Index of Preserves

Apple Jelly

Apple and Green Tomato Relish

Applesauce - Grandpa Style

Chow Chow

Chutney

Easy Apple Butter

Georgia Pear Relish

Ginger Pears

Household Searchlight Ginger Pears

Household Searchlight Pear Honey

Instant Microwave Jam

Moma's Pear Preserves

Old-Time Pear Mincemeat

Pear Butter

Pear Conserve

Pear Cranberry Jam

Pear Honey

Pear Jam

Pear Pickles

Quick and Easy Fruit Freezing

Sweet Pickled Pears

Definitions of types of Preserves

Jam - a preserve in which fruit or berries are mashed or blended and cooked with sugar to a spreading consistency. See pear jam.

Jellies - made with the juice of strained fruit or berries and cooked with sugar to the jelly stage. See apple jelly.

Preserves - in which whole are chunks of fruit are cooked in a clear sugar syrup until plump and tender. See ginger pears.

Marmalade - a Scottish favorite (just ask Bruce) in which the rind and juice of citrus fruit are combined with sugar syrup and cooked to a jelly stage.

Fruit Butters - in which fruit puree is combined with sugar (and sometimes spices) then slowly cooked on a low heat until a smooth spreading consistency is achieved. See easy apple butter.

Conserve - a jam-like blend of fruits which is often combined with raisins and nuts. See pear conserve.

Chutney - a hot and spicy form of conserve.

Pickles - many kinds of fruits and vegetables can be pickled using a brine or spiced mixture of vinegar and sugar. See pickled pears.

Relish - usually finely chopped or ground vegetables or fruits cooked in a similar fashion to pickles but in a sweet and/or sour sauce. See pear relish.

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Recipes for Jams, Jellies, Butters, Pickles & Preserves Using Washington Grown Apples and Pears From Fruit From Washington

Jams, Jellies, Butters, Pickles & Preserves

Home canning and food preservation is not a lost art. We know there are families that keep the traditions alive by putting up jams, jellies, conserves, sauces and butters as their grandparents did. Send us your tried and true recipes for apple and pear preserves and we will consider them for posting to this site. You can send your favorite fruit recipe to us by regular mail. Please address to Fruit From Washington Recipes, D.R. Eberhart & Associates, P.O. Box 539, Kittitas, WA 98934 U.S.A. Include a self-addressed stamped envelope if you would like your submission returned. For food safety information, see: www.foodsafety.gov.

(Photo Credit: Russ Nicholson peeling apples. Shenandoah National Park, Virginia - October 1935. Photographer: Arthur Rothstein. Source: Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division, FSA-OWI Collection, LC-USF34-T01-000363-D).

Here's a quiz for you! What is made from apples that can be used as a substitute for oil, shortening or butter in baked goods? This fabulous, amazing apple product is high in soluble fiber, adds moisture and texture to food and remember, it adds no fat! You simply substitute the same amount of this apple product for all or part of the amount of oil that your recipe calls for...can you guess what it is? Click for the answer.

ARC Identifier: 514507 "Home Canning Jars, Caps, Rubbers" , 1941 - 1945 Still Picture Records LICON, Special Media Archives Services Division (NWCS-S), National Archives at College Park, MD. Click image for larger view.	ARC Identifier: 514523 "Home Canning Don't..." , 1941 - 1945 Still Picture Records LICON, Special Media Archives Services Division (NWCS-S), National Archives at College Park, MD. Click image for larger view.

Pear Cranberry Jam

This old-fashioned jam recipe is from The Household Searchlight cookbook. Recommended methods for processing preserves have changed over the years. Remember to use 'proper canning' methods if you make this recipe! - ce

2 Cups Dried Pears
3 Cups Water
2 Cups Cranberries
3 1/2 Cups Sugar
1 Cup Thinly Sliced Fresh Apples

Remove cores from pears. Wash pears. Chop. Wash cranberries. Combine fruits, water, and sugar. Simmer, stirring frequently, until thick and clear. Pour into sterilized glasses. Cover with melted paraffin.

Chutney

This old-fashioned jam recipe is from the September 1934 issue of The Household Magazine (p. 35). Recommended methods for processing preserves have changed over the years. Remember to use 'proper canning' methods if you make this recipe! - ce

10 Sour Apples, Chopped
2 Green Peppers, Chopped
1 Onion, Chopped
1/2 Cup Chopped Preserved Ginger
1/2 Teaspoon Chili Powder
1/2 Cup Raisins
1/2 Teaspoon Ginger
1 1/2 Cups Vinegar
1/2 Cup Water
1 Tablespoon Mustard Seed
6 Whole Cloves
1/2 Teaspoon Allspice
1/2 Bay Leaf
2/3 Cup Brown Sugar
1 1/2 Teaspoons Salt

Combine ingredients. Simmer, stirring frequently, until thick. Pour into sterilized jars. Seal. -- Mrs. Howard E. Argabright, Wellston, Ohio.

