CANNING, PRESERVING PRESERVING OF EGGS Issued by AGRICULTURAL DIVISION OHIO BRANCH COUNCIL OF NATIONAL DEFENSE Q 5 fi, = ) Zz 2 < > [a4 x] nn [2] as Ebag v Compiled by the HOME ECONOMICS DEPARTMENT The Ohio State University PRESERVATION OF FOOD In view of the general food shortage and of the shortage of sup- plies for commercial canning, it is important that fruits and vegetables be preserved by some means — canning, curing or drying. Food must not be allowed to go to waste. The uncultivated plants, such as dan- delion, mustard, sour dock, pepper cress, purslane, may be canned for greens, as may the leaves of beets, turnips, radishes, horseradish, rhu- barb and rape. Clean parings of fruit may be boiled and the liquid canned to be used in gelatin or cornstarch puddings, for sausage and for summer beverages. Fruit juices are too valuable to be thrown away. A surplus of rhubarb, gooseberries, or wild fruits like grapes and ber- ries will yield juices that can be used in many ways. It is worth while to can material for soups—vegetable purees (the cooked vegetable mashed thru a strainer), mixtures of chopped vegetables and stock made by boiling meat bones and trimmings. When there is a surplus of green tomatoes that will not ripen, they may be canned and used the same as the ripe ones. The midrib of the leaves of Swiss chard may be canned and used as a vegetable. Foods spoil because minute plants called micro-organisms grow on them. These plants are known as bacteria, yeasts and molds. The aim in preserving foods is either to kill these plants or to create a condition in which they cannot grow. The processes are known as canning, drying, refrigeration and curing. Curing may be accomplished with sugar, salt, vinegar and spices. Chemicals, often known on the markets as canning powders, are sometimes used but their use is unjustified, because of their questionable effect on health and because they are unnecessary when the food is of good quality and properly handled. When there is a shortage in the supply of sugar and a surplus in the supply of fruits, the fruits should be canned without sugar. Sugar is not necessary to accomplish thoro sterilization. CANNING OPEN-KETTLE OR HOT-PACK METHOD The food material is cooked thoroly and is packed, boiling hot, into hot, sterilized jars and sealed. Fruit canned by this method will keep but vegetables will not. For any purpose, the method has these objec- tions: 1. Flavor may be lost. 2. The food material may be crushed in the handling. 3. It requires standing over a hot stove while filling the jars. INTERMITTENT OR THREE-DAY METHOD The food material may be packed, uncooked, into clean, cold jars, or may be blanched and dipped as in cold-pack method. The rubbers and tops are adjusted so as partially to seal, then the jars are placed in water and boiled or steamed for a certain length of time. The jars are sealed, allowed to stand for 24 hours, and again boiled for the required time. This is repeated on the third day. This method is used suc- cessfully with vegetables, but it does require somewhat more fuel and handling than the cold-pack method. COLD-WATER METHOD Only sour fruits like sour cherries, rhubarb and gooseberries can be preserved by the cold-water method. They are cleaned, packed un- cooked into a clean cold jar. The jar is filled to overflowing with. cold water and sealed. Unless a shortage in sugar warrants it, this method has no advantage over other methods. COLD-PACK METHOD In the cold-pack method of canning the food material is blanched, that is, cooked for a certain length of time in boiling water or steam, and is then cold dipped, that is, quickly dipped into cold water. It is then packed into clean hot jars. Hot water or sirup is usually added, the rubbers and tops adjusted so as partially to seal, and the cans are placed in hot water which completely covers them 2 or 3 inches. They — are boiled for the required length of time and sealed. It is tiiis nethod that is recommended and that is described in this bulletin. The advan- tages of this method are: 1. It does not require long standing over a hot stove. 2. The blanching in some cases reduces the bulk so that more may —— be packed in a can. 2 3 3. The quick change in temperature between tthe boiling and the cold water in the blanching and cold dipping process is supposed to create a condition favorable to the death of micro-organisms. 