Page:The Boston cooking-school cook book.djvu/664

578 RUIT for canning should be fresh, firm, of good quality, and not over-ripe; if over-ripe, some of the spores may survive the boiling, then fermentation will take place in a short time.

For canning fruit, allow one-third its weight in sugar, and two and one-half to three cups water to each pound of sugar. Boil sugar and water ten minutes to make a thin syrup; then cook a small quantity of the fruit at a time in the syrup; by so doing, fruit may be kept in perfect shape. Hard fruits, like pineapple and quince, are cooked in boil- ing water until nearly soft, then put in syrup to finish cooking. Sterilized jars are then filled with fruit, and enough syrup added to overflow jars. If there is not sufi- cient syrup, add boiling water, as jars must be filled to overflow. Introduce a spoon between fruit and jar, that air bubbles may rise to the top and break; then quickly put on rubbers and screw on sterilized covers. Let stand until — cold, again screw covers, being sure this time that jars are air-tight. While filling jars, place them on a cloth wrung out of hot water.

Wash jars and fill with cold water. Set in a kettle on a trivet, and surround with cold water. Heat gradually to boiling-point, remove from water, empty, and fill while hot. Put covers in hot water and let stand five minutes. Dip