A Plain Cookery Book for the Working Classes Part 11

No. 207. APPLE-WATER DRINK.

Slice up thinly three or four apples without peeling them, and boil them in a very clean saucepan with a quart of water and a little sugar until the slices of apples are become soft; the apple water must then be strained through a piece of clean muslin, or rag, into a jug. This pleasant beverage should be drunk when cold; it is considered beneficial in aiding to allay s...o...b..tic eruptions.

No. 208. HOW TO MAKE A SOOTHING DRINK FOR COUGHS.

Take of marsh-mallow roots and of liquorice roots each one ounce; of linseed, half an ounce; shave the roots very thinly; put them and the linseed into a clean earthen pot with one quart of hot water, cover with the lid, and set the whole on the hob of the fire to simmer for half an hour or more; then strain the drink into a clean jug, sweeten with honey, and when it has become quite cold, let it be given in small quant.i.ties several times in the course of the day. This mucilaginous beverage is most beneficial in relieving persons who are suffering from cold on the chest, and also those who are afflicted with gravel, etc.

No. 209. LINSEED TEA.

Put a table-spoonful of linseed into a clean earthen pot or pipkin with a quart of water, and a little orange or lemon rind; boil this gently for about ten minutes, and then strain it through muslin into a jug; sweeten with honey or sugar, add the juice of a lemon, stir all together, and give this beverage to allay irritation of the chest and lungs--in the latter case, the lemon juice had better be omitted.

Linseed tea in its purest form is an excellent accessory in aiding to relieve such as are afflicted with gout, gravel, etc.

No. 210. CAMOMILE TEA.

Put about thirty flowers into a jug, pour a pint of boiling water upon them, cover up the tea, and when it has stood about ten minutes, pour it off from the flowers into another jug; sweeten with sugar or honey; drink a tea-cupful of it fasting in the morning to strengthen the digestive organs, and restore the liver to healthier action. A tea-cupful of camomile tea, in which is stirred a large dessert-spoonful of moist sugar, and a little grated ginger, is an excellent thing to administer to aged people a couple of hours before their dinner.

No. 211. BALM AND BURRAGE TEA.

These, as well as all other medicinal herbs, may easily be cultivated in a corner of your garden, when you are so fortunate as to live in a cottage of your own in the country; they are also to be obtained from all herbalists in large towns. Take of balm and burrage a small handful each, put this into a jug, pour in upon the herbs a quart of boiling water, allow the tea to stand for ten minutes, and then strain it off into another jug, and let it become cold. This cooling drink is recommended as a beverage for persons whose system has become heated from any cause.

No. 212. SAGE OR MARYGOLD TEA.

Put a dozen sage leaves into a tea-pot, pour boiling water upon them, and, after allowing the tea to stand for five or ten minutes, it may be drunk with sugar and milk, in the same way and instead of the cheaper kinds of teas, which are sold for foreign teas, but which are too often composed of some kind of leaf more or less resembling the real plant, without any of its genuine fragrance, and are, from their spurious and almost poisonous nature, calculated to produce evil to all who consume them, besides the drawback of their being expensive articles.

Teas made from sage leaves, dried mint, marygolds, and more particularly the leaf of the black currant tree, form a very pleasant as well as wholesome kind of beverage; and, if used in equal proportions, would be found to answer very well as a most satisfactory subst.i.tute for bad and expensive tea.

No. 213. HOW TO STEW RED CABBAGES.

The use of the red cabbage in this country is confined to its being pickled almost raw, and eaten in that detestable and injurious state, whereby its anti-s...o...b..tic powers are annulled.

The red cabbage, when merely boiled with bacon, or with a little b.u.t.ter and salt, is both nutritious and beneficial in a medicinal point of view, inasmuch as that it possesses great virtue in all s...o...b..tic and dartrous affections. On the Continent it is customary to administer it in such cases in the form of a syrup, and also in a gelatinized state.

