Colonial America Recipes: Drinks For the Sick


When we are plagued by flu’s, colds, viruses and other ailments,  the road to recovery is paved by rest and proper nourishment. These recipes, based on The Young Housekeeper’s Friend 1846, are still useful today and fun to use for living history events.

Apple Tea

Roast sour apples and pour boiling water upon them. Drink it when cold. [Add sugar to taste.] 

Refreshing Draughts in a Fever

Put a few sprigs of sage, balm and sorrel into a jug, having first washed and dried them.  Take off the yellow part of the rind of a small lemon; remove the white, slice the lemon and put it into the jug [any pitcher will work] with part of the peel. Pour in three pints of boiling water, sweeten it and stop it close

Boil an ounce and a half of tamarinds, three ounces of currants, and two of stoned raisins, in three pints of water until near one third is wasted [boiled down]; then strain it.

Put a teacup [one cup] of cranberries in a cup of water, and mash them. In the mean time, boil two quarts of water with one large spoonful of Indian or oatmeal, and a piece of lemon peel; add the cranberries and some loaf sugar, but take care to leave a strong flavor of the fruit. Put in a gill of sherry wine, or less if required, and boil it half an hour more. Then strain it.

Toast Water

Toast a crust of white bread very brown without burning it, and put it into cold water. After an hour, the water will be a refreshing drink; and it is sometimes grateful to the stomach when no other can be taken. It is made much more palatable by the addition of any acid jelly. [This is one that I haven’t personally tried.] 

Crust Coffee

Take a nice crust of bread, brown is to be preferred, but Graham bread will answer. Dry it in the toaster [or over a campfire], and at last almost burn both sides; lay it in a sauce-pan and pour boiling water on it; boil it up a minute or two, and then strain it; return it to the sauce-pan with a little milk or thin cream, and boil it up again. 

Parched Corn Coffee

Pound parched corn so as to break it, but not very fine; pour boiling water on it, and boil a few minutes; add sugar and boiled milk or not, as preferred. It is excellent for a weak stomach, and particularly for children with teething complaints.
The copyright of the article Colonial America Recipes: Drinks For the Sick in 19th Century Recipes is owned by Pat Williams. Permission to republish Colonial America Recipes: Drinks For the Sick in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

Go To Page: 1 2

Articles in this Topic    Discussions in this Topic