Moma's Pear Preserves

“The recipe was brought over the Oregon Trail from Illinois by my great-grandparents and grand-parents, and you can’t buy it in stores. My Mother’s ‘Cellar’ was never complete without it for winter use.” - Bertha Snyder Goetz (From Juneau Centennial Cookbook, written and collected by Jane Stewart and Betty Harris, edited and designed by Phyllice F. Bradner. Published in 1980).

6 lbs Bartlett pears, washed, stemmed, and dark spots cut out. Cut in half lengthwise, then in quarters (8 pieces to 1 pear).

Have ready a large preserving kettle with 5 lbs sugar. Add 3 C boiling water and stir until sugar is dissolved. As it boils up, add the pears gradually until all are in the syrup.

Add 36 whole cloves and 4 - 5 sticks of cinnamon, leaving lengthwise as much as possible as it looks nice in the jars. Cook about 11/2 hours at a steady pace after it boils up. When it turns a light amber color, turn off heat. Let cool. (Will get a little darker.)

As it boils, use a wooden spoon to push down sides of kettle and pears to center ones get well cooked too.

(Note: Use standard canning procedures to process).

Apple and Green Tomato Relish

A favorite family recipe from the kitchen of Pauline Widner. This recipe appears here in memory of Pauline with the generous permission of the Widner Family.

20 medium green tomatoes
8 medium onions
12 medium Golden Delicious apples
3 or 4 green peppers
5 cups sugar
4 cups apple cider vinegar
2 Tablespoons salt
3 teaspoons celery seed
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cloves

Grind all ingredients and mix together. Bring to a boil on medium heat, continue to cook for 30 minutes, stirring often.

Put in pint jars and seal. Process in water bath for 10 minutes. Makes approximately 7 pints.

Old-Time Pear Mincemeat

New-time cooks win praise on pies made with Grandma's pear mincemeat. From: Freezing & Canning Cookbook, Prized Recipes from the Farms of America, Edited by Nell B. Nichols, Farm Journal, Inc.

7 lbs. ripe Bartlett pears
1 lemon
2 (1 lb.) pkgs. seedless raisins
6 3/4 c. sugar
1 c. vinegar
1 T. cloves
1 T. cinnamon
1 T. nutmeg
1 T. allspice
1 tsp. ginger

Core and quarter pears.

Cut lemon into quarters, removing seeds.

Put pears, lemon and raisins through food chopper.

Combine remaining ingredients in large kettle. Add chopped fruit mixture. Bring to a boil over medium heat; simmer 40 minutes.

Pack at once in hot pint jars. Adjust lids. Process in boiling water bath (212°F.) 25 minutes.

Remove jars from canner and complete seals unless closures are self-sealing type. Makes 9 pints.

Donnie Simonson's Pear Conserve

Click for enlarged view of Recipe Card • Click Here for Back of Recipe Card

Call or email for price and availability of bushel quantities of apples that are great for cooking and drying such as Jonagolds or Gala apples (starting in mid-August and Romes in October) or check our apple and pear catalog pages.

Quick and Easy Fruit Freezing Directions

For freezing fruit, just peel, core, slice and mix with a little lemon juice. Place in freezer bags or other tightly sealed containers in the freezer until ready to use.

Instant Jam

A quick and easy microwave jam recipe for summer berries

3 c. whole fresh berries (separate or combine: strawberries, raspberries, boysenberries, marionberries, blueberries or blackberries)
1 1/2 c. sugar
4 tsp. lemon juice
1/2 tsp. butter or margarine

Wash berries, remove stems or hulls and crush in a bowl. Measure 1 cup crushed berries into a 3 quart microwave safe casserole dish. Stir in half of the sugar, lemon juice and butter. Cook uncovered in microwave for 8 minutes. Stir every couple of minutes. Repeat with the second batch using remaining ingredients. Makes 2 cups of instant berry jam. Serve warm over fresh baked scones. Refrigerate in covered container.

Apple Jelly

3 lbs. tart apples
3 c. water
2 T. lemon juice (optional)
3 c. sugar

Prepare juice in a steamer, canner, juicer according to manufacturer's directions or wash apples, remove stems and blossom calyx ends. Do not peel or core but cut into small pieces. Add water; cover, bring to boil over high heat. Simmer for 20 - 25 minutes over lower heat until apples are soft. Use a damp jelly bag or several layers of cheesecloth to strain out juice.

