MISCELLANEOUS HINTS.
To Make Tea.—There is very little skill required in making tea, and yet very few have it well prepared. It is important that the water should be boiling, not simply scalding; if it is not, the tea will be worthless. For English breakfast tea it is best to allow two heaped teaspoonfuls for each person. Either put the tea into a perfectly dry pot, and set it on the corner of the range till heated through, before adding the water, or fill the teapot with boiling water and let it stand till thoroughly hot; and then empty it out and put in the tea. This done, pour on two cups of boiling, bubbling hot water, set it on a range or a trivet over a spirit lamp, and let it boil two minutes; then add a teacup of boiling water for every person, and let it boil again for three or four minutes. Put into the teacups sugar and milk according to the taste of those who are to use the tea, and fill up with the boiling tea. When the cups are once filled, put more boiling water to the tea in the same proportion, and again set the pot on the trivet to boil again three or four minutes. The last will be nearly if not quite as good as the first drawing, some prefer it; but in no case fail to have really boiling water.
In making oolong or green teas, less tea is needed, and much less boiling. In both cases it is well to put the tea into a perfectly dry teapot, and set it where it will get hot before the water is put in, or fill the teapot with boiling water, cover close till thoroughly heated, then pour out the water and put in the tea before the pot has time to cool, and then cover the tea with boiling water. Set it where it will simmer, not boil, five minutes before using.
The tea-tree, or shrub, commonly grows from three to six feet high; but in its wild or native state it is said to reach twenty-four feet. In China it is cultivated in numerous small plantations. It resembles the myrtle in the form of the leaf and general appearance. The blossoms are not unlike those of the wild rose, but smaller, white, and very fragrant. The blossoms are succeeded by soft green capsules, containing from one to three white seeds. These capsules are crushed for oil, which is in general use in China.
Substitute for Milk in Tea and Coffee.—Beat up one egg to every coffee-cupful of tea or coffee. Put it in a cup and pour over it very gradually the tea or coffee, very hot, stirring all the time to prevent the egg from curdling.
Bread Crumbs.—Be very careful that no piece of bread, that can be used, is wasted. Gather all waste or broken pieces, put them in a clean dish, and set into the “heater,” if you have one to your stove or range; if not, into the oven after the cooking for the day is done, leaving the door open that the pieces may not burn. When thoroughly dried roll them fine on a board, and with a rolling-pin kept expressly for the purpose, as it makes a pastry board and pin rough to roll any hard substance. Sift the crumbs through a colander, and keep them in a stone pot, in a dry place, covered closely, or put in a linen bag and hung up in a cool place. They are excellent to use in cooking many things, as well as for stuffing, and you cannot save too large a quantity. If well dried and properly aired, they will keep a year, and be as sweet as when first rolled, and, aside from the economy, are a great convenience.