The Book of Household Management Part 195

_Seasonable_ in August and September.

BAKED PEARS.

1574. INGREDIENTS.--12 pears, the rind of 1 lemon, 6 cloves, 10 whole allspice; to every pint of water allow 1/2 lb. of loaf sugar.

_Mode_.--Pare and cut the pears into halves, and, should they be very large, into quarters; leave the stalks on, and carefully remove the cores. Place them in a clean baking-jar, with a closely-fitting lid; add to them the lemon-rind cut in strips, the juice of 1/2 lemon, the cloves, pounded allspice, and sufficient water just to cover the whole, with sugar in the above proportion. Cover the jar down closely, put it into a very cool oven, and bake the pears from 5 to 6 hours, but be very careful that the oven is not too hot. To improve the colour of the fruit, a few drops of prepared cochineal may be added; but this will not be found necessary if the pears are very gently baked.

_Time_.--Large pears, 5 to 6 hours, in a very slow oven.

_Average cost_, 1d. to 2d. each.

_Sufficient_ for 7 or 8 persons.

_Seasonable_ from September to January.

PEAR.--The pear, like the apple, is indigenous to this country; but the wild pear is a very unsatisfactory fruit. The best varieties were brought from the East by the Romans, who cultivated them with care, and probably introduced some of their best sorts into this island, to which others were added by the inhabitants of the monasteries. The Dutch and Flemings, as well as the French, have excelled in the cultivation of the pear, and most of the late varieties introduced are from France and Flanders. The pear is a hardy tree, and a longer liver than the apple: it has been known to exist for centuries. There are now about 150 varieties of this fruit. Though perfectly wholesome when ripe, the pear is not so when green; but in this state it is fit for stewing. An agreeable beverage, called perry, is made from pears, and the varieties which are least fit for eating make the best perry.

PRESERVED PEARS.

1575. INGREDIENTS.--Jargonelle pears; to every lb. of sugar allow 1/2 pint of water.

_Mode_.--Procure some Jargonelle pears, not too ripe; put them into a stewpan with sufficient water to cover them, and simmer them till rather tender, but do not allow them to break; then put them into cold water.

Boil the sugar and water together for 5 minutes, skim well, put in the pears, and simmer them gently for 5 minutes. Repeat the simmering for 3 successive days, taking care not to let the fruit break. The last time of boiling, the syrup should be made rather richer, and the fruit boiled for 10 minutes. When the pears are done, drain them from the syrup, and dry them in the sun, or in a cool oven; or they may be kept in the syrup, and dried as they are wanted.

_Time_.--1/2 hour to simmer the pears in water, 20 minutes in the syrup.

_Average cost_, 1d. to 2d. each.

_Seasonable_.--Most plentiful in September and October.

STEWED PEARS.

[Ill.u.s.tration: STEWED PEARS.]

1576. INGREDIENTS.--8 large pears, 5 oz. of loaf sugar, 6 cloves, 6 whole allspice, 1/2 pint of water, 1/4 pint of port wine, a few drops of prepared cochineal.

_Mode_.--Pare the pears, halve them, remove the cores, and leave the stalks on; put them into a _lined_ saucepan with the above ingredients, and let them simmer very gently until tender, which will be in from 3 to 4 hours, according to the quality of the pears. They should be watched, and, when done, carefully lifted out on to a gla.s.s dish without breaking them. Boil up the syrup quickly for 2 or 3 minutes; allow it to cool a little, pour it over the pears, and let them get perfectly cold. To improve the colour of the fruit, a few drops of prepared cochineal may be added, which rather enhances the beauty of this dish. The fruit must not be boiled fast, but only simmered, and watched that it be not too much done.

_Time_.--3 to 4 hours. _Average cost_, 1s. 6d.

_Sufficient_ for 5 or 6 persons. _Seasonable_ from September to January.

THE BON CHRETIEN PEAR.--The valuable variety of pear called _Bon Chretien_, which comes to our tables in winter, either raw or cooked, received its name through the following incident:--Louis XI., king of France, had sent for Saint Francois de Paule from the lower part of Calabria, in the hopes of recovering his health through his intercession. The saint brought with him the seeds of this pear; and, as he was called at court Le Bon Chretien, this fruit obtained the name of him to whom France owed its introduction.

PINEAPPLE CHIPS.

1577. INGREDIENTS.--Pineapples; sugar to taste.

_Mode_.--Pare and slice the fruit thinly, put it on dishes, and strew over it plenty of pounded sugar. Keep it in a hot closet, or very slow oven, 8 or 10 days, and turn the fruit every day until dry; then put the pieces of pine on tins, and place them in a quick oven for 10 minutes.

