814-Uncast»f Firming, Saturday, July 22. 2000
Homemade Pie Fillings Pack Flavor And Nutrition
Nancy Wiker, family living and consumer science
agent, demonstrates the convenience of having home
canned pie filling on hand.
LOU ANN GOOD
Lancaster Farming Staff
LANCASTER (Lancaster Co.)
If you’ve tasted homemade pie
fillings, you'll never want to re
sort to store-purchased varieties
again.
This is the season to gather
tree- and vine-ripen fruits and
preserve them for use during
cold, winter months. Some freeze
or can the fruit and make the pie
filling when needed. But if you
prepare the pie filling ahead of
time, it is much more convenient
to use on the spur of the moment
and the taste is unbeatable.
Nancy Wiker, family living
and consumer science agent, con
ducted a pie filling workshop re
cently at the Lancaster Extension
kitchen. She demonstrated mak
ing pie filling using fresh
peaches, blueberries, and cher
ries, and addressed problems
that cooks face when preparing
pie fillings.
Remember to select sweet,
very ripe, but firm, vividly-col
ored fruit. If fruit is unripe or
overly-ripe, the end result is not
as favorable or as eye-appealing.
Numerous thickeners are
available for making pies. The
most traditional are flour and
corn «tarch. However, in recent
years. Clear Jel has become a fa
vorite among bakers.
Clear Jel is a corn starch that
has been modified to give it spe
cial and unique characteristics
when used in food products. It
can be used for canning fruit pie
fillings because it does not break
down in the acid food mixtures
and does not thicken enough
during heat processing to inter
fere with the killing effect on
bacteria during canning.
Clear Jel is preferred for thick
ening canned pie fillings as well
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as other foods because it has less
or no aftertaste, the thickened
juices are smooth and clear, and
foods thickened with Clear Jel
may be frozen.
However, there are two forms
of Clear Jel regular and in
stant. “Do not use instant Clear
Jel for pie fillings,” Wiker
warned workshop participants.
Instant Clear Jel must be mixed
thoroughly with sugar or it will
glob or string.
Clear Jel is not always avail
able in supermarkets. You can
often find it where bulk foods are
sold or mailorder from the fol
lowing sources:
Kitchen Krafts, P.O. Box 442,
Waukon, IA 52172.
Sweet Celebrations/Maid of
Scandinavia, 7009 Washington
Ave. S, Edina, MN 55439.
Home Canning Essentials (Al-
Itrista), P.O. Box 2005, Muncie,
IN 47307-0005.
Wiker also advises cooks to
stick to the same brand of flour
as flours react differently.
Corn starch, Clear Jel,
other thickeners lose their thick
ening ability as they age so dis
card outdated items.
Sugar does more than sweeten
fruit. In cooking and baking,
sugar helps fruit to keep its
shape.
Many pie filling recipes call for
lemon juice. Wiker said lemon
juice should be added after the
filling is thickened, because
lemon juice prevents thickening.
Here are some pie fillings
tested by Penn State Extension.
Amounts are given for one pie.
Multiply amounts as needed. For
example, if your canner pro
cesses seven quarts, multiply
each ingredient amount by seven.
Workshops are the ideal places to have cooking mysteries solved and learn why
cooking failures sometimes happen. Another plus is that participants can taste the
dishes used for demonstration to determine whether or not they want to duplicate the
recipes at home.
BLUEBERRY PIE FILLING
1-quart
3Vi cups fresh or thawed blue
berries
'A cup plus 2 tablespoons gran
ulated sugar
'A cup plus 1 tablespoon Clear
Jel
1 cup cold water
V/i teaspoons bottled lemon
juice
3 drops blue food coloring
1 drop red food coloring
Wash and drain blueberries.
For fresh fruit, place six cups at a
time in one gallon boiling water.
Boil each batch one minute after
the water returns to a boil. Drain
but keep heated fruit in a cov
ered bowl or pot. Combine sugar
and Clear Jel in a large kettle.
