Firm fruit is secret
to successful preserves
lyAteLfWHl
A lot of people wen to be busy
?lldM fuemi sow. because
om office has received a number
of cais this week. It might be
UpM to toae of you to have in
formation oo preserves.
Fruit preserves ve whole fruiu
or pieces of large fruits cooked in
heavy syrup until dear, tender,
and transparent.
The fruit should keep its form
and piumpness and be somewhat
crisp and tender, rtther than tough
and soft. Fruits for preserves
should be tree-ripened and fresh.
Success in making preserves
tfrpfVk in a large measure upon
using firm sound fruit. Some of
the fruits best adapted for preserv
ing we strawberries, cherries,
plums, peaches, crab apples, ber
ries and currant*.
Thoroughly wash the fruits,
discarding any bruised, mushy or
decayed portions.
Large fruits such as pears and
should be peeled and cut
into uniform pieces.
Usually three-fourths pound of
sugar is allowed for each pound of
fruit. (If scales are not available,
use 3/4 cup sugar to each cup of
fruit.)
Sugar helps in gel formation,
serves as a preserving agent, and
contributes to the flavor of the
product. It also has a firming ef
fect on fruit, a property that is
useful in the making of preserves.
The manner in which the sugar is
anfryri depends upon the texture of
the fruit used. Firm fruits such as
pears, quinces, melon rind, and
crab apple are better if cooked in
boiling water until slightly tender .
Make a syrup of the sugar and
water in which fruit has boiled.
Allow this syrup to partly cool
before adding the precooked fruit.
When precooked fruit is added,
bring the mixture slowly to a boil.
After the mixture has reached
the boiling point, it should be
cooked rapidly until the fruit is
dear and tender and the syrup
thick. When the preserves are
finished, remove kettle from heat,
skim to remove foam if necessary.
Preserves will have a better con
sistency if allowed to plump (stand
in shallow trays or pans until cool)
before packing into jars. If the
syrup becomes too thick before the
fruit is tender and clear, add boil
ing water (1/4 cup at a time).
If the fruit is clear and tender
and the syrup too thin, the fruit
should be removed and the syrup
cooked rapidly to the desired con
sistency to, or almost to, the jelly
ing point.
To cook preserves, follow the
recipe selected and then put the
preserves in clean, unflawed stan
dard canning jars. They should
then be processed in a boiling
water bath.
The easiest and best way to seal
preserves is with two-piece canning
lids. Use only standard home cann
ing jars. For jars with two-piece
lids: use new lids; bands may be
reserved. Fill hot jars to 1/8 - 1/4
inch of top with mixture. Wipe jar
rim clean, place hot metal lid on
jar with sealing compound next to
glass and screw meuri band down
firmly. We recommend processing
jam and preserves in a boiling
water bath, since we are in a warm
humid climate where mold growth
is a common spoilage problem.
proeaMteg la BotHag Water Bath
A boiling water bath canner may
DID YO U
KNOW
?
*5.00 A Month
DM toy
*20,000.
Of NATIONWIDE
4MFI INSURANCE
If Ago 21 Or Young*''
\(OnfyA Ufti0 Morm If Ovmr 21) |
TiSKF
AGENT
I7S-4187
Front Burner
be par chased or can be made from
a large kettle or pail that is deep
enough to pqmit water to cover
jars at least ooe inch over the top
and a little extra space for boiling.
The canner must have a rack to
hold the jars at least one half inch
above bottom of canner.
The rack may be made of
wooden strips, wire or other per
forated material, but must -be put
together in a manner that will
allow water to circulate.
The canner should have a cover
which will make it possible to keep
water at a good rolling boil all dur
ing processing.
Before the preparation of the
food is begun, place the water bath
canner on the heat with sufficient
water to cover the jars at least one
inch over the top. This permits
water to be heating while food is
being prepared.
Water should be boiling when
jars of food are placed into it.
Prepare and pack food and tighten
cap according to directions.
Prepare only enough jars of
food at one trae to fill the canner.
Work rapidly to at little time as
possible will elapse between
precooking or packing the food
and getting it into the canner.
Place the jars of food on the
rack in the canner far enough apart
to allow the free circulation or
water around them. Boding. water
should be 1 or mote Inches above
top of jars. If water does not cover
jars at least one inch over the top,
add boiling water to this height.
Start counting processing time
as soon as the water in canner
again Teaches a good rolling boil.
Keep the water boiling all during
the processing period.
If water boils down add suffi
cient BOILING water to keep it at
the required heights. Process the
(Continued on page 7)
Whopper
Lucy Stevens of Rock fish
**ds both hands to hold this
two and one-hmif pound
tomato she gathered recertify
from her garden. Steven says
she has had good tuck this
year with her plants, which
have reached over seven feet.
'I've kept them watered, " she
said. The tomato is an Early
Delicious.
! Bees doing job
for North Carolina
Anybody cm keep bees. In
North Caroliaa, farmers,
businessmen. housewives,
carpenters, children, doctors,
university p?ofe?oes and just
about anyone ebe you can imagine
Bees can be kept almost
anywhere. There are beekeepers in
deserts, in smal towns, in farming
areas, in large cities and on
beachfront property. There is even
a beekeeper in New York City who
keeps several hives oo the roof of
his penthouse apartment.
Wfcai b a bee tslsaj?
A bee colony is merely a large
family of bees. It contains one
queen, wrho is the mother of all the
other bees in the hive, between
20,000-50,000 workers, and several
hundred drones.
Haw popular b
North Carofea?
Beekeeping is a very popular
hobby and interest seems to in
crease each day. There are at least
Extension News
10,000 beekeepers in the state and
1,500 of those beekeepers bdong
to the N.C. State Beekeepers
Association.
b North CwoBas aa hapovtaat
hukuptag state?
Yes, very definitely. North
Carolina has approximately
200,000 hives of hooey bees, the
third largest number in the United
States. There are more hobby
beekeepers in North Carolina than
any other state in the country.
Why b bet keeping haportaat la
North CaroMaa?
In 1978 the stale's beekeepers
with the help of their bees, produc
ed over six million pounds of
honey with a value of $3,466,000,
plus 122,000 pounds of beeswax
with a value of $187,000. But, that
is only part of the story. Honey
bees also contribute another 30 |
million dollars to the state's
economy through the pollination
of such crops as apples, blueberries
and cucumbers.
4 Ai*9
I *r fvc0.fe.47
! Prlacilla Curtain*
White or Eggshell.
I? "??f"Req.i8.47~.fa*
at>777
3"
nmg.B.97
Digital Watch mm
Men's or ladies' 5 functior
watch. Gold Tone or White
GoldTone.
MagJ.07
Qmrdmn Homm
50 ft. reinforced garde
hose, nuaef miu
Caamatta
Prix AM/FM cassette
Ikaround. Portable.
2 FOR 5
Shorn Rack *??-*???!
j Space saving, convenient
I shoe rack.
2for1
Comba *-?,7r
Family pack assorted
combs. Pack of 12
m
?
JO%tooorapyUtooho|.
ien's or boys' athletic tut
. 6 pair to each pkg.
Siz^^18?tt0n denim 5 P?ck?t jeans.
BETTER BRANDS FOR