To make jelly place apple juice in large pan. Stir in lemon juice and sugar until dissolved. Bring to boil over high, stir constantly until jelly mixture sheets from spoon. Remove from heat, skim foam, ladle into hot, sterilized jars, leaving 1/4 inch headspace. Adjust two-piece caps and process five minute in a boiling water canner.

Applesauce--Grandpa's Style

Wash, core, peel and cut up in coarse pieces about 3 pounds of apples per quart. Cook apples until soft in a large kettle with enough water to prevent sticking. Add approximately 1/4 cup sugar per pound of apples or to taste. Sweeter varieties of apples will require less sugar. Bring applesauce to a boil, stirring constantly. Reduce heat and add spices such as cinnamon, allspice, cloves and nutmeg. Simmer for five minutes. Fill hot jars leaving adequate headspace. Remove air bubbles, adjust two-piece caps and seal. Process in boiling-water canner for 20 minutes.

Chow Chow

In this recipe it is not necessary to measure all that carefully.

2 - 3 quarts of ripe tomatoes (scald, peel and cut into pieces)
2 large onions
2 peppers
2 apples (try Galas)
2 stalks celery
1 - 2 c. vinegar
1 c. brown sugar
1/8 c. salt
pinch of cayenne
few whole cloves
1 - 2 sticks cinnamon

Finely chop all tomatoes, onions, peppers, apples and celery in a food processor or put through meat grinder. Mix with remaining ingredients. Cook over medium heat, stir occasionally, until of consistency to your liking. Taste and correct seasoning. Fill hot jars to 1/4 inch of top, adjust two piece caps and seal. Process 10 minutes in boiling-water canner.

Sweet Pickled Pears

1 pint vinegar
4 c. sugar
7 lbs. firm, ripe small pears (peeled)
2 T. whole cloves
1 T. mixed spices

Put vinegar and sugar on the stove and bring to boil, then scald pears in this solution. Pear should stay in long enough to heat through but should not be allowed to shrivel or fall apart. Fill sterilized jars leaving 1/4 inch headspace. Remove air bubbles, adjust two-piece caps and seal. Process in boiling-water canner for 15 minutes.

Georgia Pear Relish

10 lbs. pears, peeled, cored and coarsely ground
3 green peppers, seeded and ground
3 red sweet peppers, seeded and ground
6 onions, ground
4 c. cider vinegar
4 c. sugar
1 tsp. celery seeds
1 T. mixed pickling spices
1 T. mustard seeds

Place pears, peppers, onions, vinegar and sugar in large pan. Tie celery seeds, pickling spices and mustard seeds in muslin or cheesecloth bag and add to the mixture. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally and simmer about 40 minutes. Discard spice bag. Pour relish into hot sterilized jars and cap with two-piece lids. Process in boiling-water canner for 15 minutes. Store in cool, dark, dry place until ready to use, then refrigerate after opening.

Pear Pickles

12 lbs. firm, ripe pears (small sized)
1 T. pickling spices
1 tsp. whole cloves
1 small piece ginger root
3 c. sugar
1/2 c. thinly sliced lemon
2 1/2 c. water
1 1/2 c. vinegar

Peel pears, leaving whole with stem intact. Treat pears in fruit fresh or lemon water to prevent browning. Place spices in cheesecloth bag. Combine spice bag, sugar, lemon, water and vinegar in large pan; simmer 5 minutes. Add pears, a layer at a time, cooking gently until tender (about 15 minutes). Remove cooked pears from liquid and repeat until all pears are cooked. Put pears in ceramic bowl and ladle pickling juices over pears. Cover and let stand 12 hours in a cool place. Remove spice bag and pears. Bring pickling liquid to boil. Pack pears into hot jars, leaving 1/4 inch headspace. Remove air bubbles, adjust two-piece caps. Process for 15 minutes in boiling-water canner.

Use Fruit From Washington's Recipe Adjuster Program to change any recipe to feed a crowd!

Quiz Answer: Applesauce is the amazing product made from apples that is high in soluble fiber and can be substituted for oil, shortening or butter in recipes for baked goods!

More on Fruit Drying, Fruit Leather, Fruit Roll-ups,
Dried Apple, Dried Pear and Other Dehydrated Food Snacks

Note: We recommend the Ball Blue Book Guide to Home Canning, Freezing & Dehydration for specific directions on home canning pears and other fruits and vegetables. You can usually find it at a local store that sells canning and dehydrating supplies and equipment. Here are some web links for more information on Food Preservation Methods.

Food Preservation Methods Links • Basics on Canning • Recommended Uses for Washington Apples

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