Spiced Peaches

Seven pounds of fruit pared and cut in half, three pounds of good brown sugar, a pint and a half of good cider vinegar, one ounce of whole cloves, and half an ounce of mace; put the vinegar, sugar and spice in your preserving-kettle, boil and skim, then lay in the fruit and cook it slowly for two hours. The yellow peaches are the best for this purpose. Put them in jars; when cold, cover them to be air-tight. Pears, plums and cherries may be prepared the same way.

Peach Figs

Pare the peaches and cut them in half, weigh them, and allow half a pound of sugar to every pound of fruit; put them in the kettle alternately with the sugar, heat them gradually until the sugar is dissolved, then boil them until clear, take them out with a perforated skimmer or a fork, lay them on dishes without any syrup, put them in the sun, and turn them frequently until dry, putting them on dry dishes if the syrup drains out of them. When so dry that you can handle them, pack them in drums or boxes, with layers of sifted sugar, beginning with the sugar and finishing with it. You may boil more peaches in the same syrup if you have enough left These are better than figs.

Preserved Tomatoes

Procure the little, pear-shaped yellow tomatoes, wash and wipe them, weigh them and allow three-quarters of a pound of sifted sugar to every pound of tomatoes; prick each one with a coarse needle in five or six places; put the sugar over the fire in a preserving-kettle, with a teacup of boiling water to six pounds of sugar; stir it over a slow fire until all dissolved, then put in the tomatoes and cook them until clear; when half done, add the juice and rind cut very thin of two large fresh lemons. When the fruit is clear, take it out with a perforated skimmer, put it in small jars two-thirds full; boil the syrup fast for six minutes more, then fill up the jars, and let them stand until next day; then cover closely and keep in a cool place.

Spiced Peaches (Whole)

Fourteen pounds of peaches, seven pounds of sifted sugar; pare the peaches, and put them in a preserving-kettle with water to cover them and simmer until soft; take them out with a perforated skimmer and lay them on a sieve to drain. Throw away the water they were boiled in, and put the sugar into the kettle with a quart of good cider vinegar, an ounce of whole cloves, an ounce of cinnamon-stick, and three blades of mace; boil all together twenty minutes; put the peaches in the jars and pour over them the boiling syrup; let them stand until next day, then drain off the syrup, boil it ten minutes, pour over the peaches and when cold, seal up.

Citron Melon

Pare off the hard green rind, and cut the melon in quarters and take out the seed, then cut it into squares or slices half an inch in thickness and weigh it. Allow a pound of sugar to every pound of citron, put the melon in a pan of cold water with a handful of salt for one hour, then wash it in clean fresh water, make a weak syrup of sugar (not what was weighed) and water, put the citron in it and boil ten minutes, then take out the citron, throw this syrup out, and make another with the sugar you weighed and a little cold water; put the citron in it, and boil until clear and tender, skimming it well, add to it the juice of two large lemons, being careful to pick out the seeds, pare the rind off thin with a sharp knife, boil with the citron about fifteen minutes before you take it off the fire. When the melon is done, put it in small jars, a little peel in each one, let it stand in a cool place until next day, then close up the jars.