Good Things in England - A Practical Cookery Book for Everyday Use, Containing Traditional and Regional Recipes Suited to Modern Tastes. Florence White
a side table was always to be found a choice of cold viands; delicious home-smoked hams, pressed meats, one of the large raised pies for which Mrs. Vaughan (the cook) was justly famous, consisting of cold game and galantine, with aspic jelly.
‘The guests drank either tea or coffee, and there were the invariable accompaniments of home-made rolls (piping hot) and stillroom preserves of apple and quince jelly; and always piled bowls of rich Cornish cream.
‘The meal usually finished with a fruit course of grapes or hothouse peaches and nectarines.’
(3) We have learnt from Americans to preface all our meals (with the exception of afternoon tea) with grape fruit. The Medical Research Council of Great Britain and Ireland has taught us to eat oranges and drink orange juice on every available occasion; and as oranges, owing to our South African relations, are available now all the year round these can be obtained anywhere at any time; so can hot water.
England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland are therefore particularly well provided with varied fare for breakfast; and Scotland in particular is noted for this meal.
Even the Indian chota-hazri is obtainable when required; but those in England who want cream with their coffee must mention it beforehand.
Cream with tea is a mistake if the milk be good.
How to Make Tea
There are about 96 level teaspoons in a 1/2 lb. of tea:
2 will make 1 breakfast cup of tea.
3 will make 2 breakfast cups of tea.
DIRECTIONS
1. Warm the teapot.
2. Put in the tea.
3. Pour on 1/2 pint freshly boiling water for each breakfast cup.
4. Let it infuse 3 minutes.
5. Pour off the tea into another well-warmed pot and cover it with a cosy.
In this way the tea does not stand on the leaves, and consequently is free from tannin. Some people do not even let it stand 3 minutes, but pour it straight off without troubling to put it into a second pot. A cosy should never be placed on a teapot containing hot water and tea-leaves. After the first brew of tea has been poured out, more hot water may be put on the leaves and poured off again as stated in direction 3.
People who really like tea don’t as a rule care for cream in it—it is too clogging; top milk may be used, or a slice of lemon in the tea, without milk, makes a refreshing drink.
N.B.—(1) China tea in England is frequently badly made because the above rules are not observed; it should be a golden liquid, not a drabbish brown and should be served without either milk or lemon, but with a saucer of preserved kumquats or litchis. (These can be bought in London at the Army and Navy Stores, at the Civil Service Supply Association Stores and the various Chinese restaurants.)
(2) Tea made and poured off as above, using freshly boiled milk instead of water, is most refreshing. Sir Henry Thompson, a leading authority on food and feeding, says:
‘It would be almost as rational to add cream and sugar to wine as to fine and delicately flavoured tea! Occasionally tea is served with lemon in this country, but it is mostly added in excess. A very slight shaving which contains both peel and pulp is ample for an ordinary cup.’
Coffee
There are about 50 level tablespoonfuls in 1/2 lb. ground coffee.
DIRECTIONS
1. A mixture of 3 parts Mocha to 1 part Plantation coffee is a good blend. (Kenya coffee is also good).
2. Most English people dislike chicory with coffee, if, however, you must use it, buy the best French ground chicory and allow 1 ordinary teaspoonful to 6 teaspoonfuls of coffee and 1 pint of boiling water.
These directions are given by Mrs. Roundell, Dorfold Hall, Nantwich, Cheshire, 1898.
How to make Good Coffee
Colonel Kenney Herbert (‘Wyvern’)
1. Having obtained really good berries they should be roasted as required with care to obtain well-flavoured coffee; a burnt berry will spoil the whole brew.
2. The best way is to melt a very little butter in a stewpan, put in a tablespoonful of berries at a time, stir them about over a very low heat ‘till they turn a light Havana brown. If a berry takes a darker tint, throw it away at once.’
3. Roast them in relays of a tablespoonful a time, and pass them straight to the hand coffee-mill from the pan.
N.B.—‘The butter prevents the escape of much of the fragrance of the berries whilst roasting, and becomes quite dried up before the process is finished;’ but only sufficient should be used to lubricate the berries. [Col. Kenney Herbert was a noted epicure and amateur cook, and his advice is always worth consideration. He is one of the ‘Good Things in England’ and will frequently be quoted in this book. Mrs. Roundell’s practical Cookery Book (see Authorities) is another of our ‘good things.’ What she doesn’t know about country house housekeeping and cooking isn’t worth knowing. She also will be frequently quoted.—ED.]
HOW MUCH TO USE
1. Be liberal with the coffee.
2. Allow 1 ordinary tablespoonful for each person — this will make a small cup of black coffee, and a breakfastcupful of coffee with milk.
Drip Coffee
This is made with a percolator coffee-pot.
1. Fill the upper chamber with as much hot ground coffee as you require, and ram it down firmly.
2. Calculate the exact amount of absolutely boiling water required and pour it a little at a time through the upper strainer upon the powder.
3. The slower the water is added, the more thoroughly the coffee will become soaked and, the dripping being retarded, the essence will be as strong as possible. As soon as the coffee has run through, pour it into the cups.
4. Let the coffee pot stand in a shallow vessel containing boiling water during the process — for, in this way, the liquid can be kept hot for some little time without deterioration. It does not do to heat up cold coffee.
5. Heat the cups as well as the coffee pot.
6. If coffee has to wait, keep the coffee pot in a pan of boiling water.
7. If the scalding hot milk is poured into the cups before the coffee, the flavour is better. Do not boil the milk.
How to make Coffee in a Jug or Billy-Can
Florence White, 1926
1. Roast and grind the coffee as above or get it ready roasted and ground from the Army and Navy Stores or Civil Service Supply Association.
2. Make a kitchen jug or billy-can hot, put into it one good ordinary tablespoonful of the coffee for each person and a pinch of salt for the whole jug.
3. Pour on this 1/2 pint of absolutely boiling (freshly boiled) water, allowing 1/2 pint for each tablespoonful of coffee.
4. Give it a stir round with a tablespoon.
5. Pour out a cupful and pour it back; do this 3 times.
6. Then put in a tablespoonful of cold water.
7. Have ready another hot jug or billy-can and stand it in a pan of boiling water; cover the top of this jug with a clean piece of butter muslin, folded to make 4 thicknesses.
8.