This section is from the "The Way to the Heart" book, by Carrie Pickett Moore. Also available from Amazon: The way to the heart.
Pickled Eggs.
Boil 6 eggs for 20 minutes, and throw them in cold water. Remove the shells and put in a jar with 6 freshly boiled beats that have been sliced. Scald enough vinegar to cover them, and add 2 teaspoons of celery seed, 4 pepper corns, 1 teaspoon of mustard seed and a few blades of mace. Fill the jar with the pickle and seal at once. They are nice to use in garnishing a dish of salad.
Good Proportions for Preserving.
1 pound of damsons,..........Use 1 pound of brown sugar.
I pound of pineapple,.........Use 3/4 pound of white sugar.
1 pound of cherries,...........Use 3/4 pound of white sugar.
1 pound of strawberries.......Use 3/4 pound of white sugar.
1 pound of pears,.............Use 3/4 pound of white sugar.
1 pound of plums,............Use 1 pound of brown sugar.
1 pound of quinces,...........Use 1 pound of white sugar.
1 pound of blackberries,.......Use 1/2 pound of brown sugar
1 pound of peaches, ...........Use 3/4 pound of white sugar.
1 pound of crab-apples,.......Use 1 pound of white sugar.
1 pound of apples,............Use 3/4\ pound of white sugar.
1 pound of gooseberries,.......Use 1 pound of white sugar.
1 pound of raspberries, ........Use 3/4 pound of white sugar.
Hints.
If you want your preserves to be clear and bright, use only the best sugar; and never allow a small proportion, as preserves will not keep well if the sugar is scant. In making jellies the sugar should be weighed very carefully, or the}' will not congeal. Jelly bags should be made of strong cotton or flannel, and dipped in hot water before the jelly is poured through them. Skim carefully both preserves and jellies while boiling, or they will not be clear. Use a wooden spoon to stir and skim them with, as tin is apt to discolor and impart an unpleasant flavor.
General Directions.
Wash and drain the fruit well, putting in the kettle a layer of fruit and one of sugar, unless otherwise directed. Slowly simmer on the back of the stove until all the sugar has dissolved, then pull to the fire where it can cook briskly, and stew until the fruit can be pierced with a straw. Strain from the juice and put in the jars while hot; boil the juice until it is a thick syrup, and pour over the fruit and seal.
Strawberries Preserved Whole.
Use 3/4 pound of white sugar to every pound of berries. Put the sugar on to boil with enough water to prevent burning, and boil to a thick syrup. Skim well and drop in enough berries to cover the top of the kettle without crowding them. Boil for 20 minutes. Take them out carefully with a skimmer and put more in the syrup, until all have been cooked in the same way. Boil the syrup down to a rich, thick consistency, and strain through a sieve over the berries. This should keep for years.
To Preserve Strawberries in Wine.
Put 2 quarts of strawberries in a jar, and put between each layer one of sugar - 1/2 pint of white sugar to this quantity of berries, unless they are very sour. Pour over them enough Maderia wine to cover well, and seal. The jar should be full to ensure their keeping.
Pears Preserved Whole.
Take 3 pounds of sugar and 1 pint of water, and boil to a rich syrup. Peel 4 pounds of small pears and stick several cloves in each one, and drop them in the boiling syrup. Cook until a straw will easily pierce them. Lift out and pack in jars, filling with the syrup to the top, and seal.
Sliced Pear Preserves. Peel, quarter and core large firm pears, parboiling them before the skins come off. To every pound of pears allow 3/4 pound of sugar, 3 sliced lemons and a stick of cinnamon, and 2 roots of green ginger. Boil the ginger until soft, then slice it and put it on with the pears and sugar. Boil to a thick syrup and throw in the lemon and cinnamon. When clear and thick pour into jars and seal while hot.
 
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