Monthly Archive for April, 2009
Jerry Thomas writes in his 1862 Bartender’s Guide: Â
In such a household the art is still preserved. With her sleeves rolled up, the rosy granddaughter stirs sugar in a couple of table-spoonfuls of sparkling water, packs crushed ice to the top of the heavy cutglass goblet, pours in the mellow whiskey until an overthrow threatens and then daintily thrusts the mint sprays into the crevices. And the old man, rousing from his dreams, blesses the vision which seems to rise up from the buried days of his youth….
The mint julep still lives, but it is by no means fashionable. Somehow the idea has gotten abroad that the mint ought to be crushed and shaken up with water and whiskey in equal proportions. No man can fall in love with such a mixture. Poor juleps have ruined the reputation of the South’s most famous
drink.”
I like the idea that the mint julep was “out of fashion” in the 1860s. Â Perhaps because of the Civil War?
The Kentucky Derby is upon us, and that means the start of mint julep season. Juleps are my hands down favorite drink; I’ve even purchased a few live mint plants so I can make them at a moment’s notice. Captain Maryatt, a 19th c British admirer of the American Julep, had this to say on the frosty drink:
¾ wine-glass (1.5 ounces) of Cognac brandy.
¾ wine glass (1.5 ounces) of peach brandy.
About 12 sprigs of the tender shoots of mint.
Retronovation n. The conscious process of mining the past to produce methods, ideas, or products which seem novel to the modern mind. (kottke.org)
I’m going to be introducing a new feature this week: Â Retronovated Recipes. Retronovation embodies a lot of what this blog is about: looking to the past to innovate the future. Â So I’m going to be sharing some of the recipes I’ve created that aren’t accurate recreations of historical recipes, but rather use the flavors of the past as inspiration. Â Keep an eye out.
Burnt Almondy Ice Cream Goo.
We’re continuing our ice cream social agenda with Burnt Almond Ice Cream, another flavor pulled form Lincoln’s Inaugural Menu. Â This is a custard ice cream, so it’s a little more difficult than what we’ve been making up until this point. And I’ll let you in on the surprise ending: mine didn’t turn out. Â It didn’t freeze in the ice cream maker, and it’s currently a Tupperware of goop sitting in my freezer. Â I did something wrong in this recipe, I just don’t know what. Â The great tragedy is that it TASTES AMAZING. Â I think I’ll try serving it as a sauce on top of other ice cream.
Original Recipe from the Boston Cooking School Cookbook By Fannie Merritt Farmer
Boston, Little, Brown And Company (1896).
Left: Makeshift double boiler. Right: Caramelizing the sugar. Â Do not try to taste the caramelized sugar by sticking your finger in it; its is very very hot and you will get burned very very bad. Like me.
5. In the last five minutes of cooking time, caramelize the sugar. Â Put the remaining sugar in a non-stick saute pan over a low heat. Â Stir constantly. Â When the sugar begins to melt, it will caramelize soon after. Â You want the sugar to be completely melted and the color of maple syrup. Take care not to burn it.
Speaking on new/old products appearing on store shelves, Pepsi is releasing two new soda lines: Pepsi Natural  and Pepsi Throwback.  Their main selling point is that they are made with real cane sugar instead of high fructose corn syrup.  According to Reuters.com: “Pepsi Natural, a premium cola made with sugar, natural caramel and kola nut extract, will be sold in glass bottles…The Pepsi and Mountain Dew Throwback drinks will be sweetened with natural sugar and will feature retro-looking packaging reminiscent of the 1960’s and 70s.” .Â
Kirsch Sorbet
Modern recipe adapted from The Chocolate Traveler.
½ cup skim milk
½ cup heavy whipping cream
1 cup water
¼ cup + 1/8 cup kirschwasser
Bring the milk, cream and sugar to a boil and simmer until the sugar has dissolved. Remove from heat and stir in the water. Add the kirsch to taste. Pour into ice cream maker and freeze for about 20 minutes. Â Transfer the ice cream to an airtight container and freeze until ready to eat. Garnish with cherry preserves.
Left: The fresh starter. Right: After 48 hours.
I never updated you on my yeast experiments from last month. Â Here’s the recipe I used to start my own yeast colony:
Needless to say, I haven’t tried to make anything from it. I’ve been too scared. Â And that’s where it stands.
I’m planning an Ice Cream Social for the late spring, possibly to coincide with the Kentucky Derby. So I wanted to begin testing out a few ice cream recipes, and I decided to use the menu for Lincoln’s second inaugural banquet as a reference. Because if it was good enough for Lincoln, it’s good enough for me!
Lemon Ice Cream
Original recipe from The Complete Confectioner by Eleanor Parkinson, 1864.
and Directions For Cookery, In Its Various Branches by Miss Leslie, 1840.
1/2 cup sugar
Zest and juice of 1 lemon
Left: The mixture of cream, sugar and lemon steeps. Right: Coming out of the ice cream maker. I left it in a little too long and it got a little buttery, but it was still good.