A manual of home-making

There aw se%Hn*al shkiU driers on the market that i^ive sati»- faetorv' results. They are of such size that tliey can be placed the top of a kitehen stove. Portable outdoor drierH aiv t*onv lent if much food is to be dried. Home-made dr>' kilnn are uwd in some sections of the coimtr>\ Any pie<*e of home-made apparatus that provides means far free rireuhition of air and for feguhitinj;^ the temperature B likely to prove natisfactory* A device with metal tude^ that wBI confine the heattn:! air in a given channel during its upwafd course through the trays of food, uses heat economically. Drying fruits. All fruits that are to l)e dried should be well ripenixl but Dot over-ripe. Fruits that are dricHl with the skins on should Ik* dippiflri quickly, by m(*ans of a wire ba.sket or a piece of ch<N?s<>-cloth, uilP^ a boiling solution of lye made in the proportion of )^ pound of concentrated lye to 8 gallons of w^ater. They should then be rinsed two or three times in clear water. The lye |>erfanitcs the skin and thus facihtatcs evaporation, Morijover, it dc^ stroys micro*organisms that might cause spoilage. Mast fruits are improved by being dipped into a thin sirup before being dried. If the fruit is to be used in puddin^^ breads, brc^iikfast cereals, or as a confection, it may l>e sprii with sugar before being dried ; if it is to be cooked for satice^ littfe or no sugar should be addend. Metal trays for drying fruits should be covered with chi cloth to prevent acid action. Wrapping paper may be uaed tra}^ in an oven. Juicy fruits require more ventilation in drying than do wich fruits as apples. Wlien fmit is suflficiently dry, it should be impossible to preas vrater out of the freshly cut ends of the pieces. The natuml grain of the fruit should not be apparent on cut surfaces. The fruit should be leathery or pliable, and not so dry that il will FOOD PRESERVATION 591 snap or crackle. In general, the tlrier the fruit is, the less ehanue there is for spoilap:e; but sweet fruits can safely contain more moisture than those with a low sugar-eon lent. Fruit should he rooted quickly after hein^ dried in order to prevent a shrivclwl and unattractive appearance. Fruit juiees or fruit pulps may be concentrated by being iKJiled over direct heat and then dne<l in the lop of a double boiler, or in platters or enamel pans sel in a mo<lerate oven, or in the sunshine. The juice or pulp is sufficiently eoneentratetl when on cooling it makes a highly glazed, tough, dry, leatheiy jelly. The leather may then be tlried in 'thin sheets, sprinkled with granulated sufj;ar, rolled like a jelly-roll, anil then cut across in pieces, or it may be dried in a sheet % inch thick and cut in cubes. be given to the selection and drying as for caiuiing. (Sood Drying vegetables. Equally as great eare should preparation of vegetabk\s for results depc*nd largely on the use of vegetables that are abso- lutely fresh, young, tender, and perfectly clean. All vegetatiles ehoold iic washed and cleaneii thoroughly liefore being dried. If steel knives are used for paring and cutting the vegetables, they should be kept clean and Ijright in order to prevent discoloration.