STRAWBERRIES.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVI, 13 November 1926, Page 17

STRAWBERRIES.

HOW TO PREPARE! THEM. The cry of the strawberry hawker reminds the housekeeper of the uses of this most delicious fruit. Straw beiry jam is an invaluable help in the storeouoboard. The great thing in making this is to keep the fruit as whole as possible. To do this successfully it is hast to choose large berries. Allow lib of brewers’ crystals, which should ho crushed very finely, to each pound of fruit. Divide the sugar into two parts Put alternate layers of berries, and sugar into the preserving pan. cooking it-over a slow fire till the sugar is melted. In the meantime -put*the remainder of the sugar where it will get hot without melting, add it to that in the pan when this last has melted, cook slowly till the whole melts, then boil hard for five minutes, skimming carefully. Remove the berries from the pan with a wooden spoon, and pack in glass jars. Boil and reduce the syrup in the pan, skimming it well, and when it “jellies” strain over the strawberries in the glass jars, slightly stirring them. When cold seal tightly. This method may la-ppear tedious, but it well repay? the extra trouble. Preserved this way, a few berries in the jelly placed in je'.K glasses, filled up with cream, make a. quickly prepared, and inviting sweet. Stria-wherry wafers are an uncommon confection. Put the hulled fruit into an eartheni jar, cover it closely, and put into a.pan of boiling water, keep t boiling till the juice flows freely. Press and strain the juice. Mix it wifi confectioners sugar in the proportion of lib of sugar to every pint of juice, and the whipped white of one egg Spread in a. thin layer on well-buttered paper, cut it with a knife into oblongs about 4 inches by two, and put them into a cool oven till they are dry enough to leave the paper. Turn the wafers to the other side, and return to the oven till they are perfectly dry. Store in shallow tins, with covers. Oranges and lemons, black berries, and in fact, any juicy fruit can be treated in the same way. Strawberry and custard is made by covering the bottom of a buttered piedish with strawberries dusted with sugar, over which are placed about 4oz of fine grated breadcrumbs. Make a custard, allowing two eggs to 1 pint of milk, stirred over the fire till :t. thickens. Pour this over the breadcrumbs, then, hake the pudding in a moderate oven for half an hour.

Strawberry mould is a nice way of living stale' bread. Butter a plain mould, and line it with slices of thin bread and butter, or if preferred slices ef stale sponge cake. Fill up with layers of ripe strawberries to within two inches of the top. Pour over a custard to which has been added sufficient cornflour to make it set when cold. When firm turn out, and serve with cream.

Shortbread is always popular, but strawberry shortbread is especially appealing. For this make a point of choosing fine berries. Hull them, sprinkle sparsely with sugar, and set them aside in a cool place till the shortbread is ready. Allow two parts of flour to one of butter, and i of a part of sugar. Cream the butter, and gradually work in. the flour and sugar until the mixture is quite smooth. Rob out the paste to half-inch thickness, and place in well-greased sandwich tins. Bake for 25 minutes in a good oven. Turn out, and when cold put a thick layer of strawberries between each round. If liked, the shortbread miay be arranged in- three layers with two layers of fruit. The top layer may be iced with red currant jelly icing.

An artistic way of serving 'strawberries and cream is to fill a. chan till' basket with hulled strawberries, and sweetened whipped cream-. The basket is tirade by melting barley sugar, and pouring .it at the bottom and round a plain oiled mould, and lining it with macaroons. When cold the macaroons form a case to -hold the mixture. —F.G. in the Sydney Morning Herald.