Take of senna leaves and manna a quarter of an ounce of each, and pour over them a pint of boiling water; when the strength is abstracted, pour the infusion over from a quarter to half a pound of prunes and two large tablespoonfuls of West India mola.s.ses. Stew the whole slowly until the liquid is nearly absorbed. When cold it can be eaten with bread and b.u.t.ter, without detecting the senna, and is excellent for children when costive.

2090. Discipline of Children.

Children should not be allowed to ask for the same thing twice. This may be accomplished by parents, teacher, or whoever may happen to have the management of them, paying attention to their little wants, if proper, at once, when possible. Children should be instructed to understand that when they are not answered immediately, it is because it is not convenient. Let them learn patience by waiting.

[CARE IN SUMMER, COMFORT IN WINTER.]

2091. My Wife's Little Tea Parties.

My wife is celebrated for her little parties,--not tea parties alone, but dinner parties, pic-nic parties, music parties, supper parties--in fact, she is vhe life and soul of ALL PARTIES, which is more than any leading politician of the day can boast. But her great _forte_ is her little tea parties--praised and enjoyed by everybody. A constant visitor at these little parties is Mrs. Hitching (spoken of elsewhere), and before a certain epoch in her life (_See par._ 215) she was wont to remark that she "never knew _h_any one who understood the _h_art of bringing so many _h_elegancies together" as my wife.

n.o.body makes tea like her, and how she makes it she will impart at a future time. But for her little "nick nacks," as she calls them, which give a variety and a charm to the tea-table without trenching too deeply upon our own pocket, she has been kind enough to give a few receipts upon the present occasion.

2092. Good Plum Cake.

One pound of flour, quarter of a pound of b.u.t.ter, quarter of a pound of sugar, quarter of a pound of currants, three eggs, half a pint of milk, and a small teaspoonful of carbonate of soda or baking powder.

The above is excellent. The cakes are always baked in a common earthen _flower-pot saucer_, which is a very good plan.

2093. Gingerbread Snaps.

One pound of flour, half a pound of treacle, half a pound of sugar, quarter of a pound of b.u.t.ter, half an ounce of best prepared ginger, sixteen drops of essence of lemon, potash the size of a nut dissolved in a tablespoonful of hot water.

2094. Drop Cakes.

One pint of flour, half a pound of b.u.t.ter, quarter of a pound of pounded lump sugar, half a nutmeg grated, a handful of currants, two eggs, and a large pinch of carbonate of soda, or a little baking powder. To be baked in a slack oven for ten minutes or a quarter of an hour. The above quant.i.ty will make about thirty excellent cakes.

2095. A very Nice and Cheap Cake.

Two pounds and a half of flour, three quarters of a pound of sugar, three quarters of a pound of b.u.t.ter, half a pound of currants or quarter of a pound of raisins, quarter of a pound of orange peel, two ounces of caraway seeds, half an ounce of ground cinnamon or ginger, four teaspoonfuls of carbonate of soda or some baking powder; mixed well, with rather better than a pint of new milk. The b.u.t.ter must be well melted previous to being mixed with the ingredients.

2096. "Jersey Wonders."

The oddity of these "wonders" consists solely in the manner of cooking, and the shape consequent. Take two pounds of flour, six ounces of b.u.t.ter, six ounces of white sugar, a little nutmeg, ground ginger, and lemon peel; beat eight eggs, and knead them all well together; a taste of brandy will be an improvement. Roll the paste into a long ma.s.s about the thickness of your wrist; cut off a slice and roll it into an oval, about four inches long and three inches wide, not too thin; cut two slits in it, but not through either end, there will then be three bands. Pa.s.s the left one through the aperture to the right, and throw it into a _bra.s.s_ or _bell-metal_ skillet of BOILING lard or beef or mutton dripping. You may cook three or four at a time. In about two minutes turn them with a fork, and you will find them browned, and swollen or risen in two or three minutes more.

Remove them from the pan to a dish, when they will dry and cool.

[THEY MUST HUNGER IN FROST WHO WILL NOT WORK IN HEAT.]

2097. m.u.f.fins.

