Susanna Ives | My Floating World
“Turning our attention to the pleasures of the moon, the snow, and the cherry blossoms.” – A Tale Of A Floating World, 1665
I took a brief break from work by browsing through old book illustrations. I’m drawn to this one. Not out of sadness, but because I adore the line work.
*I tried to rotate the image to properly align it, but the process broke the clean, straight lines.
I adore scents. I can linger before the fancy soap displays in shops, adrift in aromatic heaven as I breathe in one fragrance after another. Choosing which Mrs. Meyers dish soap to bring home is never a trifling matter. Needless to say, my collection of perfume samplers is rather vast. So I hope you’ll enjoy this post on scents as much as I enjoyed creating it.
For this post, I’ve excerpted from The Toilette of Flora; Or, A Collection of the Most Simple and Approved Methods of Preparing Baths, Essences, Pomatums, Powders, Perfumes, and Sweet-Scented Waters: With Receipts for Cosmetics of Every Kind, that Can Smooth and Brighten the Skin, Give Force to Beauty, and Take Off the Appearance of Old Age and Decay. For the Use of the Ladies (1779) by Pierre-Joseph Buc’hoz and L’Art de la Toilette (1827) by Elisabeth Celnart. The translations are courtesy of Google.
The following recipes offer a glimpse into the world of domestic aromatics—perfumes, herbal baths, sachets tucked into wardrobes, pastilles to sweeten a room, and delicate scents to perfume gloves.
Let’s begin with The Toilette of Flora:
An Aromatic Bath
Boil, for the space of two or three minutes, in a sufficient quantity of river-water, one or more of the following plants; viz. Laurel, Thyme, Rosemary, Wild Thyme, Sweet-Marjoram, Bastard-Marjoram, Lavender, Southernwood, Wormwood, Sage, Pennyroyal, Sweet-Basil Balm, Wild Mint, Hyssop, Clove-july-flowers, Anise, Fennel, or any other herbs that have an agreeable scent. Having strained off the liquor from the herbs, add to it a little Brandy, or camphorated Spirits of Wine.
This is an excellent bath to strengthen the limbs; it removes pains proceeding from cold, and promotes perspiration.
An excellent Perfume for Gloves
Take Ambergrise, a drachm; the same quantity of Civet; and of Orange Flower Butter, a quarter of an ounce; mix these ingredients well, and rub them into the gloves with fine Cotton Wool, pressing the perfume into them.
Or,
Take of Essence of Roses, half an ounce; Oil of Cloves and Mace, of each a drachm; Frankincense, a quarter of an ounce; mix them, and lay them in papers between your gloves. Being hard pressed, the gloves will take the scent in twenty-four hours, and afterwards hardly ever lose it.
Scented Tables or Pastils
Beat into a fine powder, and sift through a hair sieve, a pound of the Marc or Residuum left in the still, after making Angelic Water; then put it into a mortar, with a handful of fresh-gathered Rose Leaves, and a small porringer full of Gum Tragacanth softened with Rose Water. Beat the whole into a Paste; roll it out on a dresser with a rolling pin, and cut it into Lozenges with a knife.
To form scented Pastils, roll up bits of this Paste in the shape of a cone, that they may stand upright, and set them by to dry. These kind of Pastils are lighted in the same manner as a candle. They consume entirely away; and, while burning, exhale a fragrant smoke.
A Pleasant Perfume
Take a drachm of Musk, four Cloves, four ounces of Lavender-seed, a drachm and a half of Civet, and half a drachm of Ambergrise; heat your pestle and mortar, and rub the Musk, Cloves, and Lavender-seeds together, with a lump of Loaf Sugar and a wine-glass full of Angelic or Rose water. Take a handful of powder, and incorporate it well with this mixture, then sift it through a sieve; add two or three pounds more powder, or even a larger quantity, till the perfume is brought to a proper degree of strength. As to the Civet, put it on the end of a hot pestle, and rub it well with a handful of powder; after which add, by little and little, six pounds of powder; then sift the whole through a hair sieve to incorporate it with the other perfumed powder. The Ambergrise must be well rubbed in the mortar; and by degrees two pounds of powder, either white or grey, must be added to it, till the Ambergrise is thoroughly incorporated with the powder; then sift through a hair sieve, and mix all the three powders together. This perfume is to be kept in a Leather Bag, the seams of which are well sewed with waxed thread.
Common Perfumed Powder
Take Florentine Orrice, a pound, dried Rose Leaves, a pound; Gum Benjamin, two ounces; Storax, an ounce; Yellow Sanders, an ounce and a half; Cloves, two drachms; and a little Lemon Peel; reduce the whole to a fine powder, and mix with it twenty pounds of Starch, or rather of grey or white powder; incorporate them well, and sift them through a lawn sieve.
A Cassolette
Incorporate the Powders of Florentine Orrice, Storax, Benjamin and other aromatics, with Orange-flower Water; and put this Paste into a little Silver or Copper Box lined with Tin. When you have a mind to use this perfume, set the Box on a gentle fire, or on hot ashes, and it will exhale a most delightful odour.
To Perfume a House, and Purify the Air
Take a root of Angelica, dry it in an oven, or before the fire, then bruise it well and infuse it four or five days in White Wine Vinegar. When you use it, lay it upon a brick made red hot, and repeat the operation several times.
A Perfume to Scent Powder
Take a drachm of Musk, four ounces of Lavender Seeds, a drachm and a half of Civet, and half a drachm of Ambergrise. Beat the whole together into powder, and sift through a hair sieve. Keep this perfume in a box that shuts very close, to scent powder with, according to your fancy.
Take four ounces of Gum Benjamin, two ounces of Storax, and a quarter of an ounce of Aloes-wood. When these ingredients have been well bruised, simmer them about half an hour over a slow fire, in a glazed earthen pipkin, with as much Rose-water as will cover them, and then strain off the liquor for use. Dry the Residuum or Marc, and pulverize it in a warm mortar with a pound of Charcoal. Dissolve some Gum Tragacanth in the reserved Liquor, then add to your powder a drachm of fine Oriental Musk dissolved in a little Rose-water, and form the whole into a Paste, of which make pastils about the length and thickness of the little finger, narrower at top than at bottom, that they may stand firm and upright. When they are thoroughly dry, light them at the narrow end, and let them burn till they are wholly consumed. While burning they afford an exquisite perfume. To render the perfume still higher, add six grains of Ambergrise.
Or,
Pulverize together two ounces of Gum Benjamin, half an ounce of Storax, a drachm of Aloes-wood, twenty grains of fine Civet, a little Sea Coal, and Loaf Sugar; boil the whole in a sufficient quantity of Rose-water, to the consistence of a stiff paste. If you are desirous of having your pastils higher flavoured, add twelve grains of Ambergrise just before you take the composition off the fire; and the ingredients being thoroughly mixed, form them into pastils.
Fragrant Pastils Made Use of By Way of Fumigation
Take the purest Labdanum and Gum Benjamin, of each two ounces; Storax and dry Balsam of Peru, of each three quarters of an ounce; choice Myrrh, half a drachm; Gum Tacamahac, a quarter of an ounce; Olibanum, a drachm; Liquid Balsam of Peru, half an ounce; Ambergrise, a quarter of an ounce; Musk and Civet, of each a scruple; Essential Oil of Rhodium, thirty drops; Essential Oils of Orange-flowers, Lemons, and Bergamot, of each four drops; Gum Lacque, in fine powder, two ounces and a half; Cascarilla, Aloes-wood, Rose-wood, St. Lucia-wood, Yellow Sanders, and Cinnamon, all powdered, of each a drachm. With the assistance of a vapour-bath reduce them to a mass, which form into pastils in the usual way.
Pastils of Roses
Pulverize a pound of the Marc or Residuum left in the still after making Angelica Water; likewise a large handful of Roses; and with a sufficient quantity of Gum Tragacanth dissolved in Rose-water, beat them into a stiff paste, which is to be rolled out upon a marble with a rolling-pin, and cut into Lozenges, or formed into pastils. If you have a mind to ornament them, cover them with Leaf Gold or Silver.
Now, let’s turn to some translations from L’Art de la Toilette. You’ll notice that the author, Elisabeth Celnart, does not share Pierre-Joseph Buc’hoz’s fondness for musks and amber.
Perfumes
One must be excessively sober in the use of perfumes, and if one is delicate, one must absolutely abstain from them. Pallor, thinness, dark circles under the eyes, dejection, nervous shivers are the common fruits of the excessive use of odors in people whose nerves are more or less irritable. One ends up suffering all these ills in vain, because, according to the picturesque expression of Queen Marie Leczinska: “Perfumes are like grandeur, those who wear them hardly smell them.” Far from being a means of pleasing, overly strong perfumes cause distance; many people flee amber and musky ladies like plague victims. Moreover, it denotes coquetry and pretension.
But, on the other hand, the total absence of odors is a useless, and sometimes even disadvantageous, deprivation. It is good, in certain cases, to spread a few drops of eau de Cologne on one’s shirt, stockings, handkerchief; despite the greatest cleanliness, the human body is subject to so many unpleasant exhalations, general or particular, that one should not neglect these precautions, especially when one has a husband whose sense of smell is very sensitive. One can perfume one’s linen in the wardrobes, the ointment with which one tangles the hair, the cerate which serves to protect the lips from cracks, the water with which one washes the face, almond pastes, soaps suitable for cleaning the hands, but always with sweet, balsamic, not very penetrating odors, such as those of iris, heliotrope, mignonette, violet, rose, etc. Aromatic perfumes, such as carnation, cinnamon, vanilla, should be used rarely, in very small quantities, and softened by a mixture of weaker odors, fragrant odors, such as lily, tuberose, jasmine; ambrosial odors, such as amber, musk should be entirely banished from your person and your apartments.
We will provide the means to perfume oneself as appropriate to chase away bad natural odors, to make oneself pleasant, to complete a careful toilet, and this without damaging one’s health, inconveniencing delicate people, and attracting the very unflattering name, in my opinion, of small mistress and wonderful.
Simple and Easy Way to Perfume your Laundry and other things effects
Take pieces of dried Florentine iris root, such as are sold at chemists’ shops, and store them in your wardrobes and chests of drawers; they will generally give a light scent of violet to all your belongings. If you want the fragrance to be stronger and more pleasant, you can insert a piece of root between each fold of your shirts, camisoles, skirts, etc. It is also slipped into the piping of the trimmings of kerchiefs. Nothing is so gently sweet and so hygienic at the same time.
You can collect rose petals, carnation petals, and pieces of mignonette that you will use in the summer, and put them in your drawers: as they dry, they will give off a sweet, balsamic scent; but the use of iris roots seems much preferable to me.
Scented sachets for perfuming linen in wardrobes and sets in boxes
Gather rose petals, musk carnation, simple hyacinth, lavender flower, balsam leaves, and a few white horehound leaves. Dry them well in the shade. When they are completely dry, sprinkle them with powdered cloves and nutmeg: enclose everything in taffeta bags, of any color you like, and place these bags on the belongings.
Montpellier Herb Sachet
The leaves of thyme, lavender, hyssop, lemon verbena, sage, rosemary, basil, mixed with a few cloves and crushed nutmeg, make up this sachet. All these items can be gathered in a piece of colored cloth, and this sachet can be placed in the night table, in the bathroom, in the toilet, etc.
Powder Sachets
Take iris root, six ounces; dried orange flowers, one ounce; dried rose flowers, six ounces; dried bergamot peel, Portuguese orange peel, ditto ; storax, two ounces: pound them well, pass them through a sieve, and make pretty taffeta sachets, suitable for putting in necessaries, work baskets, kerchiefs, gloves, and all delicate objects.
Scented Lozenges for Burning
Take three ounces of benzoin, a large one of dried orange peel, a large one and a half of rose nutmeg, a large one of ambergris, a large one and a half of red sandalwood, half an ounce of sugar; pulverize all these things, and incorporate the very fine powder with the mucilage of gum tragacanth diluted in rose water or orange flower water, to make a paste which you will divide into small circles, cones, hearts or squares, which you will dry in the sun or over a low heat.
When one wishes to use these lozenges, one of them is set on fire and placed on a stone table or any other thing that cannot be damaged. It burns, scintillating and giving off a pleasant odor: this practice drives out bad air and purifies the apartments.
Pastilles made from dried aromatic herbs, such as sage, tarragon, lavender, hyssop, rosemary, which, dried and reduced to powder, are diluted with very strong vinegar, will be excellent for purifying a sick room; they can be placed on the red shovel, after first setting it on fire. Their tonic smoke, similar to that of burnt vinegar, will be even more balsamic, and will not cause the inconvenience of staining the floor, as vinegar sometimes does when bubbling.
Chimney flasks
Only eau de Cologne, eau de la reine de Portugal, eau de la reine de Hongrie, and eau d’ange should fill your bottles.
Pocket bottles
As they are intended to prevent in you or in others the accidents of mephitic airs, to combat weaknesses, nervous spasms, vinegar salts with rose, bergamot, or lemon, balsamic eau de Cologne, eau de Luce, and even sulfuric ether, are the only things which should be chosen for these flasks.
To Perfume Handkerchiefs
Cologne, lemon balm, angel, violet, and imperial water.
To Perfume Partial and General Baths
Lavender water, Cologne water, Queen of Portugal water, honey water, benzoin water.
I have so many ideas for the blog and just as many other interests, so I don’t post as often as I’d like. (Sigh.) But a few weeks ago, I followed a link from the main page of HathiTrust to their African American Cookbook Collection. The oldest book in the collection is A Domestic Cook Book by Malinda Russell, published in 1866. But it was the second-oldest entry that caught my eye: The Warm Springs Receipt-Book, compiled between 1881 and 1894 by E.T. Glover and published in 1897.
Wow. Glover was a remarkable cook. I wavered between sharing the section on catsups or beverages, but in the end, I had to go with the drinks. These are recipes I’d happily order from a fine bar or try making at home. At first, I considered skipping the section on coffee and tea, but then I saw Glover’s addition of egg white and crushed eggshell to the coffee. Wait, what!? I was intrigued. And then came the “Tea à la Russe” — green tea, powdered sugar, lemon, and rum. Yes, please.
I didn’t want to use stiff studio images to accompany this post, so I jumped forward a few decades and chose photographs from the brilliant William P. Gottlieb Collection at the Library of Congress. Gottlieb, who wrote a jazz column for The Washington Post, wasn’t assigned a photographer, so he took his own photos. Lucky for us. He later placed them in the public domain, and they are simply stunning. Many of the musicians I selected are iconic; others were included because I loved the photographs.
Enjoy!
Preface To Warm Springs Receipt – Book
The compilation of this book was suggested by a host of friends to whom I have catered for several years at the Warm Sulphur Springs , Virginia . I can endorse every receipt offered , having used them for years , frequently changing them when not practical or sufficiently clear in directions .
This work has given me occupation during many hours when confined to my ” wheeled chair ” through the weary winter months of enforced idleness . The many patrons of the Warm Springs will recognize the various dishes which have been offered to them in years past , and will , I trust , feel an interest in the success of the Warm Springs Receipt – Book .
Warm Sulphur Springs, Bath county, Va .
E. T. Glover
Apple Toddy
Westmoreland Club Receipt For Six Gallons
3 pints apple brandy
1/2 pint peach brandy
4 lemons ( peeled and sliced thin )
4 pounds granulated sugar
6 pints French brandy
1/2 pint curacao
1 quart bottle champagne
2 gallons water
48 apples ( roasted and quartered ) .
Champagne Cup
1 quart champagne
2 wineglassful sherry
1 slice cucumber
1 orange ( sliced )
1 quart apollinaris
1 wineglassful curacao
1 slice pineapple
1 lemon ( sliced )
Put a large piece of ice in the punch bowl , and pour the other ingredients over it . Serve very cold .
Claret Cup
1 bottle claret ( 1 quart )
1 bottle soda water ( 1 quart )
2 slices cucumber
the juice and rind 1 lemon
1 cupful sherry wine
1/2 pound granulated sugar.
Grate the lemon and add the rind and sugar together; put a few spoonsful of water with it. Add the liquors, and when the sugar is thoroughly dissolved, strain on a large piece of ice, and add the slices of cucumber.
Cider Cup
1 quart cider
2 ponies brandy
the thin yellow rind two lemons and the juice of one
2 wineglasses sherry
1 wineglass curacao
2 oranges (sliced)
2 slices cucumber
grated nutmeg
sugar to taste
Moselle Cup
(The Century Cook Book)
1 quart brawnberger or zeltinger
juice 1 lemon
1 pint apollinaris,
1 pony brandy,
juice 1 orange,
1 slip of barage or a slice of cucumber.
no sugar
Eggnog-No. 1. *Susanna’s note: raw egg!
Take to each egg—
1 tablespoonful pulverized sugar
1 wineglass brandy
1 wineglass very thick cream
Separate the eggs, beat the yolks and sugar together well; beat the whites to a stiff, dry froth. Mix together, and stir gently, then stir in the brandy and cream, and serve immediately.
Eggnog-No. 2. *Susanna’s note: raw egg!
(Westmoreland Club Receipt)
Thirty eggs; separate and beat the yolks well with thirty tablespoonsful of powdered sugar; beat the whites to a stiff, dry froth; stir half of the whites into the yolks and sugar, then stir in thirty wineglasses of brandy, one gill Jamaica rum, and fifteen wineglasses cream; put the remainder of the well-beaten whites on top.
Lemonade
To make a quart of lemonade, use eight lemons and eight large tablespoonsful of granulated sugar. Roll the lemons until soft. Take almost a quart of water, add the sugar to it, put into a pitcher, cut six of the lemons in half and squeeze the lemons with a lemon-squeezer into the pitcher; taste, and if not sweet enough, add more sugar.
Cut the remaining two lemons in slices in the pitcher, let it stand for half an hour in the ice-box, and before it is served put in some large pieces of ice.
Apollinaris Lemonade
Take a lemon to each glass; squeeze the juice, after you have left one slice. Fill the glasses almost full with crushed ice, add a teaspoonful of granulated or powdered sugar and the juice of the lemon, and fill with the apollinaris. Put the slice of lemon on top, or a few strawberries can be used instead of the slice of lemon.
Mint Julep
2 wineglasses water
2 wineglasses of brandy
1 lump sugar
a few sprigs mint
Bruise the mint a little in the water while you are dissolving the sugar. When you have extracted enough of the flavor of the mint to be just perceptible, then remove the mint and add to the water two wineglasses of the best brandy and a slice of lemon. Put a shaker over the tumbler and mix well; then half-fill another glass with crushed ice and pour the julep in; have three sprigs of fresh mint; stick them in the glass, allowing them to be just above the top of the glass. Let a straw or two be served with each glass.
Champagne Punch
Make a very rich lemonade. To each quart of the lemonade add one quart of champagne, half a pint of marischino cherries, half a pint of sliced pineapple, and half a pint of orange, peeled and cut into small bits. Put the oranges, cherries, and pineapple in the punch-bowl with a large piece of ice, and pour the champagne and lemonade in.
Rum Punch
1 pint hot water poured on the peel of two lemons
1 pint lemon juice
1 pint brandy or whiskey
1 pint rum
1 heavy pound sugar
Serve with crushed ice in glasses. A pint bottle of champagne added just before it is served makes a delicious champagne punch.
Champagne Punch
1 pint strong green tea
1 wineglass curacoa
1 teaspoonful Angastura bitters
the juice and rind 2 oranges
1 quart champagne
1 wineglass Jamaica rum
the juice and rind 1 lemon
1/2 cupful sugar
Peel the lemon and oranges very thin; steep in the bitters and rum for some hours, then add the other ingredients, and just before serving, pour in the champagne. Serve in a punch bowl with a large block of ice.
Cream Punch
Take a glass of cream, sweeten to your taste; stir in carefully a wineglass of the best brandy. Grate a little nutmeg on each glass, and serve icy cold.
Hot Rum Punch
1 quart rum
1 quart strong green tea
10 ounces sugar
6 oranges
6 lemons
a wineglassful of curacoa
Dissolve the sugar in the rum over the fire; have the tea freshly made and hot; squeeze and strain the juice from the lemons and oranges. Stir these ingredients together till well mixed, and serve hot.
Pineapple Punch
To two quarts of hot water take one and one-fourth pounds of granulated sugar, put into a saucepan, and let it come to a boil over a quick fire. When it comes to a boil, carefully skim; peel and grate a large, nice pineapple; take a generous tablespoonful of lemon juice and add to the pine-apple, then cut into small pieces two oranges that have been peeled. The syrup should be taken from the fire as soon as it boils. Strain through a cheese cloth into a punch bowl packed in crushed ice; allow it to cool, then add the pine-apple, lemon juice, and oranges; allow it to stand for several hours, renewing the ice when necessary. When time to serve, add a glass of marischino and cut into it a few marischino cherries, and if you like, add just a little sherry wine. Place in the punch a large block of ice, and serve at once.
Regent’s Punch
Take half-pint of strong, cold Oolong tea, put into the tea the thin yellow rind from three lemons; stir in a pound of granulated sugar; stir until thoroughly dissolved. Now add-
4 wineglasses French brandy
3 wineglasses rum
1 quart champagne
the juice of 3 lemons and 3 oranges
Sherry Cobbler
Put into a tumbler a claret glass of water and one or two lumps of cut-loaf sugar; when it has dissolved, add a claret glass of sherry; put a shaker over the glass and mix well. Fill another glass half full of crushed ice, pour the cobbler on it, with a slice of lemon on top or a strawberry or piece of pineapple, as desired; add straws and serve.
Blackberry Cordial
1/2 bushel blackberries
2 ounces cloves
2 ounces ground cinnamon
1 nutmeg (grated)
Mash the berries well, add the spices, mix, and boil slowly for thirty or forty minutes. Strain through two thicknesses of cheese cloth. To each pint of juice add half a pound of loaf sugar and half a pint of best brandy.
Huckleberry cordial can be made in the same way.
Blackberry Wine
Fourteen quarts of blackberries; bruise or mash them well, add to them fourteen pints of water, and let it stand twenty-four hours. Take fourteen pounds of granulated sugar and the whites of four eggs (well beaten); let it come just to a boil, then skim well; let this stand until almost cold, then mix with the juice of the berries. Put it in jugs and let it stand eight days to ferment. Keep out some of the juice to fill up the jugs, as it runs off whilst fermenting. Then strain it, put in bottles, and cork tightly for three months, after which time it will be ready for use. Add two quarts of best whiskey or brandy to this quantity. This makes five gallons.
Cherry Shrub
To four pounds of fruit put half a pint of white wine vinegar and let it stand a day or two; then strain through a muslin cloth and put one and a quarter pounds of sugar to one pint of the juice. Boil in a porcelain-lined kettle ten or fifteen minutes; when cold, bottle and cork tight. Two or three tablespoonsful in a glass of ice-water makes a delightful drink for summer.
