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 without pressing. To a pint of this liquor, add one and one-half pounds of white sugar. Stir until dissolved, bottle it, but do not cork for several days. When it is ready for use, two or three tablespoons in a glass of ice water will make a delicious drink.

*tartaric acid – a vegetable acid which exists in the grape.

RED-RASPBERRY NECTAR
A beverage that is pleasing to the eye, as well as delightful to the taste (sufficient to serve six). Boil one-half cup sugar and two cups water for two minutes. Allow the syrup to become cool, then add one-half cup lemon juice, and one and one-half cups red raspberry juice. Strain and serve over cracked ice.

RASPBERRY SHRUB
To a quart of vinegar, put three quarts of fresh, ripe raspberries. Let it stand a day, then strain. To each pint of juice, put a pound of white sugar. Put in a jar and set it in a kettle of boiling water. Boil it an hour, then skim it till clear. When cool, add a wine glass* of wine to each pint of shrub. A couple of tablespoons of this, mixed with a tumbler of water, is a very wholesome and refreshing drink.

*wine glass – one-fourth cup.

RASPBERRY BRANDY
Pick some fine, dry raspberries. Put them into a stone jar, and the jar into a kettle of boiling water, or on a hot hearth till the juice will run. After straining it, add half a pound of sugar to every pint of juice. Give it one boil, and skim it. When cold, put equal quantities of juice and brandy.  Some persons prefer it stronger of the brandy than the juice. Shake it well and bottle.

RASPBERRY WINE
To every quart of well-picked raspberries, put a quart of water. Bruise, and let them stand two days. Strain off the liquor and to every gallon, add three pounds of sugar. When dissolved, put the liquor in a barrel and it will be fine in about two months. Then pour into bottles and to each bottle, put a spoonful of brandy, or a glass of wine.

RASPBERRY VINEGAR
No glazed or metal vessel of any kind should be used in this preparation. Put a pound of fine fruit into a bowl and pour over it a quart of the best wine or cider vinegar. Next day, strain the liquor on a pound of fresh raspberries. The following day do the same. Do not squeeze the fruit, but drain as dry as possible by lightly pressing it. The last time, strain it through muslin previously wet with vinegar to prevent waste. Put into a preserving kettle with a pound of sugar to every pint of juice. Stir until the sugar is melted and let it cook gently for five minutes, and skim it. When cold, bottle and cork well.

This is one of the most useful preparations that can be kept in a house, not only as affording the most refreshing beverage, but being especially useful in complaints of the chest. A large spoonful or two in this case is to be taken in a tumbler of water. 

RASPBERRY CAKES
Pick out some fine ripe raspberries, weigh, and boil them. When mashed and the liquor is evaporated, add sugar equal to the first weight of the fruit. Take it off the fire, mix it well until perfectly dissolved, and then put it on china plates to dry in the sun. As soon as the top part dries, cut the paste into small cakes. Then turn them on fresh plates, and put them into boxes when dry, with layers of white paper.

RASPBERRY SALAD
Pick over a quart of ripe raspberries and pile them high in the center of a glass dish. Pour over them a glass of wine, dust them with an ounce of powdered sugar, and keep on the ice till used.

RASPBERRY JELLY
Let the raspberries be freshly gathered and quite ripe. Put them into a large jar after breaking the fruit a little with a wooden spoon. Place this jar, covered, in a saucepan of boiling water. When the juice is well drawn, which will be in from three-quarters to one hour, strain the fruit through a fine hair-sieve* or cloth. Measure the juice, and to every pint, allow one pound of white sugar. Put the juice and sugar into a preserving pan, place it over the fire, and boil gently until the jelly thickens when a little is poured on a plate. Carefully remove all the scum as it rises, pour the jelly into small pots, cover down, and keep in a dry place.

*hair sieve – a strainer with a wiry fabric bottom usually woven from horsehair.

RASPBERRY CHARLOTTE
Put aside some of the largest raspberries. Make a boiled custard of one quart milk, the yolks of six eggs and three-fourths cup of sugar. Line a glass fruit-dish with slices of sponge cake dipped in sweet cream. Lay upon this some ripe raspberries sweetened to taste, then a layer of cake, then raspberries as before. When the custard is cold, pour over the whole. Now beat the whites of the eggs to a stiff froth, add a tablespoon of sugar to each egg and put over the top. Decorate the dish with the saved berries.

Raspberry charlotte may be made the same way.

Image by Alicja from Pixabay

=================================================

Do You Have Any Favorite Berry Recipes? Please Leave a Comment Below.

=================================================