Add a pint and a half of good ale yeast (from pale malt, if possible) to a bushel of the very best white flour; let the yeast lie all night in water, then pour off the water quite clear; heat two gallons of water just milk-warm, and mix the water, yeast, and two ounces of salt well together for about a quarter of an hour. Strain the whole, and mix up your dough as light as possible, letting it lie in the trough an hour to rise; next roll it with your hand, pulling it into little pieces about the size of a large walnut. These must be rolled out thin with a rolling-pin, in a good deal of flour, and if covered immediately with a piece of flannel, they will rise to a proper thickness; but if too large or small, dough must be added accordingly, or taken away; meanwhile, the dough must be also covered with flannel.

Next begin baking; and when laid on the iron, watch carefully, and when one side changes colour, turn the other, taking care that they do not burn or become discoloured. Be careful also that the iron does not get too hot. In order to bake m.u.f.fins properly, you ought to have a place built as if a copper were to be set; but instead of copper a piece of iron must be put over the top, fixed in form like the bottom of an iron pot, underneath which a coal fire is kindled when required.

Toast the m.u.f.fins crisp on both sides with a fork; pull them open _with your hand_, and they will be like a honeycomb; lay in as much b.u.t.ter as you intend; then clap them together, and set by the fire: turn them once, that both sides may be b.u.t.tered alike. When quite done, cut them across with a knife; but if you use a knife either to spread or divide them, they will be as heavy as lead. Some kinds of flour will soak up more water than others; when this occurs, add water; or if too moist, add flour: for the dough must be as light as possible.

2098. Unfermented Cakes, &c.

All cakes of this description may be made with the aid of a little baking-powder, or egg-powder. For instructions respecting these preparations the reader is referred to _pars._ 1011, 1012.

2099. Tea Cakes.

Take of flour one pound; sugar, one ounce; b.u.t.ter, one ounce; baking-powder, three teaspoonfuls; milk, six ounces; water, six ounces. Rub the b.u.t.ter and baking powder into the flour; dissolve the sugar in the water, and then add the milk. Pour this mixture gradually over the flour, and mix well together; divide the ma.s.s into three portions, and bake twenty-five minutes. Flat round tins or earthen-pans are the best to bake the cakes in. b.u.t.termilk may be used instead of milk and water, if preferred.

2100. Unfermented Cake.

Take of flour one pound and a half; baking powder, four teaspoonfuls; sugar, one ounce and a half; b.u.t.ter, one ounce and a half; milk, twenty ounces; currants, six ounces, more or less. Mix the baking powder and b.u.t.ter into the flour by rubbing them together; next dissolve the sugar in the milk, and add it gradually to the flour, mixing the whole intimately, and adding fruit at discretion. Bake in a tin or earthen pan.

2101. Luncheon Cakes.

Take of flour one pound; baking powder, three teaspoonfuls; sugar, three ounces; b.u.t.ter, three ounces; currants, four ounces; milk, one pint, or twenty ounces: bake one hour in a quick oven.

2102. Nice Plum Cake.

Take of flour one pound; baking powder, three teaspoonfuls; b.u.t.ter, six ounces; loaf sugar, six ounces; currants, six ounces; three eggs; milk, about four ounces; bake for one hour and a half in a tin or pan.

2103. Lemon Buns.

Take of flour one pound; baking powder, three teaspoonfuls; b.u.t.ter, six ounces; loaf sugar, four ounces; one egg; essence of lemon, six or eight drops: make into twenty buns, and bake in a quick oven for fifteen minutes.

2104. Soda Cake.

Take of flour half a pound; bicarbonate of soda, two drachms; tartaric acid, two drachms; b.u.t.ter, four ounces; white sugar, two ounces; currants, four ounces; two eggs; warm milk, half a teacupful.

[AN HONEST WORD IS BETTER THAN A CARELESS OATH.]

2105. Excellent Biscuits.

Take of flour two pounds; carbonate of ammonia, three drachms, in fine powder; white sugar, four ounces; arrowroot one ounce; b.u.t.ter, four ounces; one egg: mix into a stiff paste with new milk, and beat them well with a rolling-pin for half an hour; roll out thin, and cut them out with a docker, and bake in a quick oven for fifteen minutes.

2106. Wine Biscuits.