A manual of home-making

A fruit juice that is grxjti for making jelly is one that contaia^ pectin, the essential jelly-making substance. Juices extimctod by cooking are apparently far richer in this suhstaoee Ikn juices extracted from the raw fruits. To dctemiine whellMr a juice contains pectin, 1 or 2 tablespoonfuls i>f the bcrt ji should Ije. mixed thoroughly with an p<iual volume of alcohol (90 to 95 per cent), and the mixture should be eodid. If pectin is present, a gelatinous mass, which can be gathemi on a spoon, will appear in the liquid. Acid is another requisite for juices that make gocxl jelly. To extract juice from a very juicy fruit, such as cumuita m raspberries, place the clean fruity washed if neeeaaar>', ia am enameled preserv^ing kettle, add just enough wati*r to preveol burning— perha|>s 1 cup to 4 or 5 quarts of fruits-rover the kettle, and place it where the fruit will cook nither alow^, stirring it occasionally with a wooden or a silver spoon« Wfa^o the simmering point is reached, crush the fruit further wi wcll'Soaked wooden masher, and continue heating it until ^ whole mass is cooke*t through. Allow the juice to drain throu^ ^ a jelly bag or a double piece of clioesi*-cloth into tui eattlum^i ware or enameled receptacle for half an hour or more. It iij better not to combine the first extraction with the later. Ifi later extractions are to lie marie, it is well to re«en*e a peciti test of firet extraction as a standard for concentrating ones later^ When the first extraction is fairly w^ell drained out, genemUjf | within half an hour, transfer the pulp to the pr^ervitig kettl^j cover it with water, stir it well, and cover the kettle. Bring ; the Juice slowly to the l)oillng point, and simmer it for 15 or M J •Condensed from Principles of Jelly Making, by N, E, GoMthwAiK^ [ Univ, uf lU., Bull. 15. L FOOD PRESERVATION 621 iinutes. Strain it through a jelly bag as for the first axtraction. If the alcohol test imlieates much pectin, make a third extrac- tion. Gcmerally only three extractions can be madep but some fruits will allow five. The second aed later extractions may be cornltined. The boiling juice may be sealed in sterilized bottles and made into jelly in the winter. If a less juicy fniit, such as apples or quinces, is used, wash the fruit, discard any unsound parts^ cut it into small pieces, incluiling the skins and the seeds, cover it with water, and ex* tract the juice according to the directions for juicy fruits, mak- ing more tlian one extraction if possible. For currants antl partly ripened grapes, the correct propor- tion of sugar for the fiist extraction is likely to be eciual volumes of sugar and juice. For rcil rasplierriea, blueberries, and black- berries, and for fruits to which much water must be added, such as sour apples, cra!>applcs, and cranberries, the correct proportion l>y volume for the first extraction is likely to be three- fourths as much sugar as juice. The quantity of sugar required is detemiinetl by the quantity of pectin present in the juice. If too little sugar in proportion to pectin is used, the jelly is likely to be tough; if too much sugar is useil, the jelly is soft and does not hokl its shape. The remtxly for having used too much sugar is to add more juice and thus supply more pectin. It is better to err on the side of too little rather than too much sugar.