Remove the eyes, using pineapple scissors to facilitate the work.

4. Blanch pineapple for five minutes in a small amount of boiling water, using a wire basket or cheesecloth.

5. Cold-dip the pineapple.

6. Make a sirup, using the blanching water. Make a thin or medium-thin sirup.

7. Pack the pineapple into hot sterilized jars, with good rubbers on them.

8. Pour the sirup over the pineapple.

9. Put the tops of the jars on—not tight.

10. Sterilize for 30 minutes in hot-water-bath outfit, 30 minutes in condensed-steam outfit, 25 minutes in water-seal outfit, 25 minutes in steam pressure (5 pounds), 18 minutes in pressure cooker (10 pounds).

11. Remove from canner, tighten covers and inspect rubber and joints.

APPLES

Here are six ways in which canned apples may be used: as a breakfast dish, with cream and sugar; baked like fresh apples; in apple salad, often served for lunch or supper; as a relish with roast pork—the apples may be fried in the pork fat or the cores may be cooked with roast pork for flavoring; and for apple dumplings, deep apple pie and other desserts in which whole apples are desirable. The sirup of canned whole apples can be used for pudding sauces or fruit drinks.

Apples are another hard fruit which require blanching, as it greatly improves their texture and appearance.

Apples and some other fruits, such as pears and quinces, have a tendency to turn brown when allowed to stand after they are cut. To prevent their discoloring the pieces may be dropped into mild salt water as they are pared and sliced. Let them stand for five minutes, then wash them in clear water and pack. Use a thin sirup for canning apples.

Summer apples are not firm enough to keep well when canned. They cook up and lose flavor. They may, however, be canned to be used in a short time. Windfall apples may be pared, cored and sliced, using water, and only a small quantity of that, instead of sirup, and canned for pies.

To be able to can windfall and cull apples and thus have them for home use through the entire year is a great advantage to all farmers who grow them. They can be sold on the market canned when they would not bring a cent in the fresh state.

The windfall and cull apples may be divided into two grades. The first grade would include the whole reasonably sound fruit; the second grade the worm-eaten, partially decayed and injured fruit. Do not can any injured or decayed part nor allow apples to become overripe before canning.

Canning Whole Reasonably Firm Apples. Wash the apples. Remove cores and blemishes. Place whole apples in blanching tray or blanching cloth and blanch in boiling hot water for one or two minutes. Remove and plunge quickly into cold water. Pack in large glass jars. Pour over the product a hot thin sirup. Place rubber and top in position. Seal partially—not tight.

Sterilize jars twenty minutes in hot-water-bath outfit and in condensed steam, fifteen minutes in water-seal, ten minutes in steam-pressure outfit with five pounds of steam pressure, five minutes in aluminum pressure-cooker outfit, under ten pounds of steam pressure. Remove jars, tighten covers, invert to cool and test joints.

Firm and tart apples may be cored and peeled first, then canned by the above recipe.

Canning Apples for Pie Filling. Use second grade of windfalls or culls. Wash, core, pare and remove all decayed spots. Slice apple quickly into a basin containing slightly salted cold water—about one tablespoon of salt per gallon—to prevent discoloring. Pack fresh cold product in glass jars. Add one cupful of hot thin sirup to each quart of fruit. Put on the rubbers and screw on tops, but do not seal completely. Sterilize twelve minutes in hot-water bath or condensed-steam outfit; ten minutes in water-seal outfit; six minutes under five pounds of steam pressure; four minutes in aluminum pressure cooker. Remove jars, tighten covers, invert to cool and test joint. Store.

This filling can be used for making apple pies in the same way that fresh apples would be used, with the exception that the sirup must be poured off and less sugar should be used. Since the apples have already been cooked, only enough heat is needed to cook the crust and to warm the apples through. Pies may be baked in seven minutes. The apple pies made with these apples are, in the opinion of many housekeepers, as good as those made with fresh fruit, and they can be made in less time and are less expensive.

The only difference between canning apples for pies and salads or whole is that when wanted for pies the apples should be sliced immediately after placing in cold slightly salted water.

Canning Quartered Apples for Fruit Salads. Select best-grade culls of firm and rather tart varieties. Core, pare and quarter. Drop into basin containing slightly salted cold water. Pack these quartered pieces tightly in jars. Add a cup of hot thin sirup to each quart. Place rubber and top in position, partially seal—not tight. Sterilize twelve minutes in hot-water bath and condensed-steam outfits; ten minutes in water-seal outfit; six minutes under five pounds of steam pressure; four minutes in aluminum pressure cooker. Remove jars, tighten covers, invert to cool and test joints. Store.

ORANGES

Canning Whole Oranges and Other Citrus Fruits. Select windfall or packing-plant culls. Use no unsound or decayed fruit. Remove skin and white fiber on surface. Blanch fruit in boiling water one and a half minutes. Dip quickly in cold water. Pack containers full. Add boiling hot thin sirup. Place rubber and cap in position and partially seal—not tight.

Sterilize twelve minutes in hot-water-bath and condensed-steam outfits; eight minutes in water-seal outfit; six minutes in steam-pressure outfit under five pounds of steam; four minutes in aluminum pressure-cooker outfit. Remove jars, tighten covers, invert to cool and test joints. Wrap glass jars with paper to prevent bleaching, and store.

Canning Sliced Oranges for Salad Purposes. The oranges may be divided into their natural sections or sliced with a knife. Pack jars or containers full. Pour over product hot thin sirup. Place rubber and cap in position. Partially seal—not tight. Sterilize ten minutes in hot-water-bath and condensed-steam outfits; six minutes in water-seal outfit; five minutes in steam-pressure outfit with five pounds of steam; four minutes in aluminum pressure-cooker outfit under ten pounds of steam. Remove jars, tighten covers, invert to cool and test the joints. Wrap jars with paper to prevent bleaching, and store.

PEARS, QUINCES AND RHUBARB

Pears are prepared and canned just as the whole firm apples are, being blanched a minute and a half, cold-dipped and sterilized for the same length of time as apples.

Quinces are so very hard they must be blanched like pineapples, but for a longer time. Six minutes' blanching is usually sufficient for quinces. The sterilizing period can be determined by looking at the chart.

If skins are left on rhubarb it keeps its pink color. The hot dip is not necessary and may be omitted. It removes some of the excessive acid in the rhubarb which makes it objectionable to some people. Be very careful not to hot-dip the rhubarb more than one minute, for it gets mushy. An advantage of the hot dip is that more rhubarb can be packed in a jar after it has been hot-dipped.

WHAT A BUSHEL OF FRUIT WILL YIELD

A great many women have no conception of how many jars of fruit they will get from a bushel or half bushel of produce. It is wise to have a little knowledge along this line, for it aids in planning the winter's supply of canned goods as well as at marketing time.

From one bushel of the various fruits you will get on the average the following: