The Virginia Housewife Part 28

To one measure of sugar, put seven measures of water moderately warm; dissolve it completely--put it into a cask, stir in yeast in the proportion of a pint to eight gallons: stop it close, and keep it in a warm place till sufficiently sour.

HONEY VINEGAR.

To one quart of clear honey, put eight quarts of warm water, mix it well together: when it has pa.s.sed through the acetous fermentation, a white vinegar will be formed, in many respects better than the ordinary vinegar.

SYRUP OF VINEGAR.

Boil two pounds of sugar with four quarts of vinegar, down to a syrup, and bottle it. This makes an excellent beverage when mixed with water, either with or without the addition of brandy. It is nearly equal a flavour to the syrup of lime juice, when made with superior vinegar.

AROMATIC VINEGAR.

Put a portion of acetate of potash, (sal diureticus,) into a smelling bottle; mix gradually with it half its weight of sulphuric acid, and add a few drops of oil of lavender.

VINEGAR OF THE FOUR THIEVES.

Take lavender, rosemary, sage, wormwood, rue, and mint, of each a large handful; put them in a pot of earthen ware, pour on them four quarts of very strong vinegar, cover the pot closely, and put a board on the top; keep it in the hottest sun two weeks, then strain and bottle it, putting in each bottle a clove of garlic. When it has settled in the bottle and become clear, pour it off gently; do this until you get it all free from sediment. The proper time to make it is when the herbs are in full vigour, in June. This vinegar is very refreshing in crowded rooms, in the apartments of the sick; and is peculiarly grateful, when sprinkled about the house in damp weather.

LAVENDER WATER.

Put a pint of highly rectified spirits of wine, to one ounce of essential oil of lavender, and two drachms of ambergris; shake them well together, and keep it closely stopped.

HUNGARIAN WATER.

One pint spirits of wine, one ounce oil of rosemary, and two drachms essence of ambergris.

TO PREPARE COSMETIC SOAP FOR WASHING THE HANDS.

Take a pound of castile, or any other nice old soap; sc.r.a.pe it in small pieces, and put it on the fire with a little water--stir it till it becomes a smooth paste, pour it into a bowl, and when cold, add some lavender water, or essence of any kind--beat it with a silver spoon until well mixed, thicken it with corn meal, and keep it in small pots closely covered--for the admission of air will soon make the soap hard.

COLOGNE WATER.

Three quarts spirits of wine, six drachms oil of lavender, one drachm oil of rosemary, three drachms essence of lemon, ten drops oil of cinnamon--mix them together very well.

SOFT POMATUM.

Get nice sweet lard that has no salt in it--put in any agreeable perfume, beat it to a cream, and put it in small pots.

TO MAKE SOAP.

Put on the fire any quant.i.ty of lye you choose that is strong enough to bear an egg--to each gallon, add three quarters of a pound of clean grease: boil it very fast, and stir it frequently--a few hours will suffice to make it good soap. When you find by cooling a little on a plate that it is a thick jelly, and no grease appears, put in salt in the proportion of one pint to three gallons--let it boil a few minutes, and pour it in tubs to cool--(should the soap be thin, add a little water to that in the plate, stir it well, and by that means ascertain how much water is necessary for the whole quant.i.ty; very strong lye will require water to thicken it, after the incorporation is complete; this must be done before the salt is added.) Next day, cut out the soap, melt it, and cool it again; this takes out all the lye, and keeps the soap from shrinking when dried. A strict conformity to these rules, will banish the lunar bugbear, which has so long annoyed soap makers. Should cracknels be used, there must be one pound to each gallon. Kitchen grease should be clarified in a quant.i.ty of water, or the salt will prevent its incorporating with the lye. Soft soap is made in the same manner, only omitting the salt. It may also be made by putting the lye and grease together in exact proportions, and placing it under the influence of a hot sun for eight or ten days, stirring it well four or five times a day.

TO MAKE STARCH.

Wash a peck of good wheat, and pick it very clean; put it in a tub, and cover it with water; it must be kept in the sun, and the water changed every day, or it will smell very offensively. When the wheat becomes quite soft, it must be well rubbed in the hands, and the husks thrown into another tub; let this white substance settle, then pour off the water, put on fresh, stir it up well, and let it subside; do this every day till the water comes off clear--then pour it off; collect the starch in a bag, tie it up tight, and set it in the sun a few days; then open it, and dry the starch on dishes.

TO DRY HERBS.

Gather them on a dry day, just before they begin to blossom; brush off the dust, cut them in small branches, and dry them quickly in a moderate oven; pick off the leaves when dry, pound and sift them--bottle them immediately, and cork them closely. They must be kept in a dry place.

TO CLEAN SILVER UTENSILS.

Dissolve two tea-spoonsful of alum in a quart of moderately strong lye--stir in a gill of soft soap, and skim off the dross. Wash the silver clean in hot water, let it remain covered with this mixture for ten or fifteen minutes, turning it over frequently; then wash it in hot soap suds, and rub it well with a dry cloth.

TO MAKE BLACKING.

A quarter of a pound of ivory black, two ounces of sugar candy, a quarter of an ounce of gum tragacanth; pound them all very fine, boil a bottle of porter, and stir the ingredients in while boiling hot.

TO CLEAN KNIVES AND FORKS.

Wash them in warm water, and wipe them till quite dry; then touch them lightly over, without smearing the handles, with rotten stone made wet; let it dry on them, and then rub with a clean cloth until they are bright. With this mode of cleaning, one set of knives and forks will serve a family twenty years; they will require the frequent use of a steel to keep them with a keen edge--but must never be put into very hot water, lest the handles be injured.

THE END.