# The Virginia Housewife: or, Methodical Cook/Cordials

GINGER WINE.
To three gallons of water, put three pounds of sugar, and four ounces of race ginger, washed in many waters to cleanse it; boil them together for one hour, and strain it through a sieve; when lukewarm, put it in a cask with three lemons cut in slices, and two gills of beer yeast; shake it well, and stop the cask very tight; let it stand a week to ferment; and if not clear enough to bottle, it must remain until it becomes so; it will be fit to drink in ten days after bottling.
ORGEAT,
A Necessary Refreshment at all Parties.
Boil two quarts of milk with a stick of cinnamon and let it stand to be quite cold, first taking out the cinnamon; blanch four ounces of the best sweet almonds, pound them in a marble mortar with a little rose-water; mix them well with the milk, sweeten it to your taste, and let it boil a few minutes only, lest the almonds should be oily; strain it through a very fine sieve till quite smooth, and free from the almonds; serve it up either cold or lukewarm, in glasses with handles.
CHERRY SHRUB.
Gather ripe morello cherries, pick them from the stalk, and put them in an earthen pot, which must be set into an iron pot of water; make the water boil, but take care that none of it gets into the cherries; when the juice is extracted, pour it into a bag made of tolerably thick cloth, which will permit the juice to pass, but not the pulp of your cherries; sweeten it to your taste, and when it becomes perfectly clear, bottle it—put a gill of brandy into each bottle, before you pour in the juice—cover the corks with rosin. It will keep all summer, in a dry cool place, and is delicious mixed with water.
CURRANT WINE.
Gather full ripe currants on a dry day, pick them from the stalks, and weigh them; then crush them with your hands, leaving none whole; for every two pounds of currants put one quart of water; stir all well together, and let it stand three hours, and strain the liquor through a sieve; then, for every three pounds of currants, put one pound of powdered loaf sugar; stir it till the sugar is dissolved, boil it, and keep skimming it, as long as any scum will rise; let it stand sixteen hours to cool, before you put it in the cask—stop it very close. If the quantity be twenty gallons, let it stand three weeks before you bottle it; if it be thirty gallons, it must remain a month; it should be perfectly clear when drawn off—put a lump of sugar in each bottle, cork it well, and keep it in a cool place, or it will turn sour. This is a pleasant and cheap wine—and if properly made, will keep good ​for many years. It makes an agreeable beverage for the sick, when mixed with water.
TO MAKE CHERRY BRANDY.
Get equal quantities of morello and common black cherries; fill your cask, and pour on (to a ten gallon cask) one gallon of boiling water; in two or three hours, fill it up with brandy—let it stand a week, then draw off all, and put another gallon of boiling water, and fill it again with brandy—at the end of the week, draw the whole off, empty the cask of the cherries, and pour in your brandy with water, to reduce the strength; first dissolving one pound of brown sugar in each gallon of your mixture. If the brandy be very strong, it will bear water enough to make the cask full.
ROSE BRANDY.
Gather leaves from fragrant roses without bruising, fill a pitcher with them, and cover them with French brandy; next day, pour off the brandy, take out the leaves, and fill the pitcher with fresh ones, and return the brandy; do this till it is strongly impregnated, then bottle it; keep the pitcher closely covered during the process. It is better than distilled rose water for cakes, &c.
PEACH CORDIAL.
Gather ripe cling-stone peaches, wipe off the down, cut them to the stone in several places, and put them in a cask; when filled with peaches, pour on as much peach brandy as the cask will hold; let it stand six or eight weeks, then draw it off, put in water until reduced to the strength of wine; to each gallon of this, ​add one pound of good brown sugar—dissolve it, and pour the cordial into a cask just large enough to hold it—when perfectly clear, it is fit for use.
RASPBERRY CORDIAL.
To each quart of ripe red raspberries, put one quart of best French brandy; let it remain about a week, then strain it through a sieve or bag, pressing out all the liquid; when you have got as much as you want, reduce the strength to your taste with water, and put a pound of powdered loaf sugar to each gallon—let it stand till refined. Strawberry cordial is made the same way. It destroys the flavour of these fruits to put them on the fire.
RASPBERRY VINEGAR.
