Woman's Institute Library of Cookery Volume V Part 29

(7) What care should be exercised in the use of colorings in candy?

(8) (_a_) What acids are used in candy making? (_b_) Why are these acids used?

(9) Of what value are milk, cream, and b.u.t.ter in the making of candy?

(10) What may be said of the selection of a pan for cooking candy?

(11) (_a_) What methods are used for testing candies? (_b_) Which of these methods is the most accurate?

(12) (_a_) How should the mixture be poured out to cool when a creamy candy is being made? (_b_) To what point should the sirup be cooled before the stirring is begun?

(13) (_a_) How should chocolate be melted? (_b_) How should coating with chocolate be done?

(14) How should waxed paper be cut for wrapping candies?

(15) Discuss the ingredients generally used for taffy.

(16) On what do good results in caramel making depend?

(17) What should be guarded against in the making of all cream candies?

(18) (_a_) What is fondant? (_b_) How may fondant be stored for future use?

(19) How should dates be prepared for stuffing?

(20) What is the best time for the serving of candy?

BEVERAGES

BEVERAGES IN THE DIET

NATURE AND CLa.s.sES OF BEVERAGES

1. Throughout the lifetime of every person there is constant need for solid food to preserve health and prolong life; and, just as such food is necessary to satisfy the requirements of the body, so, too, is there need for water. As is well known, the composition of the body is such that it contains more liquid than solid material, the tissues and the bones weighing much less than the liquid. A tremendous amount of this liquid is continually being lost through the kidneys, through each pore in the skin, and even through every breath that is exhaled, and if continued good health is to be maintained this loss must be constantly made up. This loss is greater in very hot weather or in the performance of strenuous exercise than under ordinary conditions, which accounts for the fact that more than the usual amount of liquid must be supplied during such times. So necessary is liquid refreshment that the body cannot exist without it for any great length of time. In fact, if the supply were cut off so that no more could be obtained, the body would begin to use its own fluids and death would soon occur. A person can live for many days without solid food, but it is not possible to live for more than a very few days without drink.

2. Nature's way of serving notice that the body is in need of liquid refreshment is through the sensation of thirst. Satisfying thirst not only brings relief, but produces a decidedly pleasant sensation; however, the real pleasure of drinking is not experienced until one has become actually thirsty.

The various liquids by which thirst may be slaked, or quenched, are known as _beverages_. The first one of these given to man was water, and it is still the chief beverage, for it is used both alone and as a foundation for numerous other beverages that are calculated to be more tasty, but whose use is liable in some cases to lead to excessive drinking or to the partaking of substances that are injurious to health.

3. The beverages that are in common use may be placed in three general cla.s.ses: _alcoholic_, _stimulating_, and _non-stimulating_. The alcoholic beverages include such drinks as beer, wine, whisky, etc., some of which are used more in one country than in another. In fact, almost every cla.s.s of people known has an alcoholic beverage that has come to be regarded as typical of that cla.s.s. Alcoholic fermentation is supposed to have been discovered by accident, and when its effect became known it was recognized as a popular means of supplying a beverage and some stimulation besides. Under stimulating beverages come tea, coffee, and cocoa. These are in common use all over the world, certain ones, of course, finding greater favor in some countries than in others. With the exception of cocoa, they provide very little food value. In contrast with these drinks are the non-stimulating beverages, which include fruit punches, soft drinks, and all the milk-and-egg concoctions. These are usually very refres.h.i.+ng, and the majority of them contain sufficient nourishment to recommend their frequent use.

WATER IN BEVERAGES

4. Many persons restrict the term beverages, contending that it refers to refres.h.i.+ng or flavored drinks. It should be remembered, however, that this term has a broader meaning and refers to any drink taken for the purpose of quenching thirst. Water is the simplest beverage and is in reality the foundation of nearly all drinks, for it is the water in them that slakes thirst. Flavors, such as fruit juice, tea, coffee, etc., are combined with water to make the beverages more tempting, and occasionally such foods as eggs, cream, and starchy materials are added to give food value; but the first and foremost purpose of all beverages is to introduce water into the system and thus satisfy thirst.

5. KINDS OF WATER.--Inasmuch as water is so important an element in the composition of beverages, every one should endeavor to become familiar with the nature of each of its varieties.

SOFT WATER is water that contains very little mineral matter. A common example of soft water is rainwater.

HARD WATER is water that contains a large quant.i.ty of lime in solution.

Boiling such water precipitates, or separates, some of the lime and consequently softens the water. An example of the precipitation of lime in water is the deposit that can be found in any teakettle that has been used for some time.

MINERAL WATER is water containing a large quant.i.ty of such minerals as will go in solution in water, namely, sulphur, iron, lime, etc.

DISTILLED WATER is water from which all minerals have been removed. To accomplish this, the water is converted into steam and then condensed.

This is the purest form of water.

CARBONATED WATER is water that has had carbon-dioxide, or carbonic-acid, gas forced into it. The soda water used at soda fountains is an example of this variety. Carbonated water is bottled and sold for various purposes.