4. It is a safe method for canning vegetables. EQUIPMENT It is convenient and rather an encouragement to do canning to have _ set aside a few utensils to be used for this one purpose. The list should include the following: Half-pint measuring cup, paring knife, basin, tablespoons, teaspoons, kettle. A colander or a wire frying basket may be helpful. A duplex fork or coal tongs is best for lifting cans out of the hot waiter. = ; A strong wire may be bent with a hook at one end to use with the spring top jars or a par.cake turner may be bent so as to slip under the jars and thus lift them. Cheesecloth or some other thin cloth is needed for blanching and cold dipping, if the wire basket is not used. Cans and rubbers and the canner, or sterilizer, complete the outfit. Steam Pressure Canner.— The steam pressure canner is made so that when closed steam does not escape. This causes a pressure which raises the temperature above 212 degrees, the boiling point of water. Because of the high temperature, the time required for steriliz- ing is shortened and in this fact lies its advantage. The home size is usually made large enough to hold as many as a dozen quart cans and costs about $15.00. Another type, made to use out of doors, is larger and more expensive. It would be useful when large quantities are being canned as in clubs or neighborhood groups. ; Directions for using the steam pressure canner may be procured, free of cost from the States Relations Service, U. S. Department of Agriculture, Washington, D. C. Homemade Hot-Water Bath. — This kind of a canner can be prepared in any home and with little expense. There must be a container with a close fitting cover and a false bottom. - The container may be a wash boiler, a lard can, a new garbage can, or any straight-sided pail. The false bottom is required to keep the cans off the bottom of the con- tainer so as to allow a free circulation of water about them. It may be constructed of laths nailed together with cross pieces or it may be of perforated cake tins. Wire broilers or cake coolers serve the purpose nicely. The tinner can make a good one by cutting a piece of galvanized tin a little smaller than the size of the bottom of the canner, perforating this with one-inch holes, and soldering on the under side some points that will raise it up one inch. Two strips of tin may be fastened at opposite sides, made a little shorter than the height of the canner, and when hooked at the top act as handles with which to lift the false bottom. Cans and Jars. — Tin cans with tops requiring the use of sealing wax are not used with the cold-packed method. Tin cans with tops re- quiring solder can be used, but require special equipment for soldering. The procuring of tin cans is likely to be difficult on account of the shortage of the supply of tin. Glass jars are always most desirable for “ ori | va Stat ns - " ar A, vo > et : : aS oS ae ee HS a - - ae SN Ree * home use. Any type of glass jar may be used with, the cold-pack method. The types may be described as follows: Screw ‘op jars have tops to be screwed on. The kind whith has ; Fa screw band and a separate glass top is much better than the old style of one piece top. Spring top jars have glass tops that are clamped down. by metal wires. es Vacuum seal jars have metal tops with a rubber-like patedial on the edges that eliminate the use of rubber rings. During stcheiaS ie tops are held in place by light clamps. Rubbers. — All rubbers should be elastic and not too thick. When purchased, they should be tested to see how much “pull” they have. — = Their color makes no difference in the quality. Good rubber is not in- jured by several hours’ boiling. TERMS. USED IN CANNING Blanching means boiling to remove objectionable flavors, to. reduce — bulk, to help kill bacteria. Cold dipping means dipping quickly into and out of cold water to make handling easier and to help kill bacteria. edge Scalding means dipping into hot water long enough to remove the skin. Processing or sterilizing means heating long enough to kill micro- organisms. . To seal partially means that, in the case of spring top jars, only the first wire is put into place on the top. The wire should fit into the glass top with a click. If it is too loose to do this, the wire should be re- — moved and bent so as to fit tighter. In the case of screw top jars the tops are screwed down fairly tight, then turned back about a quarter turn. Vacuum seal jars are partially sealed, when the top is placed and the clamp fitted down over it. CANNING DIFFICULTIES I. Rubbers popping out from beneath the top during aicoiearee may — be due to poor rubber, to too large a rubber or to too much pres- sure from the top. The top and rubber must be removed, a new rubber and top placed and the jar returned to the canner for ane) ‘five minutes. 