Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Charles Dickens' Summer Beverages

Right off the bat, this was a bit of a bust. From 1881 Household Words-

We decided to go with Black Currant Water. 

Sounds simple enough, however after several grocery stores searching for black currant jam, all we could find was red currant jam. On to Plan B. 



Done and Done. Although Charlie's recipe calls for the jam to be mixed with water, thus making the drink, I mixed it with club soda. It was delicious and refreshing. Nevertheless, we decided to do Charles one better. 

The Miss Havisham 
8 parts Pisco
4 parts sweet and sour
3 parts Black Currant Syrup
Adjust parts to taste- 




Then, add 1 egg white
crushed ice, "perfectly clear" and "not pond ice" as per Dickens' instructions 
Blend together until frothy 
Serve with kumamoto oysters and listen to Al Stewart

I don't really feel it's fair to rate the recipe for Black Current Water, seeing as how we didn't actually make it. However, on a scale of 1 to 10 Wedding Cakes, I would give the Miss Havisham a 16. 

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