Last night was our monthly sewing circle and we were all busy planning our entries for our local produce show this weekend - I am (with a bit of arm twisting) entering 7 categories! The show is actually held in the next village so we are all travelling in convoy to turn out in force and represent our village - there is a fair amount of rivalry between the two villages and we are hoping to do well! Anyway, will post more of the show later and possibly the results depending on how bad they are! Alison had bought some cookbooks to sewing last night and one included an 1877 recipe which I loved and thought I would share with you!
Mixed Preserve for Children
Take raspberries, redcurrants and whitecurrants in any quantities which are left, or gooseberries and blackcurrants in equal quantities; boil them together for 20 minutes or half and hour, according to their weight, then common moist sugar, dried and heated before the fire, must be added in the proportion of three-quarters of a pound to each pound of fruit and boiled five minutes longer - JH Walsh Domestic Economy (c1877)
We wondered why this would only be for children and what common moist sugar was - noone had any ideas! Suggestions gratefully received!
8 comments:
Hi Hannah.... I found this on the internet. I was quite curious and had to look. "Muscovado sugar (also called Barbados or moist sugar) : Muscovado sugar, a British specialty brown sugar, is very dark brown and has a particularly strong molasses flavor. The crystals are slightly coarser and stickier in texture than "regular" brown sugar."
Thanks so much for looking this up Rita - how interesting that it is Muscovado - I would never have thought of making jam with it - perhaps thats why it's for children as I imagine the jam would have an almost caramel taste. I will try it out as I have redcurrants and blackcurrants frozen in the freezer and will let you know what it's like!
I am wondering now if common moist sugar is the same as common sugar. Maybe it was a kind brown sugar then.
Hi Hannah, I love readin what you are creating all the way in Oz. I did not look this up but I guessed it would be brown sugar, they would not have had white (bleached) sugar back then and if you think about natural sugar (brown) it is quite moist. Funny enought I went out to buy musovado yesterday as it has greater melting properties to white and I wanted to make a lime creme brulee (and I did) and the muscovado would make a better crust... actually I think demerara would make an even better crust... x
*Edited my last comment because apparently I can't spell... trying again!*
Trust me, I was more interested in trying to work out what the birds in the picture were than in the jam!
Brown sugar would have been my guess as well. It does sound tasty and does the day away with your friends. Female companionship and a good foodie day, what more would a woman want!
We went to school together Hannah, great to see you so happy after all this time.
heavenly@atheist.com
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