2. Liquid is drawn out from the can, sometimes, when the water the canner does not cover the cans at least I inch, or when ther is not free circulation about the cans, or when the tops have been adjusted too loosely. ¥ 3. Jars may break when there is not free circulation of water aboue the cans, when a cold can is placed in hot water, or a hot one in | cold water, when a can is placed in a cool draft. ; 4. Shrinkage of vegetables may be caused by insufficient blanching An objectionable, strong flavor may be due to. oper blanching. and cold dipping. ns 6. Bubbles that show after iene! do not affect the keep ce qualities of the product. sin lone 5 7. Cloudy appearance of the liquid in the cans may be due merely to - over-cooking which forces out the interior of the product or to very hard water. ~ 8. “Flat souring” of corn, peas, beans and -asparagus, is a condition giving a slightly sour taste and objectionable odor, and may be due to allowing the vegetable to stand too long. As soon as each jar is filled it should be set in the canner so that cooking is not de- layed. It is probable that an unknown organism produces this con- dition and the souring may occur in spite of all precautions. g. Over-cooking may not always be objectionable but it is likely to happen with fruits which require a short time for sterilizing. Cooking is going on while the water is coming to the boiling point and if this time is prolonged some deduction should be made from the time given for sterilizing. 10. Spoilage may result from use of old rubbers, from keeping jars in a place that has alternately cold and warm temperattures, from breaking the seal of jars by attempting to tighten the tops after the can has cooled and a vacuum been made. JUDGING CANNED FRUIT AND VEGETABLES The following score card shows the points by which canned pro- ducts are judged and the value which is given to each point on the basis of 100. At contests, the judging is quite often done by appearance only. It is easy to see how this is unfair. If a food is not good to eat it is useless and the only way to test that quality is by tasting. The opening of the can sometimes reveals molds, fermentation or use of canning powders. If the committee in charge of the contest has this in mind, the time for the judging may be planned so that there is a minimum loss of food material, resulting from the opening of the cans. 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The most common methods are drying and smoking, curing in salt or cooking and cover- ing with hot fat. A method not so commonly used is canning, for which the directions follow. Meat may be canned as successfully as vegetables and it is a great convenience to have it ready for a stew, salad, a creamed dish, sandwich filling, or any use to which meat may — be put. It is sometimes a saving as well as a convenience to can young cockerels that one may not want to feed for a long time. Method 1.— The raw meat may or may not be freed from the bones and then packed into clean hot jars. Hot water and seasonings may — or may not be added, but usually 1 teaspoon of salt is added to each we quart can. Adjust the tops and rubbers so to seal partially. Place the _ jars in hot water, boil for 4 hours, remove jars and seal. oa Method 2.— Sear the meat in a hot oven, in hot fat or in boiling ; water, then steam or simmer it until it can be torn apart. Pack into clean, hot jars, fill the jars with the stock, add 1 teaspoon of salt to=s each quart, partially seal, place in hot water and boil for 3 hours. — | MANUFACTURERS OF CANNING EQUIPMENT $5, Home and Club Cooperative Canning Outfits and Devices Pressure Cooker Company.... Denver, Colorado ..... Aluminum Steam Canners © and Cookers. at OS aa Sprague Canning Machinery ‘ ie CORA. er gene, aes 222 N. Wabash Ave., Chicago, Illinois ..:. Steam Canner. Henninger & Ayes Mfg. Co.. Portland, Oregon ..... Steam Canner. Northwestern Steel & Iron Works 7p paises hehe Eau Claire; Wisconsin. Steam Canner. ; E. F. Kirwan & Company.... Baltimore, Maryland... Hot Water Bath Canner. Modern Canner Company..... Chattanooga, Tennessee Hot Water Bath Canner. Bf oy Stale we. roe cto hats ae Quincy, Illinois........ Hot Water Bath Canner. Farm Canning Machine Co... Meridian, Mississippi.. Hot Water Bath Canner. Home Canner Mfg. Company. Hickory, N. Carolina.. Hot Water Bath Canner. Monarch Manufacturing Co... Chattanooga, Tennessee Hot Water Bath Canner. Phillips & Buttorff Mfg. Co.. Nashville, Tennessee... Hot Water Bath Canne Raney Canner Company...... Chattanooga, Tennessee Hot Water Bath Canne Southern Evaporator Co...... Chattanooga, Tennessee Hot Water Bath C: 9 Chattanooga, Tennessee 29 Garrison Lane, B timore, Maryland.... Tampa, Florida Be ~ Royal Home Canner Co...... _ Mrs. Hermine Baehr......... Favorite Manufacturing Co... al- Hot Water Bath Canner. Tray for Boiler (3 in 1). Water-seal Canner. Meclinnieal Seals and Seslers For Tin cual Glass Burpee & Letson; Ltd-:...... South Bellingham, > Washington ........ 146 Summer St., Room 44, Boston, Mass.... Baltimore, Md., Chi- cago, Ill., San Fran- cisco;-—Calif.. aid other cities Bowers Can Seal Company... = Crown Cork and Seal Co.... American Metal Cap Company Summit Street and c Commercial Wharf, Brooklyn: Ny Y- sez... The Enterprise Mfg. Co. of 2 at ee ee ee ae Philadelphia, Pa. ...... Henninger & Ayes Mfg. Co.. 47 First Street, Port- land, Oregon : Steamers Wilmot, Castle & Company... Rochester, New York.. Heating Devices Manning, Bowman & Company Meriden, Connecticut.. Automatic Can Sealers and Tin Cans. Automatic Can Sealers and Tin Cans. Glass Bottles, Caps, Milk Bottle Caps and Sealers for same. Glass Jars, (metal caps). Bottle Cappers—from 3 to 14 inches. Automatic Can and Tin Cans. Sealers Steaemers. Alcoholite Stoves. Es < Tin Cans, Glass Jars and Rubber Rings Kerr Glass Manufacturing Co. Sand Springs, Okla..-.. _. Hazel-Atlas Glass Company.. Wheeling, West Va.... - Smalley Fruit Jar Company.. 26 Dock Square, Bos- = ton; Mass. 4524 cass Boston Woven Hose & Rub- BeeeeBER NG On. oni aa. tons cet Boston, Mass: os =--- Ball Bros. Glass Mfg. Co.... Muncie, Indiana ...... Reem EM A CINOSS (os- ancet ss bose San Francisco, Calif... York City, Chicago, Illinois _ American Can Company...... Chicago, Illinois _ Continental Can Company.. ee ee > - United States Can Company... > Cmcinnati7~O hio-s..5 2. Southern Can Company...... Baltimore, Maryland... A Wheeling Can Company...... Wheeling, W. Va...... _ Tennessee Can Company...... Chattanooga, Tenn. ... Virginia Can Company....... Buchanan, Virginia ... Griffith & Turner Company... _ A. K. Robins & Company.... E> fe _ Staunton Jar Corporation.. Baltimore, Maryland. . Baltimore, Maryland... . Ellicott Square, Buff- alo, New York...... Clarksburg, Virginia... Baltimore, Maryland. Elmira, New York.... _ Travis Glass Company........ _ Chesapeake Glass Company... # acpiateher eerie Co.. Philadelphia, Pa., New: Economy Jars. Glass-top Jars. Glass-top Jars. Rubber Rings. Mason and Glass-top Jars. Two-piece Top Jars. Cans. . Tin Cans and General Equipment. Tin Cans and General Equipment. Vacuum Seal Jars. Glass Jars. .. Glass Jars. Glass Jars. IO PRESERVING FOOD WITH SUGAR ie ‘As long as the nation’s supply of sugar warrants it, many fruits may be preserved by the making of jellies, preserves, marmalades, butter, jams and conserves. Jelly is made from the clear fruit juice. In en preserves the fruit is kept as nearly whole as’possible in a very thick $ sirup. . Marmalade, butters, jams are very similar and are made of the pulp and juice cooked until very concentrated. Conserves are mix- =” tures of fruit with nuts or orange peel or raisins. ~Beet sugar and cane sugar are chemically the same and it makes no difference which is used. JELLY MAKING “Tdeal fruit jelly is a beautifully colored, transparent, palat- able product obtained by so treating fruit juice that the resulting mass will quiver, not flow, when removed from its mold; a product with texture so tender that it cuts easily with a spoon, and yet so firm : that the angles thus produced retain their shape; a clear product My that is neither sirupy, gummy, sticky nor tough; ae is it~brittle | and yet it will break and does this with a distinct, beautiful cleveage which leaves sparkling faces.’’