Excellent Breakfast Coffee

Instructions

1. Use a simple, well-made English filter or percolator. Match the size of the filter to the number of people: if a large quantity of powder is heaped into an insufficient space there will be no room for it to swell and the water will not pass through.
2. For three persons: put three ounces of coffee - best Mocha, in moderately fine powder, ground at the instant of using it - into a filter whose lower compartment holds two pints and a half.
3. Shake the powder quite level and press it closely down. Remove the presser and put on the top strainer.
4. Pour round and round, so as to wet the coffee equally, about the third part of a measured pint of fast boiling water.
5. Let this drain quite through before more is added. Then pour in - still quite boiling, and in the same manner - as much more water; when that has passed through, add the remainder. One pint of boiling water is added by degrees in all.
6. Let it drain entirely through, then remove the top of the filter, put the cover on the part containing the coffee, and serve it immediately. It will be very strong and perfectly clear.
7. To serve: fill the breakfast cups two parts full of new boiling milk (1-1/2 pint to 1 quart of milk for the three persons) and add as much of the infusion as gives the strength wanted. Where it is liked extremely strong, diminish the proportion of milk, or pour less water to the coffee. Cream may be added at choice.
8. If nearly an additional half pint of water is added before the top of the percolator is taken off, the coffee will still be very good - provided the coffee used is really of first-rate quality.
9. For cheaper coffee in the usual English mode: follow the same process but increase the proportion of water considerably, always adding it by slow degrees. Proportions: coffee-powder, 3 oz.; water, 1 quart, to be slowly filtered; hot milk, half to a whole pint.