Put a quart of ripe red raspberries in a bowl; pour on them a quart of strong well flavoured vinegar—let them stand twenty-four hours, strain them through a bag, put this liquid on another quart of fresh raspberries, which strain in the same manner—and then on a third quart: when this last is prepared, make it very sweet with pounded loaf sugar; refine and bottle it. It is a delicious beverage mixed with iced water.
MINT CORDIAL.
Pick the mint early in the morning while the dew is on it, and be careful not to bruise it; pour some water over it, and drain it—put two handsful into a pitcher, with a quart of French brandy, cover it, and let it stand till next day; take the mint carefully out, and put in as much more, which must be taken out next day—do this the third time: then put three ​quarts of water to the brandy, and one pound of loaf sugar powdered; mix it well together—and when perfectly clear, bottle it.
HYDROMEL, OR MEAD.
Mix your mead in the proportion of thirty-six ounces of honey to four quarts of warm water; when the honey is completely held in solution, pour it into a cask. When fermented, and become perfectly clear, bottle and cork it well. If properly prepared, it is a pleasant and wholesome drink; and in summer particularly grateful, on account of the large quantity of carbonic acid gas which it contains. Its goodness, however, depends greatly on the time of bottling, and other circumstances, which can only be acquired by practice.
TO MAKE A SUBSTITUTE FOR ARRACK.
Dissolve two scruples flowers of Benzoin, in one quart of good rum.
LEMON CORDIAL.
Cut six fresh lemons in thin slices, put them into a quart and a half of milk, boil it until the whey is very clear, then pass it through a sieve; put to this whey, one and a half quarts of French brandy, and three pounds of powdered loaf sugar; stir it till the sugar is dissolved—let it stand to refine, and bottle it; pare some of the yellow rind of the lemons very thin, and put a little in each bottle.
GINGER BEER.
Pour two gallons of boiling water on two pounds brown sugar, one and a half ounce of cream of tartar, and the same of pounded ginger; stir them well, and put it in a small cask; when milk warm, put in half a pint of good yeast, shake the cask well, and stop it close—in twenty-four hours it will be fit to bottle—cork it very well, and in ten days it will sparkle like Champaigne—one or two lemons cut in slices and put in, will improve it much. For economy, you may use molasses instead of sugar—one quart in place of two pounds. This is a wholesome and delicious beverage in warm weather.
SPRUCE BEER.
Boil a handful of hops, and twice as much of the chippings of sassafras root, in ten gallons of water; strain it, and pour in, while hot, one gallon of molasses, two spoonsful of the essence of spruce, two spoonsful of powdered ginger, and one of pounded allspice; put it in a cask—when sufficiently cold, add half a pint of good yeast; stir it well, stop it close, and when fermented and clear, bottle and cork it tight.
MOLASSES BEER.
Put five quarts of hops, and five of wheat bran, into fifteen gallons of water; boil it three or four hours, strain it, and pour it into a cask with one head taken out; put in five quarts of molasses, stir it till well mixed, throw a cloth over the barrel; when moderately warm, add a quart of good yeast, which must be stirred in; then stop it close with a cloth and board. When it has fermented and become quite clear, bottle ​it—the corks should be soaked in boiling water an hour or two, and the bottles perfectly clean, and well drained.
TO KEEP LEMON-JUICE.
Get lemons quite free from blemish, squeeze them, and strain the juice; to each pint of it, put a pound of good loaf sugar pounded; stir it frequently until the sugar is completely dissolved, cover the pitcher closely, and let it stand till the dregs have subsided, and the syrup is transparent; have bottles perfectly clean and dry, put a wine glass full of French brandy into each bottle, fill it with syrup, cork it, and dip the neck into melted rosin or pitch; keep them in a cool dry cellar—do not put it on the fire—it will destroy the fine flavour of the juice.
Pour water on the peels of the lemons, let them soak till you can scrape all the white pulp off, then boil the peel till soft; preserve them with half their weight of sugar, and keep them for mince pies, cakes, &c. They are a very good substitute for citron.
SUGAR VINEGAR.
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 passed 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 in 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; scrape 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 quantity 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 quantity; 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 quantity 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.