—Goldthwaite. Two requirements for the process of jelly making are the presence of acid and of pectin in the fruit juice. Some fruits naturally have es too little acid, but, if they have pectin, some other acid fruit juice may be added. Fruits for jelly making should be gathered while a littlé under-ripe. Pectin is naturally abundant in some fruits and j= lacking in other. It is a good plan to test the fruit juice to determine Nae its amount of pectin. This may be done by adding to 1 tablespoon of the juice, extracted by cooking, 1 tablespoon of grain alcohol. Mix in a glass, let stand a few minutes and note the amount of jelly-like material which settles at the bottom. By performing this test along with a test of a juice which is known to yield good jelly and comparing the relative amounts of pectin, it is possible to determine the jelly- making quality of an unknown juice. The white inner skin of lemon and orange peel contains considerable pectin which may be extracted and added to fruit juices which are deficient in it. To extract pectin from oranges and lemofs, cut or scrape the yellow outer peel. from the white inner skin. Remove the white por- tion and pass it thru a food grinder. Soak in sufficient water to cover, Let stand 2 or more hours. Cook slowly for about 2 hours. Strain thru a jelly bag. i It is suggested that red haws, the fruit of the hawthorn tree, ‘may be used for jelly. Combined with apple, wild cherries may be used. To extract juice from very juicy fruit, the fruit should be care- fully cleared and heated with just enough water to prevent burning. — It may be mashed to help extract the juice. When thoroly heated — thru, pour into a jelly bag and allow to drain. For a first quality © jelly, the bag must not be squeezed. For a second quality ese Wee Lea pulp may again be heated with water and drained in the jelly bag. The bag may be squeezed, but some of the pulp will be forced thru and the jelly will be cloudy. If the bag is not squeezed and care is taken in proportioning the sugar, this second extraction will yield first quality jelly. The pulp may be passed thru a colander or strainer and used for a marmalade. To extract juice from less juicy fruits, the fruit should be care- fully cleaned and heated with enough water nearly to cover. Cook - until thoroly heated thru. Drain as described above. The juice may be canned and made into jelly at some future time if desired. Proportion of Sugar and Fruit Juice. — The proportion of sugar to be used depends on the amount of pectin present — the more pectin, the more sugar to be used and vice versa. In general, the following proportions will be found successful: For I cup currant juice, use I cup sugar. For I cup green grape juice, use I cup sugar. For 1 cup red raspberry juice, use # cup sugar. For 1 cup sour apple juice, use ? cup sugar. For 1 cup crabapple juice, use # cup sugar. Too much sugar gives too soft a jelly. Too little sugar gives a tough jelly. No amount of boiling will correct a failure due to wrong pro- portion of sugar. If the jelly fails to set, more juice, which will add more pectin, may be added and a second cooknig may correct the mistake. This, however, will not be as satisfactory a jelly as it would have been if correctly proportioned the first time. The sugar is added hot to the juice after it has been boiling a few minutes. It is added hot so as not to cool down the temperature and thus prolong the cooking, and it is added after the boiling has continued for a few minutes, in order not to waste the sugar by frequent skim- mings or by the chemical change resulting from long boiling with acid. Time Required to Make Jelly.— The length of time the juice should be boiled varies but is usually from 8 to 10 minutes for currants and green grapes, and from 20 to 30 minutes for apples, raspberries and blackberries. In either case the sugar is added after the boiling is partially completed. © ‘The jelly is done when it drops from the edge of the spoon in I I I For 1 cup blackberry juice, use # cup sugar. I I - two drops instead of one or it comes off in a sheet or flake. It must be removed from the fire immediately and poured into glasses. Filling Jelly Glasses. — The jelly glasses must be hot and had best be setting in hot water when the jelly is poured into them. When ‘the jelly is set, very hot paraffin should be poured on the top. The tin cover may then be placed and the glasses labelled. Typical Set of Directions for Jelly Making. — A typical direction for making (currant jelly) reads like the following: Clean the currants and place them in an enamel kettle with a very little water. Mash them with a potato masher. When they are thoroly heated thru pour into the jelly bag and drain without squeezing the bag. Measure the juice. 