Stir. Add water, and, if desired,
food coloring. Cook on medium
high heat until mixture thickens
and begins to bubble. Add lemon
juice and boil one minute,
stirring constantly. Fold in drain
ed berries, fill jars immediately
with mixture, leaving one-inch
headspace, and process without
delay.
CHERRY PIE FILLING
1-quart
3'A cups fresh or thawed sour
cherries
1 cup granulated sugar
'A cup plus 1 tablespoon Clear
Jel
VA cups cold water
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon
bottled lemon juice
'/«teaspoon cinnamon (option
al)
'A teaspoon almond extract
6 drops red food coloring (op
tional)
Select very ripe, firm, tart
cherries. Rinse and pit cher
ries, and hold in cold water.
To prevent stem end brown
ing, hold pitted cherries in
water containing one tea
spoon ascorbic acid crystals
or six 500 mg vitamin C tab
lets in one gallon water. For
fresh fruit, place six cups at a
time in one gallon boiling
water. Boil each batch one
minute after the water re
turns to a boil. Drain but
keep heated fruit in a cov
ered bowl or pot. Combine
sugar and Clear Jel in large
saucepan. Add water and, if
desired, cinnamon, food col
oring, and almond extract.
Stir mixture and cook over
medium-high heat until mix
ture thickens and begins to
bubble. Add lemon juice and
boil one minute, stirring con
with mixture, leaving one-inch
headspace, and process without
delay.
PEACH PIE FILLING
1-quart
3'/cups fresh sliced peaches
1 cup granulated sugar
'A cup plus 1 tablespoon Clear
Jel
Vi cup cold water
'/«teaspoon cinnamon
'A teaspoon almond extract
Vi cup bottled lemon juice
Select ripe but firm peaches.
Peel peaches. To loosen skins
submerge peaches in boiling
water for 30-60 seconds, and
place in cold water for 20 sec
onds. Slip off skins and prepare
slices W-inch wide. Place slices in
water containing 1 teaspoon as
corbic acid crystals or six 500-mg
vitamin C tablets in one gallon of
water to prevent browning. For
fresh fruit, place 6 cups at a time
in one gallon boiling water. Boil
each batch one minute after the
water returns to a boil. Drain but
keep heated fruit in a covered
bowl or pot. Combine sugar,
Clear Jel, water, and cinnamon
or almond extract in a large ket
tle. Stir and cook on medium
high heat until mixture thickens
and begins to bubble. Add lemon
juice and boil sauce one minute
more, stirring constantly. Fold in
drained peach slices and contin
ue to heat for 3 minutes, then fill
jars with mixture, leaving one
inch headspace, and process
without delay.
Participants discover that pie fillings also make tasty
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PROCEDURE FOR
CANNING
ALL FILLINGS
Wash jars. Prepare lids
according to manufacturer’s in
structions. Fill fruit mixtures into
jars, leaving one-inch headspace.
Wipe sealing surface of jars with
a clean, damp paper towel. Add
lids, tighten screw bands, and
process.
To process in a boiling water
canner, preheat canner half-filled
with water to 180-degrees. Load
sealed jars into the canner rack
and lower with handles; or load
one jar at a time with a jar lifter
onto rack in canner. Add water if
needed to a level of one-inch
above jars and cover. When
water boils vigorously, lower heat
to maintain a gentle boil and
process for recommended time:
Apple fruit filling, pints or quarts
- 25 minutes. Blueberry, cherry,
and peach pie filling - 30 min
utes.
After processing is completed,
remove jars from canner with a
jar lifter and place on towel or
rack. Do not retighten screw
bands. Air-cool jars 12 to 24
hours. Remove screw bands and
check lid seals. A jar is sealed if
the center of its lid is indented or
concave. Wash, dry, label, and
store sealed jars in a clean, cool,
dark place. If a jar is unsealed,
examine and replace if it is defec
tive, use a new lid, and reprocess
as before. Wash screw bands and
store separately. Fillings are best
if used one year and safe as long
as lids remain vacuum sealed.