Currant Wine
1 gallon currant juice
3 gallons water
3 pounds cut-loaf sugar to each gallon
Add a little powdered alum, let it stand for several months, and then bottle
Golden Cordial
One gallon of brandy; add the thin yellow rind of six lemons and expose to the heat of the sun for ten days, shaking it well every day. At the end of ten days strain the brandy and rinds, add two pounds of cut-loaf sugar, one ounce of almonds, one ounce of cinnamon, and twenty-five cloves. Let these steep in the brandy until the flavor is extracted, then strain again and bottle.
Boiled Coffee
Have the tea-kettle well washed and filled with clear, cold water, and the coffee must be made when the water comes to the first boil. Use an ordinary coffee-pot, allowing a heaping tablespoonful of ground coffee for each cup. Wash and wipe an egg, taking the white only; crush up the shell and put with the white, add a very little cold water, and beat with just a few strokes; then pour on the ground coffee, which is already in the coffee-pot; mix the coffee and egg together, then put in as many cups of boiling water as you have spoonsful of coffee; set it where it will boil quickly, and boil for one minute, then hastily pour in a half-cup of cold water, and immediately pour off one or two cupsful of coffee; put the coffee back in the coffee pot, and be careful to set the coffee-pot on the range where it will keep hot, but not boil, for a few minutes; then serve very hot.
Dripped, Or French Coffee
For this a “biggin” is necessary, and the coffee must be ground fine. Put a tablespoonful of coffee in the pot for each cup; then, when the water first begins to boil, pour on one cup of boiling water for each spoonful of coffee; when it drips through, if it is not as strong as you wish you can pour it through again. Serve immediately, and serve very hot.
Café Au Lait
Take equal quantities of boiled or dripped coffee either, and cream or very rich milk; heat the cream or milk, and when it is scalding hot pour in the coffee and boil just a minute. Serve at once.
Chocolate
Put one quart of milk in a double boiler, grate two ounces of Baker’s chocolate and rub to a very smooth paste with very hot water; when the milk becomes very hot stir in the chocolate; add three tablespoonsful of sugar; beat with an egg-beater if you have no muller all the time, and beat vigorously until the chocolate is well done and thick. But chocolate, like coffee, should be served as soon as done. Put a tablespoonful of whipped cream on each cup.
Broma
Take two heaping tablespoonsful of broma and mix to smooth paste with a cupful of boiling water. Put a cupful of milk on to boil in a double boiler, and when scalding hot stir in, and continue to stir the broma and hot water until it boils; then serve.
Cocoa
Take four tablespoonsful of cocoa and mix to a smooth paste with a cupful of hot water; have a pint of milk in a farina boiler and boil for at least ten minutes; stir constantly.
Tea
While tea is made with boiling water, tea itself must not be boiled. Scald the tea-pot well with boiling water, allowing the hot water to stand in it for a few minutes until the tea-pot is thoroughly heated. A good rule is to allow a teaspoonful of tea for each cup and a teaspoonful for the pot. Put the tea into the pot, pour over it as much water as you wish cupsful, cover the tea pot, and stand on the back of the range for five minutes, and serve.
Tea A La Russe
Use strong green tea; partly fill each glass with crushed ice and put in a teaspoonful of powdered sugar; then lay a slice of lemon on the ice in each glass; fill with the tea, and add a teaspoonful of rum to each glass. This can be served hot by having the tea hot. Put the sugar and a slice of lemon in each cup, pour the warm tea in the cup, and add a half-teaspoonful of rum to each cup.
Orange Tea
(Table Talk)
The proportions for this are the pulp and peel of one orange sliced into a number of pieces, or rings covered with fragrant hot tea. The amount of tea used has to be regulated by the juiciness of the orange. An experience in tasting is the only way to determine the proper strength. It is most delicious and refreshing. Sweeten to taste.
