Party like the Founding Fathers

Life in the Colonies was hard, but the our forefathers knew how to party. At least, if your definition of a party involves copious amounts of food and alcohol.


The Colonists loved their booze. It was safer than water, which was usually contaminated by something nasty, and it didn't go bad like milk tended to a century before the advent of the icebox. When babies were weaned off breast milk they graduated straight to beer. Colonial beer only had an alcohol content of one or two percent, but that would still be frowned upon in today's society. For a time, George Washington operated the largest distillery in America. When the government put an excise tax on whiskey, citizens literally mutinied. Of course, tea was still around, though Britain still wasn't our bosom buddy. There was also coffee, lemonade, egg nog, wine, rum, and cocoa.


Some of the meats they ate are still enjoyed today, others, not so much. Roast beef, mutton, veal, and lamb were common. They ate turkey, goose, pork, turtle, and calves head. They ate meat pies made of chicken or tongue. I know, appetizing, right? 


But then I came across a recipe for apple pie and one for currant pie. They ate rice pudding, though I hope it tasted better than modern rice pudding. They had bread pudding, apple dumplings, apple butter, and all kinds of preserves and jellies. I found a recipe for potato pudding and one for carrot pudding.


I found a recipe for pumpkin, but I guess that wouldn't be in season in July. I came across orange and lemon puddings, as well as puff pastry recipes. They ate lots of custards, which, unfortunately, are still around. I came across marmalade and fruit tart recipes. I've never had marmalade before, but I've heard of it all my life.


I don't know what a syllabub is, but they made them out of cranberries and gooseberries and raspberries. I found recipes for trifle and cake, cookies and gingerbread. You can't go wrong with any of those. Pound cake and Shrewsbury cake are still delicious.


Of course, the colonists made their own bread, and that's a tradition I wish hadn't fallen by the wayside.


From what I understand, the colonists much preferred shellfish to fish, though I found a recipe for cod. Apparently, they also didn't really emphasize vegetables like we do today. I only came across a couple of mentions of vegetable dishes in my research, for peas, beans, asparagus, and cabbage. They did love their gourds, but usually preferred them in something sweet. 


My source for all this was a post-Revolution cookbook called American Cookery. You can read it yourself here: http://digital.lib.msu.edu/projects/cookbooks/html/books/book_01.cfm

I know this was kind of rambling, and I plan on posting again tonight, but I want to leave you with this ad from last July. It doesn't seem so inaccurate once you read about the Founding Fathers' actual drinking habits.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7P85BXvLMOk

Happy 235th birthday, America, and many happy returns.