minutes. Into this drop the apricots, either halved or whole. Cook slowly till tender, ladle quickly into hot, sterilized jars, one by one, sealing each one imme@liately, as you fill it to overflowing, with the preserving "skin" if obtainable. This English product has solved all our bottling problems this year, as it did in England. Nectarines are also grand for bottling. Do them in exactly the same way. You can "spice" nectarines just like peaches, if you would like to have some variation. Just add about ¥% teaspoon of mixed mace, ground ginger and cinnamon to 2.quarts of syrup-or more according to taste. A. Californian woman, experimenting in flavours, added no spice, but a scented geranium leaf to each jar as she filled it. You could try it with one jar, perhaps, and see how you like it. Another idea was to place a red cherry in the stone cavity of each half apricot or nectarine or peach. Passion-fruit pulp is excellent preserved, but it is best to use small jars, so that each is used up when opened. It may be done either with or without a little salicylic acid (from chemist). If without, just mix together the pulp and sugar in the proportion of 34 cup sugar to each cup passion-pulp. Stir well, and leave, covered, in bowl for a whole day, stirring very frequently, to ensure the sugar being thoroughly dissolved and to get out the air-bubbles. Finally, bottle in small jars, run the knife around to remove air-bubbles again, and seal airtight. With Salicylic Acid "Five cups passion-pulp, 244 cups sugar, 4 teaspoon salicylic acid, Stir till thoroughly dissolved and mixed. Bottle in small pots and seal airtight. are especially good \ Fresh Apricot Jam As for all jam have the fruit rather under than over ripe. Wipe with a damp cloth. Cut in halves, remove stones, and weigh. Allow pound. for pound of sugar. Lay the fruit in pan, with layers of suger, and stand overnight.. Next day, bring slowly to the boil, stir, and boil quickly till it will set-30 to 40 minutes. If the fruit is very dry, add just a half-cup or so of water when starting to heat it. . Hint for Any Jam A very successful jam-maker in our Daisy Chain. tells me how she makes all her jam. She likes a jelly-like jam, and allows always a pint of watet to a pound of any fruit, and usually makes it up in the quantities of 61b. fruit, 6 pints water and 8lb. sugar. Boil the fruit slowly in the water till tender, and have the sugar warmed. Stir in the sugar, continue stirring until it is really thoroughly dissolved and then boil fast, a "rolling boil," for % hour or lesstest She says it may seem

thin while hot, but always sets perfectly. For plum jam, or any "skinny" seedy jam, she strains it through a colander. She blends fruits too-plum and raspberry and so on. For smaller quantity, use 3lb. fruit, 3 pints water and 5lb. sugar. The juice of a lemon added to almost any jam is good. Butter the bottom of the pan. Nectarine Jam Six pounds stoned nectarines, 414lb. sugar, 2 cups water, juice of 2 lemons, 1 dessertspoon butter, and kernels of about quarter of the fruit. Wash but do not peel the fruit, remove stones, cut into pieces. Put into pan with water, butter, lemon juice, and kernels. Boil till soft.-Add warmed sugar in portions of about 1lb. at a time. Boil, stirring well, Should take’ approximately 1 hour, Test before taking up. Passionfruit and Peach Jam Six pounds peaches, 2 dozen (or more) passionfruit, 6lb. sugar, and the juice of 2 lemons. Peel and stone peaches, cut them up, sprinkle with some of the -suger and leave to stand while you prepare the passions.. Scoop out the pulp into a basin, then boil the skins till soft, when you can scoop out the inside part, leaving the skins» like thin paper, which is’ now discarded. This inside pulp is valuable for the jam; add it to the pulp in the basin. Now bring the peaches to the boil slowly-adding about 142 cup of water if they are very dry. Boil till peaches are soft, then add the rest of the sugar and boil for about 45 minutes, stirring well. Finally add the passionfruit, the lemon juice, and 1 extra cup of sugar, stir, and boil fast till it will set when tested. Apricot. Cobbler This is an English one-from Wiltshire. One large cup cooked apricots, 144 cup castor sugar, I well-beaten egg, 2 small tablespoons melted butter, % cup milk, 1 cup sifted flour, ¥2 teaspoon vanilla, 1 small teaspoon baking powder "and whipped cream. Beat the sugar into the beaten egg. Add the flour sifted with the baking powder, alter‘nately with the milk. Beat well. Add flavouring and melted butter, Put) the apricots into a buttered fireproof dish, and pour over the batter. Bake in a moderate oven. Serve with cream, or with apricot juice. ‘ Apricot Whip (with Gelatine) . Stew sufficient apricots with sugar to taste, to make 142 cups of pulp when sieved. Soak 120z. gelatine in 4% cup of cold water till soft, then add 4% cup of boiling water, and stir together (over hot water), till dissolved, adding 2 tablespoons of s Remove from heat, and mix this mixture and the apricot pulp. A squeeze of lemon juice is an improvement. Leave till just beginning to set, then whip with A strong egg whisk till light and frothy. Set in a mould peovmnaty rinsed with cold water. Apricot Meringue Stew about 2lb. of apricots until soft, adding sugar to taste. Pour off the syrup into a basin, beat the apricots to

@ pulp, and put it into a casserole or pie dish. Crumble up about 8oz. of Stale sponge cake and saturate with the saved syrup, then spread it over the apricots in the dish. Make a meringue with 2 whites of eggs beaten very stiff, and about 5o0z. of castor sugar. Put the meringue on top of the spoypge, and bake a pale brown in a very slow oven. Serve cold with whipped cream or custard made with the two yolks.