ricasseed chicken.

MILK TOAST.

Scald a quart of milk in a double boiler, and thicken it with two even
tablespoonfuls of corn-starch dissolved in a little cold water, or the
same amount of flour. Add a teaspoonful of salt, and a heaping
tablespoonful of butter. Have ready a dozen slices of water toast, which,
unless wanted quite rich, needs no butter. Pour the thickened milk into a
pan, that each slice may be easily dipped into it, and pile them when
dipped in a deep dish, pouring the rest of the milk over them. Serve very
hot. Cream is sometimes used instead of milk, in which case no thickening
is put in, and only a pint heated with a saltspoonful of salt.

* * * * *

TEA, COFFEE, ETC.

For these a cardinal rule has already been given in Part I., but can not
be enforced too often; viz., the necessity of fresh water boiled, and used
as soon as it boils, that the gases which give it character and sparkle
may not have had time to escape. Tea and coffee both should be kept from
the air, but the former even more carefully than the latter, as the
delicate flavor evaporates more quickly.

TEA.

To begin with, never use a tin teapot if an earthen one is obtainable. An
even teaspoonful of dry tea is the usual allowance for a person. Scald the
teapot with a little _boiling water_, and pour it off. Put in the tea, and
pour on not over a cup of boiling water, letting it stand a minute or two
for the leaves to swell. Then fill with the needed amount of _water still
boiling_, this being about a small cupful to a person. Cover closely, and
let it stand five minutes. Ten will be required for English breakfast tea,
but _never boil_ either, above all in a tin pot. Boiling liberates the
tannic acid of the tea, which acts upon the tin, making a compound bitter
and metallic in taste, and unfit for human stomachs.

COFFEE.

The best coffee is made from a mixture of two-thirds Java and one-third
Mocha; the Java giving strength, and the Mocha flavor and aroma. The
roasting must be very perfectly done. If done at home, constant stirring
is necessary to prevent burning; but all good grocers use now rotary
roasters, which brown each grain perfectly. Buy in small quantities
_unground_; keep closely covered; and if the highest flavor is wanted,
heat hot before grinding.

A noted German chemist claims to have discovered an effectual antidote to
the harmful effects of coffee,--an antidote for which h