One
citrus topic (yesterday) led me to another, as so often happens. I have
previously given you scripts from the regular program called Housekeepers’ Chat broadcast by the USDA
Radio Service regular program during the 1920’s to 1940’s. On February 3, 1933,
the topic was "Citrus Fruits" – and it is an interesting reminder of the
fact that oranges were an uncommon treat not so long ago.
Maybe you remember the
time - not so long ago, either - when an
orange was a special treat, when oranges only came on special occasions - in
stockings at Christmas, perhaps, or as a reward for very good behavior, or as a
birthday treat. Who would have thought, in those days, that oranges would ever
become so plentiful and often so cheap that they would be counted as a regular
part of the baby' s diet or that many families would begin each day with an
orange or a glass of orange juice all around at breakfast?
Of course, oranges in
some -parts of the country are still a luxury. Many families have to count
themselves lucky nowadays if they can provide so much as an orange for the baby
once in a while. But this year oranges - and also their relatives grapefruit -
are plentiful and prices are at their lowest during these winter months. Many
stores are featuring the citrus fruits, making bargain offers of fifteen
oranges to the dozen.
All the citrus fruits,
but especially oranges, are valuable additions to our diet, especially at this
time of year when other fruits are not plentiful. You remember the stories of
how sailors and passengers on long sea voyages so often fell ill of that
terrible malady - scurvy. This disease set in after the supply of fresh foods
had given out when the diet was mostly of dried, smoked and salt food. Then
someone discovered that lemons or oranges would store well on shipboard and
that they not only cured but also prevented scurvy. When the Arabs brought
lemons from the Far East into Europe and when lemon trees were transplanted
from the gardens of Omar in Arabia to the Mediterranean lands, sailors had a remedy
for scurvy. We know nor that scurvy results from the lack of vitamin C. The
scientists say this vitamin is necessary for good "tooth nutrition"
and that bleeding gums, loose teeth, sore joints, loss of appetite with loss of
weight and fatigue are symptoms of a lack of it. In extreme form these are the
symptoms of scurvy. Oranges, lemons and grapefruit are all rich in vitamin C,
They are also rich in vitamin 3, which gives good muscle tone to the digestive
tract. But oranges have still another vitamin to their credit. They are also
rich in vitamin A, the vitamin we talked about last Monday, which builds
resistance to infection and is necessary to general well-being. Yellow foods
and green foods are generally good sources of Vitamin A. Since the orange is a
deeper yellow than the other citrus fruits, this may account for its richness
in this vitamin.
Oranges, lemons and
limes probably all originated in India or Indo-China and came westward to
Europe with the Mohammedans. Some historians say that the Crusaders brought
these strange new fruits back with them after the wars. Oranges tire first
cultivated in Europe in the 15th century. But grapefruit received its firs recognition
in the United States. Since 1900 it has become more and more popular as a
breakfast, salad, and dessert fruit. Where did it get its name? Well, if you’ve
ever seen a grapefruit growing you'll remember that the great pale yellow balls
grow in clusters which at a distance suggest bunches of huge grapes.
Most of us present-day
cooks could hardly imagine preparing meals with out citrus fruits. We use them
in so many ways. They make appetizers and sauces, salads and desserts of all
kinds; filling and frostings; oreads, biscuits and beverages; candies and
marmalades and garnishes. Although the pulp is the part of these fruits we eat
the most, the rind has many uses, and in oranges the rind happens to be richer
in vitamin A than the orange pulp. You can make a delicious confection by
candying orange or grapefruit rind. You can use orange or lemon-peel for
flavoring desserts or for making orange or lemon biscuits or muffins.
Wherever a tart flavor
adds to a food you can count on citrus fruits, especially lemon. A thin slice
of lemon in a bowl of thick bean or pea soup makes the soup much more
delicious. Lemon served with fish is an old tradition. The fish seems to need
just that dash of tartness to set off its own flavor.
Lemons have other
convenient uses in the kitchen. They are good for bleaching purposes. If you
are cutting up bananas, apples, pear or fresh peaches for a fruit salad or
fruit cup, add lemon juice to keep these diced fruits from turning dark. Old-fashioned
housewives have always used lemons for keeping their hands white, and for
taking out rust stains from linen. One friend of mine saves lemon rinds after
extracting the juice. She dips these rinds in salt and uses them to clean her
tarnished copper or brass.
One more lemon hint.
Put a few drops of lemon juice in the water when you are poaching eggs. It will
help the white of egg coagulate and keep the egg from separating.
There, Let's consider
the menu now. Here's a menu for a Friday dinner.
Salmon croquettes;
Buttered peas or green beans; Creamed celery; Graham rolls; and,
for dessert, Lemon pie
or lemon tarts; and, Coffee.
Once more: Salmon
croquettes; Buttered peas and green beans; Creamed celery;
Graham rolls; and, for
dessert, Lemon pie or lemon tarts; and, Coffee.
Monday we’ll talk about
ways to cook cereals and I'll give you a new and very inexpensive recipe for
cheese mush and bacon.
One
advantage that citrus fruits has over other fruits when it comes to making jam
is that it is high in pectin, which is the ‘setting’ agent.
A
Farmers’ Bulletin of the US
Department of Agriculture in 1938 acknowledged this issue and gave instructions
for making pectin at home to add when making other jams.
Pectin extracts and
powders may be used to prepare jelly from well-flavored but pectin-poor fruits
which could not otherwise be so utilized. Both extracts and powders may be
bought in commercial form. The extract may be made at home.
…..Pectin extracts may
be made at home from skins, cores, and pulp of apples, or from the white peel
of oranges and lemons, all of which contain abundant pectin. These extracts
must be processed if they are to be held for future use. Directions for making
these extracts and using them in typical products follow.
Home-Made Orange or Lemon Pectin
Extract
Select oranges and
lemons with thick skins. Wash the fruit and remove the yellow rind, using a
stainless steel knife in order not to discolor the peel.
For each pound of the
fresh white peel, use 2 quarts of water and 1 tablespoon of tartaric acid. Add
the acid to the water and stir until dissolved. Put the fresh peel through a
meat grinder, using the coarse plate. Place the ground peel in a large flat-bottomed
pan to permit rapid boiling and cover with the acid solution. Allow the mixture
to stand for an hour or two. Measure the depth of the mixture in the pan. Boil
rapidly and stir constantly until the volume is reduced to half. Strain through
four thicknesses of cheesecloth.
Make two more
extractions in this same way, using 2 quarts of water, and
1 tablespoon of
tartaric acid to the pomace each time. It is not necessary, however, for the
mixture to stand after the first time.
Combine the three
extractions. There should be about 2½ pints. If the product is to be kept for
future use, process it in a boiling-water bath as directed for the apple pectin
extract*.
* If the extract is not to be used at once, pour it
while hot into hot sterilized half-pint jars, partially seal, process on a rack
in a boiling-water bath for 20 minutes, complete the seal, and store in a cool,
dry place. Once the canned extract is opened, it must be used immediately, as
it will not keep.
Strawberry Jelly with Added Pectin
2 pounds strawberries
2/3 cup apple or lemon
pectin extract, or ¾ cup orange pectin extract
2 tablespoons water
2 cups sugar
Wash the berries
thoroughly and remove the caps. Add the water to the berries, boil rapidly for
a few minutes until the berries are soft, and strain through a jelly bag. (This
yields about 2 cups of juice.) Mix the 2 cups of strawberry juice with the
sugar and the pectin extract. If the berries are especially lacking in acid,
add 1 teaspoon of lemon juice to each cup of the juice. Boil rapidly until the
jelly stage is reached and pour into hot sterilized glasses.
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