12 Be Test it for amount of pectin. If it seems to ee ae saa measure out the sugar in the proportion of 1 cup of sugar to I juice. Heat the sugar in the oven, taking care not to over Boil the juice for about 6 minutes, skimming off the scum as it Add the hot sugar and boil for about 2 minutes more, or until the drops from the edge of the spoon in a sheet. Pour at once into glasses placed in a basin of hot water. . » ee Equipment for Jelly vee. — The equipment for jelly x makin; should include: ae Enamel kettle Two basins Small sauce pan for paraffin Half pint glass measuring cup Wooden spoon Potato masher Paring knife Jelly bag or piece of cheesecloth Jelly glasses with covers Paraffin Labels Scoring or Judging of Jelly.— The quality of a jelly may be c judged according to the following score card: SCORE CARD FOR JELLY % Perfect Quality | Score AVION - tray) cic Stee ee ee a Se ra ice et Eee eee COOL mor DE. Ths FES pat See eee Re IE a ee GGTSIBtEN Cy > 5. Seay ta Shp hs seem a oe ee a ; SPR URE cate ieee ee a Ee ee eM ee : 5 ae Jelly Troubles. — The principal difficulties or troubles experienc in jelly making follows: | pee 1. Tough jelly is the result of using too little sugar. 2. Too soft a jelly is caused by using too much sugar or too little. 1 for the amount of pectin present. ~ : . Gummy jelly is usually caused by over-cooking. Crystals usually indicate use of too much sugar. In the cas grapes the tartaic acid is sometimes deposited in crystals. Q Cloudiness is likely due to the presence of pulp. Mold appearing at the edge of the paraffin may be the not having the paraffin hot enough to kill molds that _ the surface while the jelly was becoming firm. Own Rw Bite ¥3 PRESERVES AND MARMALADES Strawberry Preserves.— Clean the berries and weigh them. Measure an equal weight of sugar into the preserving kettle. Add just enough water to dissolve the sugar and boil it 5 minutes or until a thick sirup is formed. Add the fruit and cook slowly until tender. Allow to cool partially, then turn into hot glasses. It is best to prepare _ only a small quantity at a time. This directions may be applied to cherries, peaches, watermelon - rind, apples or other fruits. Rhubarb Conserve. — Clean the rhubarb and cut into 1I-inch lengths. To each cup of rhubarb add ? cup of sugar. When the juice of the rhubarb has dissolved some of the sugar, place on the stove. Cook quickly, stirring constantly, to the consistency of jam. Add 4 cup chopped nut meats for each cup of conserve. Pour into hot glasses. This direction may be applied to plums. Raspberry Jam. — Clean the berries and measure them. For each pint of berries measure 14 cups of sugar. Add sugar to the berries. When the juice of the berries has dissolved some of the sugar, place on the stove. Cook quickly, stirring constantly, until quite thick. If the fruit has very many seeds, some of them may be removed by passing some of the fruit thru a sieve before cooking. This direction may be applied to gooseberries, and blackberries. Peach or Apple Butter. — Over-ripe fruit that is not decayed can be used in this way. It is also a way of using the pulp remaining after juice has been extracted for jelly. - The fruit is cooked soft and passed thru a colander or sieve. To © each cup of the pulp add $ cup of sugar. Cook carefully, stirring often to prevent burning. If desired, the fruit may be flavored during the cooking with a — little cinnamon, clove and mace tied in a cloth. Grape Maramalade.