How Do You Preserve Fruit Without Sugar?
• Gather the fruit before it is very ripe. Slightly under ripe fruit has firmer flesh that stands up to the process used for preserving it better than very ripe fruit. • Prepare the fruit by thoroughly washing it, and for fruits where it is desirable, peeling and removing the pits or seeds. • Put it in wide-mouthed bottles. Canning jars with dome type lids using modern latex seals create a safer seal than do old cork-stoppered canning bottles described in the original instructions. • Fill them as full as they will hold and cork them tight. If using canning jars, install dome lids and bands and tighten snugly. • Seal the corks. This is done by melting parrafin wax and dipping the corks in it. • Put some hay in a large saucepan. This will prevent the bottles from bumping together while the water is boiled, which could cause them to crack. • Set in the bottles with hay between them to prevent their touching. You may choose to use cotton washcloths if hay is not easily obtainable, but reme
