A Soothing Broth

Black Currant Tea

Makes 1 serving

2 tablespoons good-quality black currant jam

Teas and other warm beverages are also recommended for colds and coughs. My husband's grandmother used to make his mother black currant tea whenever she had a cold. Doris was in no way a particularly maternal woman. In fact, she was one of the vainest, most mean-spirited people I have ever met, who, nevertheless, loved Chris's mom to a fault. She was a working-class German Protestant girl who married an up-and-coming man of Jewish heritage because, she was wont to say in plain hearing of everyone (including her husband and his relatives), the Jews possessed great genes and she wanted her children to be smart and ambitious. It also helped that the man she picked was on his way to making a tidy fortune in real estate. I don't know if Doris cooked. There certainly are no family stories or even memories of her doing so, but this one recipe was told to me by Chris's mom with a deep longing for the comfort she received from it, perhaps because it was one of the very few times she was allowed to nestle in her mother's lap.

Spoon the jam into a large teacup or mug. Pour 1 cup boiling water over it and stir until the jam is dissolved. Drink it all while it's still hot.


A Vinegar Drink for Colds

Makes 1 serving

1/2 cup icy cold good quality white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon (!) cayenne pepper

Let me be frank about this recipe: The heat of the pepper will very nearly kill you. On the first sip, the mouth twists into a gasp and a hoarse rasp bellows involuntarily from the throat. The recommendation is to drink theentire glass in one sitting, as painful as it may seem. I can report that it works. My chest and throat burned with a hard (yet not altogether unpleasant) heat but subsided into a banked warmth. The soreness in my throat was, indeed, gone. So was any feeling or taste sensation in my mouth. As an extra bonus, my nasal passages cleared. It's hard to advocate such a slash and burn cure but there is a reason why it's been recorded--and handed down--so faithfully over these many years.

Stir all the ingredients together in a tall glass until the salt and cayenne dissolve. Let the drink warm to room temperature, then stir once more and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled again. Serve cold and sip gradually.


Hasty Pudding for Children's Breakfast

Makes 1 serving

1 cup plus 2 teaspoons fresh milk
2 teaspoons flour
Jam or cinnamon, optional

The very model of a nursery dish! When anyone under my roof has a tummyache, this is what they get. For serious cases, serve it plain. For those times when a stomachache is caused by the blues or a hostile world, stir in a teaspoon of your best jam (for adults, float a good puddle of your best liquor on top, as well). Then wrap the sufferer in your fluffiest quilt or softest blanket and sit close to him on a bed mounded with pillows with your arms protectively surrounding him.

Bring the 1 cup of milk to a boil in a small saucepan. Remove from heat.

In a small bowl, mix the flour with the remaining 2 teaspoons milk and add to the hot milk. Stir until the milk thickens.

Serve plain, or with a flavoring such as jam or cinnamon if you prefer.


A Poultice

Makes 1 treatment

1 cup flaxseeds
1 cup mustard seeds

Crush the flax and mustard seeds with a pestle and mortar (a food processor, using the metal blade, will also suffice) until finely crushed. Add 1/4 cup hot water, stirring until a thick paste is formed (add more hot water if necessary).

Spread the paste on half of a piece of old muslin or double-thick cheesecloth in a thick layer. Fold the other half over the paste.

Place the prepared cloth in a hot basin or bowl. Let the poultice sit for a few minutes to absorb some of the bowl's heat--but not too hot or it will burn the patient's skin! Apply the cloth directly to the affected area, letting it stay in place until all the heat has evaporated.


For Bee Stings

Makes 1 treatment

1 tablespoon wheat germ
2 tablespoons honey

Marion Harland, that sensible housewife, recorded this in The New Common Sense in the Household.

Mix together to form a paste and rub over the sting. It will relieve the itching and take down the swelling.