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Preparing Fruits for Creams and Ices

LEMONS. Lemons with smooth, thin skin are preferable to the rough, thick ones which are spongy and dry. Choose only sound fruit, wash them lightly in cold water and wipe them dry with a soft cloth, after which wrap in soft paper again and store away in a dry and cool box, well covered with a lid. By doing this the fruit will keep a good sound flavor, and all the odor of the box or the bad smell from the decayed fruit, so often noticed with lemons or oranges, will be removed, and an ice cream or water ice of superior quality will be the reward for the little trouble. To prepare the lemons for cream or other ices, they should be rubbed on a grater till all the yellow rind is taken off (don't get the white part or felt). Then rub this yellow rind up in a mortar with a little lump sugar. The fruit is then cut in half, pick out the seeds, squeeze out the juice, add the sugar and yellow rind, mix to solution, strain it and it is ready for use or it may then be bottled. By removing the seeds the juice will have a finer taste, as the seeds, especially when some are mashed in the squeezer, will impart a bitter flavor to the juice. Many ice cream makers neglect these little things. ORANGES. Select the best thin-skinned, dark oranges, either Florida or other heavy fruit, and proceed as above, PINEAPPLE. The best kind for ices is the Bahama pineapples; indeed, much better than the sugar loaf, which is better adapted for preserving whole. Pare and cut them into slices, cut out the core, which is hard and of very little flavor, grind or pound the pulp in a stone mortar and after straining add sugar, use it right away, as most of the fruit will darken or change color. STRAWBERRY AND RASPBERRY. In selecting strawberries the opinions differ a great deal as to which berry to use. While some prefer a large berry, others again say that the small berries contain more juice and flavor. From our own experience, a dark red, medium-sized, pointed-on-top berry gave the most satisfaction for color as well as for flavor and juice, while the extra large berries are more for the eye and well adapted for dessert or fruit stand. Mash the berries with a wooden masher; never use iron or copper, as this will discolor the fruit, then mix the sugar, bottle or use immediately. As the strawberry has not much acid it is best to add a little lemon juice, as it will highten the flavor and color as well. For raspberries follow the same rules. Use the dark berries, pick them and mash them and finish as quickly as possible, and never let any juice stand over night unless you have some sugar mixed with it, and set it in a porcelain-lined bowl in the refrigerator. CHERRY. As the variety of good cherries is not as abundant as in some other countries, unless you choose the California large or white kind, which do not come to us in a ripe enough state to be used for ices, it is best to use as far as possible the black varieties which are of fine flavor and good color. Stone the cherries, pound about one-tenth of the kernels to a paste, mash and mix well together, add sugar, let stand for a short time, stirring it occasionally, and strain. GRAPE. Any good grape, white, red or dark, will do for water ice; the only thing to be looked for is that the grapes are ripe and sound. Pick them off the stems, mash, strain and mix with your sugar or syrup.