— Clean the grapes and remove from the stems. Separate the pulp from the skins. Cook the pulp until the seeds separate. Rub thru a sieve to remove seeds. Add skins to the _ pulp with sugar, using for each cup of pulp 1 cup of Bee Cook carefully to prevent burning, stirring often. If desired, the fruit may be flavored during cooking with a little cinnamon, clove and mace tied in a cloth. Carrot and Canteloupe Preserves or Maramalade. — Carrots or canteloupes may be used for preserves or marmalade as apples or peaches would be used. 14 ~ DRYING Drying is probably the oldest method of preserving foods and is to be recommended from the standpoint of economy of jars. With the evaporation of the water from any food product, the volume becomes much reduced. From the standpoint of flavor, dried products are desirable. When drying small quantities, the food material may be spread thinly upon china or enamel plates and placed in a slightly heated oven with the door open or may be exposed to warm outdoor air. Direct rays ofa very hot sun are objectionable. It is.necessary to stir occa- sionally to have the product dry evenly and prevent growth of mold » on the under surfaces. Care must be taken to protect the food from flies. A very thin cover keeps away insects and offers protection from dust. Sulphur fumes have been used to bleach the product, but their use is questionable and the federal regulation has strictly limited the amount of sulphur dioxide which may occur in commercial products. In the drying of products in the home, sulphur is unnecessary. When large quantities are to be dried, a commercial avaporator is helpful. It is arranged with several shelves in a container allowing circulation of warm air. Some may be used on a kitchen range and others are combined with a special fire box. A drying rack may be constructed by making a shelf of wire- screen cloth on a frame which allows free circulation of air and holds the cloth cover up from the fruit. The screen cloth should be coveted with cloth so that the fruit does not come in direct contact with the metal. Dried foods are best stored in cloth sacks hung in a dry place. Dried Pumpkin. — Pare the pumpkin and cut into cubes. Boil till tender in very little water or cook by steaming. Mash and spread in thin layers upon plates to dry. Dried Peas and Beans. — Allow the peas or be. is to mature on the vines. Be sure they are dry before storing. Prepare the beans ‘as for cooking. Spread on plates to dry. Stir frequently to prevent molding. Green peas may be shelled and dried in the same way. Dried Apples, Peaches, Apricots, Pears, Cherries. — Prepare th: fruit a for cooking. Drain off excess juice. Spread on plates to dry Currants Dried With Sugar. sugar in the proportion of 1 pound of sugar to 5 pound of currants. Heat till the currants rise to the top, then skim them off. Boil the sirup down until quite thick, then pour over the currants in shallow plates. — Set to dry. Cherries and gooseberries could be dried in the same way. Use fully ripe currants. Add Pr By Mah, Sty 3 YO ean Sel Peg ae aeee eee v — ’ - : pe Dried Corn. — Dip the sweet corn into boiling water for just an instant. Cut the corn from the cob taking care not to cut too closely. ee the remaining portion from the cob. Spread in thin layers upon plates. For storing of common winter vegetables see Ohio State University Extension Bulletin — “Fresh Vegetables in Winter’ — by R. B. Cruisk- shank. HOMEMADE FRUIT AND VEGETABLE DRIERS = O. H. BENSON — U. S. Department of Agriculture. The ordinary sundrier, made up in the form of a cold frame, should have a window-sash top and ventilating holes or arrangements for the ready escape of the saturated air. The bottom of the drier should be tight so as to prevent the food products from absorbing moisture from the soil. The inside rack for holding the drying trays should be so made that there will be a free circulation of air around, under, and above the food product. The front and two ends should be covered with cheesecloth to provide for the circulation of air and to prevent dust and insects from entering the drier. Artificial heat may be applied by an alcohol stove or other device which will heat and force the circulation of air thru the drier, but will not saturate the food product with unpleasant odors. The drier may be provided with a metal bottom so as to be placed over an ofdinary stove or wood fire. As a substitute for the applied heat beneath the drier, a fan system of some kind may be used for the purpose of stirring and irculating the air thru the drier. Another type of drier is one that has been made especially for use on the kitchen stove and