This is a third attempt at an effervescing drink, for teetotalers such as myself. The first two were Effervescing Fruit Drinks and Effervescing Jelly Drinks, both from Mrs. Beecher's Domestic Receipt Book [1850], both absolutely wretched. How will this new challenger from the world's most moralizing cookbook fare?
A masculine woman must be naturally an unamiable creature. -Rev. James Fordyce, D.D.
Raspberry, Strawberry, Currant or Orange Effervescing Draughts.--
Take 1 quart of the juice of either of the above fruits; filter it, and boil it into a syrup with 1 lb. of powdered loaf sugar*. To this add 1 1/2 oz. of tartaric acid**. When cold, put it into a bottle, and keep it well corked. When required for use, fill a half-pint tumbler three parts full of water, and add 2 table-spoonfuls of the syrup. Then stir in briskly a small tea-spoonful of carbonate of soda***, and a very delicious drink will be formed. The colour may be improved by adding a very small portion of cochineal**** to the syrup at the time of boiling.
*Regular, granular sugar. The sugar it refers to is a solid brick or cone of sugar, that has to be smashed before use. I prefer a hammer. Or to buy it free-flowing.
**Tartaric acid may be found at specialty brewing stores. Or might not. In lieu of tartaric acid, the much more commonly available citric acid can be substituted. Citric acid is 4x less acidic than tartaric acid, so you have to increase the amount by 4x. Citric acid can be found by asking at a pharmacy, or by keeping your eyes open during canning season. If you get it from the pharmacy, as I did, expect to pay through the nose. $24 for the amount that I needed for this recipe. RIDICULOUS. All the recipes I've used citric acid for (one) call for just a little bit, so I thought it would last a while. Nope. Entire bottle. Little did I know, two aisles over in the canning section of the exact same store was twice the amount for $3. I found that out a couple days later by accident, and felt so very angry.
***baking soda
****Cochineal are wee little bugs that live on cacti, valued for their excellent red dye. And yes, it is still used as a food dye. People whined about it a lot less when they were literally smashing up bugs in the kitchen to dye confections than they do now where you never see any evidence, which I find strange. Feel free to substitute pre-prepared food coloring, if you do not wish to mash up bugs.
Verdict:
Very, very nice! The citric acid works a lot better here than vinegar. I didn't strain my raspberries like the recipe says, because I am lazy. I tell myself that the seeds make it look more rustic and homemade, and I think I have a good point. And once again, it took until I dumped the baking soda in to go, "Oh RIGHT! Citric acid is made of ACID!" and run breakneck to the sink while it threatened to explode over my hand due to the chemical reaction.
Husband enjoyed it, Toddler threw a tantrum when she finished hers because it was gone, and I thought it was delightful. Very refreshing, tingly in your mouth like soda but not as sweet. I think some cream stirred in would be fabulous. As a bonus, it's just so darn pretty. It looks like a drink from My Little Pony.
It looks great! Reminds me of a powdered drink from my childhood that fizzed when you added water. I think my children would enjoy this one!
ReplyDeleteThat looks delicious! And bonus points for the recipe not sounding too difficult.
ReplyDeleteI tried to make this exact recipe once, but it was epic failure. I tried substituting cream of tartar for the tartaric acid. No, just no. Then the cream of tartar syrup plus the baking soda became disgustingly salty. But your success gives me hope!...or just proves how much I really failed haha.
ReplyDeleteThat very thing occurred to me, too! And I almost did it.
DeleteSo glad to see you posting again--I missed you!
ReplyDeleteThank you!
ReplyDeleteYeah! What a treat to have you posting again!
ReplyDeleteThat looks incredible! Seriously have to play with making a version of this :D
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ReplyDeleteYour article is very helpful thank you very much for sharing .
I wonder if you could use lemon juice in place of the citric acid? You'd probably need quite a lot, but you could sub it in for some of the water. It'd be cheap and easy to get, and better tasting than vinegar!
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure. It would take a really giant amount to get a proportional amount of citric acid, probably so much that it would be lemon flavored instead of anything else. But effervescent lemonade sounds like good fun.
DeleteAccording to a couple of sources online, 1/4 cup of lemon juice is equivalent to 1 teaspoon of citric acid.
ReplyDeleteWhat made the tartar you originally got $24, did it make the drink taste better than the $3 one? The idea behind this blog is really original and I am really enjoying it!
ReplyDeleteI think it's just because it's sold in a different section of the store. Kind of equivalent to buying a Mason jar in the grocery section vs. the craft section.
DeleteI think it's just because it's sold in a different section of the store. Kind of equivalent to buying a Mason jar in the grocery section vs. the craft section.
DeleteCitric acid from the canning section or from the "international foods" section (where it is also known as "Sour Salt") is the way to go - my bottle was 99 cents.
ReplyDeleteHowever! In those days of yore when I did not know that citric acid existed, I used ground-up unbuffered vitamin C tablets for my fizzy-drink experimentation, and it worked quite well. Obviously, 1. unbuffered and 2. as much vitamin C per tablet as you can get (to have less filler). If they're mostly vitamin C, they grind up fairly readily in a mortar and pestle. For those who are seeking to increase their labor while decreasing their historical accuracy, y'know...