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Category: Beverages

cup of coffee with beans
How to Roast and Boil Coffee

How to Roast and Boil Coffee

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“Coffee affords very little nourishment, and is apt, if drank strong, to occasion tremors of the nerves. It is very bad for bilious constitutions. The calm, phlegmatic temperament can bear it. With a good supply of cream and sugar, drank in moderation, by those who exercise much and take considerable solid food, it may be used without much danger.” Quote is from the book, “The Cook’s Own Book, And Housekeeper’s Register“, by N. K. M Lee. INFORMATION BELOW FROM 1800s…

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Fresh raspberries are a seasonal fruit.
Raspberry Drinks and Recipes

Raspberry Drinks and Recipes

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Raspberries are a seasonal fruit and quite fragile. They won’t ripen after picking, so they can’t be stored fresh for very long. Back in the 1800s, with no electricity, berries had to be eaten quickly, bottled as drinks, or preserved as jelly. INFORMATION BELOW FROM 1800s COOKBOOKS RASPBERRY ACID Dissolve five ounces of tartaric acid* in two quarts of water. Pour it on twelve pounds of red raspberries in a large bowl. Let it stand twenty-four hours and strain it…

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Getting Water from a Well
Obtaining Pure Water to Drink

Obtaining Pure Water to Drink

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In the 1800s, depending on where a family lived, water might come from a pipe (in cities) or from a well, cistern, creek, lake, or river. Water was often contaminated and people had to know how to make it drinkable.  INFORMATION BELOW FROM 1800s COOKBOOKS WATER AS A BEVERAGEMost foods contain water. The water present in foods, however, is not sufficient for the needs of the body. It is necessary to use water as a beverage. When one rises in…

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Homemade beer
Making Family Beer – Molasses, Ginger, Spruce, and More

Making Family Beer – Molasses, Ginger, Spruce, and More

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In 1810, 132 breweries in the U.S. produced 185,000 barrels of beer. The population of the country was seven million. By 1850, 431 breweries in the U.S. produced 750,000 barrels of beer (31 gallons per barrel). The population was 23 million.Source: History of Beer in the 19th Century: Timeline But many families made their own beer. The recipes below are from cookbooks published in the 1800s. INFORMATION BELOW FROM 1800s COOKBOOKS MOLASSES (TREACLE) BEERTake five pints of molasses, half a pint…

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Refreshing drink
Refreshing Beverages for Luncheon

Refreshing Beverages for Luncheon

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With so many varieties of drinks available in stores and restaurants, I forget that people in the past had to make all their own drinks, both for family and guests.  The drink recipes below sound delicious. INFORMATION BELOW FROM 1800s COOKBOOKS LUNCHEON BEVERAGES Inasmuch as coffee usually appears both at breakfast and dinner, it is well to bar it absolutely from the luncheon table. Too much coffee drinking is injurious, as the makers of imitation coffees assure us daily through…

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Hot tea in china cup
How to Make a Perfect Cup of Tea

How to Make a Perfect Cup of Tea

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Only loose tea was used up until the early 1900s. People used a strainer before pouring the tea into cups, or a tea ball if only making tea for one or two people. Around 1908, Thomas Sullivan, an American, made an accidental invention – the tea bag. Sullivan was a tea merchant and started sending tea samples to his customers in small bags made of silk. They put the entire bag in the pot, thinking the tea was to be…

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bottles filled with homemade liqueurs
How to Make Cordials (Liqueurs)

How to Make Cordials (Liqueurs)

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A cordial (liqueur) is a sweetened alcoholic beverage made from a distilled spirit, and sweetened with various fruits and spices. Most cordials aren’t aged long. In the 1800s, some cordials were also used as family medicine. INFORMATION BELOW FROM 1800s COOKBOOKS MINT CORDIAL Pick the mint early in the morning while the dew is on it. Do not bruise it. Pour some water over it and then drain it off. Put two handfuls of mint in a pitcher with a…

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