may be called the home stove drier. It should be constructed largely of metal, contain a jacket and tiers of movable drying trays which can be readily interchanged to insure equal drying of all trays at one and the same time. The top should be left open to permit the free circulation of air. If con- venient to the housewife, it would be wise to provide a crane or arm arrangement attached by a clamp to the edge of the stove or range. The drier hung by a rope or cord swung over a small wheel or pully will make it possible to raise the drier and swing it off the stove while the stove is used for the preparation of a meal. A third type of drier may be made on the same plan as the ones described above, but instead of using sun, artificial heat or stove heat, the fan system should be used for drying the product. A small electric fan would be successful or other fan system similar to the ones used in automobiles or different types of fanning mills. It may be operated by hand and run only a few seconds several times during the day or may be attached to some motor power. A small boys’ windmill may be so constructed with a belt wheel and a cord belt, that it could be run from a house top down to the drier and run the little fan within the drying box. A fourth type of drier is the rectangular frame arrangement made of metal or wood or even of mesh wire. On one of the sides a door should be arranged to open on hinges thru which two, three, or four trays of food products may be placed. These trays may be htng within the drier and should be so constructed as to permit them to revolve freely with the drier which is hung at both ends on an axle. An electric fan may be placed at the end and will force the dry air - thru the drier and thus remove the filled air and make room for the dry air from ; without. The old-fashioned sun drier, which depends entirely on the sun to perform -the work of drying, is usually constructed simply as a board tray or even a metal try with mosquito netting over the same, and exposing the food product to the sun. This type does not provide for the sash cover nor does it provide for a free circulation of air around, under and over all parts of the food product. This method of drying is the least efficient of all and should not be used. In addition to the homemade devices there are a number AS Se types of home driers. The following companies represent those known as facturers of driers for the home. Stutzman Manufacturing Co., Ligonier, Indiana, im ae Southern Canner and Evaporation Co., Chattanooga, Tenn The Grange Sales Association, LaFayette Bldg., Philadelphia, Pa. Edward B. Fahrney, Waynesboro, ies a =~ PRESERVATION OF EGGS At the time of the year when there is an over-production of eggs, - it is desirable to preserve them for use when they are not so abundant. A number of methods have been devised for keeping them, but the most _ satisfactory method is by the use of water glass. It is simple, Sy and inexpensive. | Eggs that are selected for preserving should be collected daily from clean nests and should, in no case, be old, sun-baked, cracked or ies shelled. Infertile eggs are the most desirable. ae ‘ The container may be any receptacle that is impervious or does not corrode. Glazed earthenware and galvanized containers are oats tory. The following gives the sizes of jars with approximate capacity for eggs and the amount of water-glass solution required to cover ge: eggs: 1 gallon — 40 eggs, 34 pints of solution. 2 gallon — 80 eggs, 7} pints of solution. 3 gallon — 120 eggs, 10% pints of solution. 4 gallon — 160 eggs, 144 pints of solution. 5 gallon — 200 eggs, 18 pints of solution. 10 gallon — 400 eggs, 36 pints of solution. and is Shea ei known as sodium silicate. The best proportion for making the solution is 1 cup of water glass to 10 cups of water that — has been boiled and cooled. The eggs need not be put into the solution — all at one time, but as they are gathered from day to day. : Eggs are sometimes preserved in this way for commercial purposes, but they must be sold as storage, not fresh eggs. After being in th solution for some time the shell becomes smooth, as the pores are fil with the silicate. When these eggs are boiled the shell should be pw tured with a pin at the blunt end, else they will break. In all instan they should be washed before using. eae, ae