Sweets and Sours

MIXED FRUIT PRESERVES

• 3 cups sour cherries
• 3 cups fresh apricots
• 2 cups red raspberries
• 7 cups sugar

Wash and seed cherries. Drop the apricots into boiling water for a few seconds, remove skins and seeds. Cut into quarters. Wash the berries. Mix the fruit and sugar together and cook quickly, until fruits are clear and tender. Seal in hot jars.

BREAD AND BUTTER PICKLES

• 1 gal. cucumbers
• 8 onions
• ½ cup salt
• 2 green peppers
• 2 red peppers

Slice cucumbers, onions and peppers. Pack in ice. Let stand 3 hours. Put a heavy weight on top the pickles. A plate with a weight on top is best. Drain well and combine with:

• 5 cups sugar
• 2 tablespoons mustard seed
• 2 tablespoons celery seed
• 1½ teaspoons turmeric
• ½ teaspoon ground cloves
• 5 cups vinegar

Mix well. Pour over pickles and simmer 30 minutes. Seal in hot jars.

RASPBERRY RHUBARB JAM

• 3 lbs. rhubarb
• 2½ cups sugar
• ½ cup water
• 2 oranges, juice and rind
• 2 cups raspberries

Skin and cut rhubarb into ½ inch pieces. Add water and sugar, the orange juice and grated peel. Cook all together, stirring frequently to prevent scorching, for 30 minutes, or until clear. Put in sterile jelly glasses and seal.

CARROT MARMALADE

• 1 lb. carrots
• 1½ lbs. sugar
• 2 lemons
• ½ cup chopped nuts

Clean and scrape carrots, cook until soft, then mash. Add sugar, juice of 2 lemons and the grated rind of 1 lemon. Cook 20 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the chopped nuts, pour into hot, sterile jars and seal.

APPLE AND PEACH CONSERVE

• 2 cups apples, chopped
• 2 cups peaches, chopped
• juice of 2 lemons
• 3 cups sugar

Use tart unpeeled apples and firm ripe peaches, cut into small pieces. Combine with lemon juice and sugar. Cook slowly until the apple is transparent (about 20 minutes). Pour into sterilized glasses, seal. Makes 7 6-oz. glasses.

SPICED GOOSEBERRIES

• 5 lbs. ripe gooseberries
• 4 lbs. brown sugar
• 2 cups vinegar
• 2 tblsps. cloves
• 3 tsps. cinnamon
• 3 tsps. allspice

Wash and pick over gooseberries. Combine with sugar, vinegar, spices and cook slowly until mixture becomes rather thick. Pour into sterilized glasses and seal. 5 pints.

CRANBERRY CONSERVE

• 4 cups cranberries
• 2 large oranges
• 1 cup chopped raisins
• 2 cups hot water
• 4 cups sugar
• 1 cup chopped nuts

Cut oranges into quarters and remove seeds. Grind cranberries and oranges, fruit and rind in food chopper. Add the hot water and bring to a boil. Cook quickly until fruit is soft. Add sugar and raisins. Cook over moderate heat, stirring often, until thickened. Add chopped walnuts or blanched almonds.

APPLE BUTTER

• 4 qts. apples
• 2 qts. apple cider
• 2 cups sugar
• 2 cups dark corn syrup
• 1 tsp. cinnamon

Boil the cider until reduced to 1 quart. Pare the apples and slice thin. Put the apples into the cider and cook very slowly, stirring frequently, until it begins to thicken. Add sugar, syrup and cinnamon and continue to cook until thick enough to spread when cool. Seal in sterilized jars. Makes 5 to 6 pints.

SPICED CANTALOUPE

• 3 lbs. cantaloupe
• ½ tblsp. alum
• 2 qts. water
• 3 cups sugar
• 1 pt. vinegar
• 2 sticks cinnamon
• ½ tblsp. whole cloves
• 1 tsp. allspice

Pare the cantaloupe, remove seeds and cut into strips, 1 × 2 inch or squares. Dissolve the alum in the water and bring to a boil. Add the cantaloupe and cook for 15 minutes. Drain well. Combine vinegar, sugar and spices. Add the cantaloupe and simmer slowly until fruit is transparent (about 45 minutes). Place in hot sterilized jars and seal.

RED BEET EGGS

When making pickled beets, save some of the spicy pickling liquid and put into it a half-dozen, shelled, hard-boiled eggs. These take on a beautiful color and excellent flavor and are grand as appetizers served with crisp hearts of celery. They are also good sliced in sandwiches or salads.

GINGER PEARS

• 5 lbs. hard pears
• 3 cups water
• 5 lbs. sugar
• ½ cup chopped preserved ginger
• 3 lemons juice and rind

Pare and core the pears. Dice or cut into thin slices. Add water and cook until tender. Add the sugar, ginger, the lemon juice and grated rind. Simmer mixture until thick and pears are transparent. Pour into sterilized jars and seal. Makes 5 pints.

PICKLED BEETS

• 3 lbs. beets
• 1 stick cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon whole allspice
• ½ cup sugar
• 6 whole cloves
• 1 pt. vinegar
• ½ cup water

Boil beets until tender. Remove skins. Tie spices in cheesecloth. Heat vinegar, water, sugar and spices to boiling point. Add beets and boil 5 minutes. Pack in sterile jars and fill with hot liquid. Seal.

CORN RELISH

• 9 ears corn
• 1 qt. vinegar
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1½ tblsps. dry mustard
• 1 tsp. turmeric
• 1 medium head cabbage
• 2 medium onions, chopped
• 3 red peppers
• 2 green peppers

Cook corn in boiling water for 2 minutes. Dip in cold water and cut grains from the cob. Chop the cabbage, onion and peppers into small pieces and add to corn. Mix vinegar, sugar, salt and spices and heat to boiling. Add the corn and vegetables and boil until tender, 20 to 30 minutes, stirring frequently. Pour into sterile jars and seal. This makes about 8 pints.

PEPPER RELISH

• 12 sweet red peppers
• 12 sweet green peppers
• 8 small onions
• 1 qt. vinegar
• 1½ cups sugar
• 2 tsp. salt

Seed the peppers and chop fine with the onion. Put into a bowl, cover with boiling water and let stand for 5 minutes. Drain and cover again with boiling water, let stand for 10 minutes longer. Place in colander or cheesecloth bag let drain over night. In the morning add the vinegar, sugar and salt. Boil for 20 minutes. Place in hot sterilized jars and seal.

PICKLED GREEN BEANS

• 2 cups green beans
• 1 cup vinegar
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup water

Clean and cook whole green beans. Place them in a sterile pint jar. Boil the water, vinegar, sugar and ⅛ tsp. salt. Pour over the beans and seal jar.

CHOW CHOW

• 2 qts. chopped cabbage
• 1 qt. chopped green tomatoes
• 6 large onions, chopped
• 3 sweet red peppers, chopped
• salt
• 2 lbs. sugar
• 4 tablespoons dry mustard
• 3 tblsp. white mustard seed
• 1½ tablespoons celery seed
• ½ tablespoon ginger
• vinegar to cover (about 8 cups)
• 1 tablespoon cloves

Put each kind of vegetable into a separate bowl and sprinkle a small amount of salt over each. Let stand 4 hours. Press juice from each vegetable and combine. Mix the dry ingredients and rub into a paste by using a small amount of vinegar. Then add all the vinegar and heat to boiling. Put in the vegetables and cook slowly for 20 minutes. Pack in sterile jars and seal. Cover jars with boiling water and simmer for 15 minutes. Makes 2½ quarts.