'But No Pips': Lemonade 1834

For light summer reading, I've fallen back on Mrs Beeton. I highly recommend her recipe for lemonade, although I haven't yet followed her charming injunction to add a little sherry. (For the benefit of the modern reader, 1 lb= 450g and 1 quart = 2 pints).

Ingredients: The rind of 2 lemons, the juice of 3 large or 4 small ones, 1 lb of loaf sugar, 1 quart of boiling water.

Mode: Rub some of the sugar, in lumps, on 2 of the lemons until they have imbibed all the oil from them, and put it with the remainder of the sugar into a jug; add the lemon-juice (but no pips), and pour over the whole a quart of boiling water. When the sugar is dissolved, strain the lemonade through a fine sieve or piece of muslin, and, when cool, it will be ready for use. The lemonade will be much improved by having the white of an egg beaten up in it; a little sherry mixed with it, also, makes this beverage much nicer.


Above, a young lemon spotted at Chelsea Physic Garden