Important: Safety Warning
This page describes home-canning methods from before the causes of botulism were understood. Canning low-acid foods without a pressure canner, as described here, can allow the growth of Clostridium botulinum, whose toxin is among the deadliest known. Follow current USDA home-canning guidelines instead.
This information has been left in for historical purposes but should not be acted upon.
Home › The Principles of Cookery › Greengages, to Bottle
Greengages, to Bottle
Choose perfectly sound greengages, gathered on a dry day, before they are fully ripe. Put them into wide-mouthed bottles, and fill these with syrup, made by boiling a pint of water with a pound of sugar for four or five minutes. Cork securely, and put them up to their necks in a large pan of cold water, with straw between the bottles to prevent them cracking. Bring the contents of the pan slowly to a boil; after boiling, simmer gently for a quarter of an hour; leave them until cold, seal the corks securely, and keep the bottles in a cool place, with the necks downwards. If there is any leakage, the fruit must be used at once; otherwise, it will keep for years. Probable cost of greengages, when in full season, 6d. per quart.