PRESERVED WATER-MELON RIND.

Having pared off the green skin, cut the rind of a water-melon into
pieces of any shape you please; stars, diamonds, circles, crescents or
leaves, using for the purpose a sharp penknife. Weigh the pieces, and
allow to each pound a pound and a halt of loaf sugar. Set the sugar
aside, and put the pieces of melon-rind into a preserving kettle, the
bottom and sides of which you, have lined with green vine leaves. Put a
layer of vine leaves between each, layer of melon-rind, and cover the
top with leaves. Disperse among the pieces some very small bits of
alum, each about the bigness of a grain of corn, and allowing one bit
to every pound of the melon-rind. Pour in just water enough to cover
the whole, and place a thick double cloth (or some other covering) over
the top of the kettle to keep in the steam, which will improve the
greening. Let it simmer (but not boil) for two hours. Then take out the
pieces of melon-rind and spread them on dishes to cool. Afterwards if
you find that they taste of the alum, simmer them in very weak ginger
tea for about three hours. Then proceed to make your syrup. Melt the
sugar in clear spring or pump water, allowing a pint of water to a
pound and a half of sugar, and mixing in with it some white of egg
beaten to a stiff froth. The white of one egg will be enough for four
pounds of sugar. Boil and skim it; and when the scum ceases to rise,
put in the melon-rind, and let it simmer an hour. Take it out and
spread it to cool on dishes return it to the syrup, and simmer it
another hour. After this take it out, and put it into a tureen. Boil up
the syrup again, and pour it over the melon-rind. Cover it, and let it
stand all night. Next morning give the syrup another boil; adding to It
some lemon-juice, allowing the juice of one lemon to a quart of the
syrup. When you find it so thick as to hang in a drop on the point of
the spoon, it is sufficiently done. Then put the rind into glass jars,
pour in the syrup, and secure the sweetmeats closely from the air with
paper dipped in brandy, and a leather outer cover.

This, if carefully done and well greened, is a very nice sweetmeat, and
may be used to ornament the top of creams, jellies, jams by laying it
round in rings or wreaths.

Citrons may be preserved green in the same manner, first paring off the
outer skin and cutting them into quarters. Also green limes.