Introduction

        " Crystallized fruit is wonderful sight when arranged in a fancy dish in the center of a table and is an even greater talking point when your friends find out that you made it yourself. However, although it is not as simple to make as baking a cake, once made it will keep almost indefinitely in tightly sealed jars, and makes excellent decorations for those special cakes."
                There are many fruits which can be crystallized such as Plums, Apricots, Peaches, Apples, Pears, and Pineapples. Melon also can be used, but only the harder inside above the rind, but this will be discussed later. The fruits should be ripe but still firm. Soft fruits such as strawberries and raspberries are generally not used as they tend to disintegrate during the prolonged soaking. However, after saying this, never let this stop you from experimenting with different fruits because there are many exotic fruits such as Kiwi fruit etc, which I am sure would work just as well with a little care.
                For the moment we will look at how to crystallize one of the easier fruits, Pineapple. Large fruits such as pineapples and oranges are generally skinned and cut into sections which makes them easier to handle ( and easier to crystallize because the sugar does not have so far to penetrate ). Smaller fruits are often crystallized whole.

            Any fruits left intact should be briefly poached in water so that they will absorb the sugar more readily. Firm fruits need about 15 minutes cooking; soft fruits require 4 minutes at most. Glucose is added because it is absorbed into the fruit more easily than sugar alone, and thus helps to prevent the fruit wrinkling