The red cabbage, stewed in the following manner, will be found a very tasty dish:--Slice up the red cabbage rather thin, wash it well, drain it, and then put it into a saucepan with a little dripping or b.u.t.ter, a gill of vinegar, pepper and salt; put the lid on, and set the cabbage to stew slowly on the hob, stirring it occasionally from the bottom to prevent it from burning; about an hour's gentle stewing will suffice to cook it thoroughly. All kinds of cabbage or kail are anti-s...o...b..tic agents.

No. 214. HOW TO MAKE TOAST WATER.

Toast a piece of bread thoroughly browned to its centre without being _burnt_, put it into a jug, pour boiling water upon it, cover over and allow it to stand and steep until it has cooled; it will then be fit to drink.

No. 215. HOW TO MAKE BARLEY WATER.

Boil one ounce of barley in a quart of water for twenty minutes; strain through muslin into a jug containing a bit of orange or lemon peel.

No. 216. HOW TO MAKE RICE WATER.

To six ounces of rice add two quarts of water, and two ounces of Valentia raisins; boil these very gently for about half an hour, or rather more; strain off the water into a jug, add about two table-spoonfuls of brandy. Rice water, prepared as above, is recommended in cases of dysentery and diarrhoea.

No. 217. HOW TO MAKE TREACLE POSSET.

Sweeten a pint of milk with four table-spoonfuls of treacle, boil this for ten minutes; strain it through a rag; drink it while hot, and go to bed well covered with blankets; and your cold will be all the less and you the better for it.

No. 218. HOW TO MAKE WHITE WINE WHEY.

Put a pint of milk into a very clean saucepan or skillet, to boil on the fire; then add half a gill of any kind of white wine; allow the milk to boil up, then pour it into a basin, and allow it to stand in a cool place, that the curd may fall to the bottom of the basin; then pour off the whey--which is excellent as an agent to remove a severe cough or cold.

No. 219. HOW TO MAKE A CORDIAL FOR COLDS.

First, prepare a quart of the juice of black currants, by bruising and boiling them for twenty minutes, and then straining off the juice with great pressure through a sieve into a basin. Next, boil four ounces of linseed in a quart of water until reduced to one-third of its original quant.i.ty, taking care that it does not boil fast, and, when done, strain the liquid into a very clean saucepan; add the currant juice, two pounds of moist sugar, and half an ounce of citric acid, or one pint of lemon juice; boil all together until reduced to a thick syrup--that is, when it begins to run rather thick from the spoon without resembling treacle; as soon as the syrup has reached this stage, remove it from the fire, and pour it into a jug to become quite cold. This syrup will keep good for any length of time, if bottled and corked down tight, and kept in a cool place. A tea-spoonful taken occasionally will soon relieve the most troublesome cough.

This cordial may also be prepared in winter, using for the purpose black currant jam, or preserved black currant juice, instead of the juice of fresh-gathered currants.

No. 220. HOW TO MAKE A STRINGENT GARGLE.

Put the following ingredients into a very clean earthen pipkin:--Twenty sage leaves, a handful of red rose leaves, and a pint of water; boil these for twenty minutes, then add a gill of vinegar, and two table-spoonfuls of honey; boil again for ten minutes, and strain the gargle through a muslin rag, to be used when cold.

No. 221. A SIMPLE REMEDY AGAINST WIND ON THE STOMACH.

A few drops (say four) of essence of peppermint on a lump of sugar.

No. 222. A CURE FOR A HARD DRY COUGH.

Take of each one table-spoonful--spermaceti grated, honey, and peppermint water; mix all together with the yolks of two eggs in a gallipot. A tea-spoonful to be taken on the tongue, and allowed to be swallowed slowly as it dissolves.

No. 223. A COOLING DRINK.

To half an ounce of cream of tartar, add one ounce of loaf sugar, and a bit of orange or lemon peel; put these into a jug, pour upon them a quart of boiling water; stir all together, and allow the beverage to become cold.

No. 224. HOP TEA.

Pour a quart of boiling water upon half an ounce of hops, cover this over, and allow the infusion to stand for fifteen minutes; the tea must then be strained of into another jug. A small tea-cupful may be drunk fasting in the morning, which will create an appet.i.te, and also strengthen the digestive organs.

No. 225. LIME-FLOWER TEA.