Let them cool, and store them away in dry boxes, with paper between each layer.

_Time_.--8 to 10 days.

_Seasonable_.--Foreign pines, in July and August.

PRESERVED PINEAPPLE.

1578. INGREDIENTS.--To every lb. of fruit, weighed after being pared, allow 1 lb. of loaf sugar; 1/4 pint of water.

_Mode_.--The pines for making this preserve should be perfectly sound but ripe. Cut them into rather thick slices, as the fruit shrinks very much in the boiling. Pare off the rind carefully, that none of the pine be wasted; and, in doing so, notch it in and out, as the edge cannot be smoothly cut without great waste. Dissolve a portion of the sugar in a preserving-pan with 1/4 pint of water; when this is melted, gradually add the remainder of the sugar, and boil it until it forms a clear syrup, skimming well. As soon as this is the case, put in the pieces of pine, and boil well for at least 1/2 hour, or until it looks nearly transparent. Put it into pots, cover down when cold, and store away in a dry place.

_Time_.--1/2 hour to boil the fruit. _Average cost_, 10d. to 1s. per lb.

pot.

_Seasonable_.--Foreign pines, in July and August.

THE PINEAPPLE IN HEATHENDOM.--Heathen nations invented protective divinities for their orchards (such as Pomona, Vertumnus, Priapus, &c.), and benevolent patrons for their fruits: thus, the olive-tree grew under the auspices of Minerva; the Muses cherished the palm-tree, Bacchus the fig and grape, _and the pine and its cone were consecrated to the great Cyble_.

PRESERVED PINEAPPLE, for Present Use.

1579. INGREDIENTS.--Pineapple, sugar, water.

_Mode_.--Cut the pine into slices 1/4 inch in thickness; peel them, and remove the hard part from the middle. Put the parings and hard pieces into a stewpan with sufficient water to cover them, and boil for 1/4 hour. Strain the liquor, and put in the slices of pine. Stew them for 10 minutes, add sufficient sugar to sweeten the whole nicely, and boil again for another 1/4 hour; skim well, and the preserve will be ready for use. It must be eaten soon, as it will keep but a very short time.

_Time_.--1/4 hour to boil the parings in water; 10 minutes to boil the pine without sugar, 1/4 hour with sugar.

_Average cost_.--Foreign pines, 1s. to 3s. each; English, from 2s. to 12s. per lb.

_Seasonable_.--Foreign, in July and August; English, all the year.

PLUM JAM.

1580. INGREDIENTS.--To every lb. of plums, weighed before being stoned, allow 3/4 lb. of loaf sugar.

_Mode_.--In making plum jam, the quant.i.ty of sugar for each lb. of fruit must be regulated by the quality and size of the fruit, some plums requiring much more sugar than others. Divide the plums, take out the stones, and put them on to large dishes, with roughly-pounded sugar sprinkled over them in the above proportion, and let them remain for one day; then put them into a preserving-pan, stand them by the side of the fire to simmer gently for about 1/2 hour, and then boil them rapidly for another 15 minutes. The sc.u.m must be carefully removed as it rises, and the jam must be well stirred all the time, or it will burn at the bottom of the pan, and so spoil the colour and flavour of the preserve. Some of the stones may be cracked, and a few kernels added to the jam just before it is done: these impart a very delicious flavour to the plums.

The above proportion of sugar would answer for Orleans plums; the Imperatrice Magnum-bonum, and Winesour would not require quite so much.

_Time_.--1/2 hour to simmer gently, 1/4 hour to boil rapidly.

_Best plums for preserving_.--Violets, Mussels, Orleans, Imperatrice Magnum-bonum, and Winesour.

_Seasonable_ from the end of July to the beginning of October.

PLUMS.--The Damson, or Damascene plum, takes its name from Damascus, where it grows in great quant.i.ties, and whence it was brought into Italy about 114 B.C. The Orleans plum is from France. The Greengage is called after the Gage family, who first brought it into England from the monastery of the Chartreuse, at Paris, where it still bears the name of Reine Claude. The Magnum-bonum is our largest plum, and greatly esteemed for preserves and culinary purposes. The best sorts of plums are agreeable at the dessert, and, when perfectly ripe, are wholesome; but some are too astringent. They lose much of their bad qualities by baking, and are extensively used, from their cheapness, when in full season, in tarts and preserves; but they are not a very wholesome fruit, and should be eaten in moderation.