6. NECESSITY FOR PURE WATER.--The extensive use made of water in the diet makes it imperative that every effort be exerted to have the water supply as pure as possible. The ordinary city filter and the smaller household filter can be depended on to remove sand, particles of leaves, weeds, and such foreign material as is likely to drop into the water from time to time, but they will not remove disease germs from an unclean supply. Therefore, if there is any doubt about water being pure enough to use for drinking purposes, it should be boiled before it is used. Boiling kills any disease germs that the water may contain, but at the same time it gives the water a very flat taste because of the loss of air in boiling. However, as is mentioned in _Essentials of Cookery_, Part 1, the natural taste may be restored by beating the boiled water with an egg beater or by partly filling a jar, placing the lid on, and shaking it vigorously.

RELATION OF BEVERAGES TO MEALS

7. About one-third of all the water required each day is taken in the form of beverages with the meals. It was formerly thought that liquids dilute the gastric juice and so should be avoided with meals. However, it has been learned that beverages, either warm or cold, with the exception of an occasional case, may be taken with meals without injury. The chief point to remember is that it is unwise to drink beverages either too hot or too cold. For the best results, their temperature should be rather moderate.

8. Foods that may be dissolved in water can be incorporated in a beverage to make it nutritious. With many persons, as in the case of small children and invalids, this is often the only means there is of giving them nourishment. In serving beverages to healthy persons, the food value of the meal should be taken into consideration. The beverage accompanying a heavy meal should be one having very little food value; whereas, in the case of a light meal, the beverage can be such as will give additional nutrition. For instance, hot chocolate, which is very nutritious, would not be a good beverage to serve with a meal consisting of soup, meat, vegetables, salad, and dessert, but it would be an excellent drink to serve with a lunch that is made up of light sandwiches, salad, and fruit.

ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES

9. ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES are made by allowing yeast to ferment the starch or the sugar in a certain kind of food, thus producing acid and alcohol.

Grains and fruits are used oftenest for this purpose. In some cases, the fermentation is allowed to continue long enough to use up all the starch or sugar in the material selected, and in this event the resulting beverages are sour and contain a great deal of alcohol. In others, the fermentation is stopped before all the sugar or starch is utilized, and then the beverage is sweet and contains less alcohol. The higher the percentage of alcohol a beverage contains, the more intoxicating it is and the more quickly will a state of intoxication be reached by drinking it.

10. HARMFUL EFFECTS OF ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES.--In years past, alcoholic beverages were considered to be a necessity for medicinal purposes in hospitals and in homes, but this use of them has been very greatly decreased. In fact, it is believed by most authorities that often more harm than good is done by using alcoholic beverages as a medical stimulant or as a carrier for some drug. As these drinks are harmful in this respect, so are they detrimental to health when they are taken merely as beverages. It is definitely known that alcohol acts as a food when it enters the body, for it is burned just as a carbohydrate would be and thus produces heat. That this action takes place very rapidly can be detected by the warmth that is produced almost immediately when the drink is taken. Some of it is lost through the breath and the kidneys without producing heat, and it also acts upon the blood vessels near the skin in such a way as to lose very quickly the heat that is produced. It is never conserved and used gradually as the heat from food is used. The taking of alcohol requires much work on the part of the kidneys, and this eventually injures them. It also hardens the liver and produces a disease known as hob-nailed, or gin, liver. In addition, if used continuously, this improper means of nouris.h.i.+ng the body produces an excessive amount of fat. Because of these harmful effects on the various organs, its too rapid loss from the body, and the fact that it does not build tissue, alcohol is at best a very poor food and should be avoided on all occasions.

11. KINDS OF ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES.--In spite of the truth that beverages containing alcohol are found to be harmful, many of them are in common use. Following are the names of these, together with a short account of their preparation:

BEER is an alcoholic beverage made from certain grains, usually barley, by malting the grain, boiling the product with hops, and finally fermenting it with yeast. The malting of grains, it will be remembered, is explained in _Cereals_. The hops are used to give the beer a desirable flavor. This beverage is characterized by a low percentage of alcohol, containing only 2 to 5 per cent., and consequently is not very intoxicating.

WINE is a beverage that is usually made from grapes, although berries and other small fruits are occasionally used. It contains from 7 to 16 per cent. of alcohol and is therefore more intoxicating than beer. The wines in which all of the sugar is fermented are known as _sour_, or _dry, wines_, while those in which not all of the sugar has been fermented are called _sweet wines_. Many cla.s.ses of wines are made and put on the market, but those most commonly used are claret, sherry, hock, port, and Madeira.

BRANDY is an alcoholic liquor distilled from wine. It is very intoxicating, for it consists of little besides alcohol and water, the percentage of alcohol varying from 40 to 50 per cent. Upon being distilled, brandy is colorless, but it is then stored in charred wooden casks, from which it takes its characteristic color.

GIN is a practically colorless liquor distilled from various grains and flavored with oil of juniper or some other flavoring substance, such as anise, orange peel, or fennel. It contains from 30 to 40 per cent. of alcohol. It is usually stored in gla.s.s bottles, which do not impart a color to it.

RUM is an alcoholic beverage made by fermenting cane sugar, mola.s.ses, cane juice, or the sc.u.m and waste from sugar refineries and then distilling the product. It contains from 45 to 50 per cent. of alcohol, and has a disagreeable odor when it is distilled. This odor, however, is removed by storing the rum in wooden receptacles for a long period of time.

CORDIALS are beverages made by steeping fruits or herbs in brandy.

_Absinthe_, which is barred from the United States because it contains wormwood, a very injurious substance, is a well-known cordial. Besides being extremely intoxicating, it overstimulates the heart and the stomach if taken in even comparatively small quant.i.ties.