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Greengages, to Preserve

Preserved greengages in a sugar syrup with kernels.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 3 ingredients
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Greengages, to Preserve

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare the fruit

  1. Split the greengages without peeling them and sprinkle some of the sugar over them.

  2. Blanch the kernels with a sharp knife.

Make the syrup

  1. The next day, pour the syrup from the fruit into a pot and boil it gently with the remaining sugar for 6 to 8 minutes.

  2. Skim the syrup and add the greengages and kernels.

  3. Simmer until clear, removing any scum that rises.

Pot and serve

  1. Place the fruit into small pots and pour the syrup and kernels over them.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.

Explore the science

What each ingredient does

Greengages
Provide the main fruit flavour and the body of the preserve.
Sugar
Sweetens the fruit and draws out syrup that preserves it.
Kernels
Add a bitter almond-like aroma to the syrup.

The step that matters

Simmer until clear, removing any scum that rises. Skimming off the scum as it forms keeps the syrup clear and removes impurities from the sugar and fruit, so the preserve looks clean and keeps better.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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