Читать книгу The Canadian Settler's Guide - Catharine Parr Traill - Страница 36

The drying of apples is a great business in the houses of the Canadian farmers, where they have orchards, or live near those who have large orchards, who will sell the inferior fruit very cheap, as low as 7½d. a bushel, if you gather them yourself. Those who revel in an abundance of this useful fruit, often call their young friends together to an Apple-paring "Bee". Bushels and bushels of apples are pared, cored and strung on Dutch thread, by the young men and maidens, and the walls of the kitchen festooned round with the apples, where they hang till dry and shrivelled. They should be dipped into boiling water as they are hung up; this preserves the colour. Some expose them to the action of the sun and wind, on the walls of the house, or spread them on clean boards or trays; when thoroughly dry, they are stored in bags, and hung in a dry place, out of the dust. These dried apples find ready sale at 1s. 6d. per lb., and even higher, if the season be far advanced, and apples scarce. When required for use, they are steeped for some time in hot water. Stewed till tender, with a seasoning of cloves, these apples form a delightful preserve, and rarely need any sugar; but if too sour, a small quantity is easily added.—Some add molasses. Tarts, pies and many pleasant dishes are made with these dried apples: a delicious fever drink is made by pouring off the liquor after the apples have boiled a few minutes. By this simple process of drying, you may have apples to make use of all the year round, long after the fruit has decayed, and lost its flavour, in the apple chamber. In England this process of drying apples might be adopted to advantage.