Preserve (Water Melon Peel)

Instructions

1. Cut the water melon peel in pieces. Cut off the outer green peel and all the soft inside, cutting away all the red part.
2. Then cut into square pieces or shapes, and prick well with a fork.
3. Lay the pieces in an earthen basin in lime water — two spoonfuls of lime to four quarts of water. Put a plate on the top to keep it under water, and leave all night.
4. Wash well in cold water next morning, then put in some cold water and let it boil till you can put a stick into it. Now drain.
5. Having previously weighed the peel, take the same weight in sugar. Set it on the fire in a saucepan, a layer of peel and a layer of sugar, with a few sticks of cinnamon and two or three cups of water.
6. Close the lid of the stewpan and let it simmer till the sugar is melted, then preserve gently, taking the lid off if there is a good quantity of syrup.
7. Put four or six cloves into the preserve.
8. If the water melon was an “American Ice Cream,” it will preserve in two or three hours, and be beautifully crisp and soft, almost melting in your mouth.