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Egg cream

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A New York egg cream.

An egg cream is a beverage consisting of chocolate syrup, milk, and soda water, probably dating from the late 19th century, and is especially associated with Brooklyn, home of its alleged inventor, candy store owner Louis Auster. It contains neither eggs, cream, nor ice cream.

The egg cream is almost exclusively a fountain drink. Although there have been several attempts to bottle it, none has been wholly successful, as its fresh taste and characteristic head require mixing of the ingredients just before drinking.

Origins

The origin of the name "egg cream" is constantly debated. One theory was said that they used grade "A" milk calling it a chocolate A cream thus sounding like 'egg' cream. Stanley Auster, the grandson of the beverage's alleged inventor, has been quoted as saying that the origins of the name are lost in time.[1] One commonly accepted origin is that "Egg" is a corruption of the German (also found in Yiddish) word echt ("genuine" or "real") and this was a "good cream". It may also have been called an "Egg Cream" because in the late 19th century, there were already many chocolate fountain/dessert drinks using actual eggs (e.g. 'Egg Brin'),[citation needed] and Auster wanted to capitalize on the name.

Author of the book Fix the Pumps,[2] historical look at soda fountains, Darcy S. O'Neil claims that the "New York Egg Cream" is a variation of the original milkshake served at soda fountains throughout America in the late 19th century.[3]

Around 1885 the milkshake became a popular item at soda fountains. Unlike today's thick, ice cream like consistency, the original milkshakes were made with sweet cream (sometimes frozen as "ice cream"), a whole egg, flavored syrup and soda water. The egg, cream and syrup were shaken in a cocktail shaker until light and frothy, then poured into a glass where the soda water was added.

The Egg Cream was most likely a version created to keep the price low, as most soda fountain items were sold for 5 cents. As eggs and cream became more expensive they would be removed (eggs) or replaced (cream) with milk leading to what we now know as a New York Egg Cream.

Sociologist Daniel Bell claims it was invented by his Uncle Hymie, who owned a candy store on Second Avenue in New York in the 1920s.

Another explanation comes from reports that it grew out of a request for "chocolat et crème" from someone who had experienced a similar drink in Paris, which name morphed phonetically into the current version. Yet another plausible answer is that the first version did, in fact, use egg and cream, but due to the food limitations in WWII they were dropped from the recipe. One work from 1859, Domestic and rural affairs.: The family, farm and gardens, and the domestic animals, does include a recipe that consists of barely more than these two ingredients:

"Egg-Cream.-To the yolks of three eggs, and a dessertspoonful of good new milk or cream, add two drops of oil of cinnamon. This is a very good nourishing mixture. The oil of cinnamon is cordial and tonic, and the above has been recommended in lung complaints..."[4]

A similar recipe still was cited at the beginning of the 20th century, but had already dropped the cream:

"EGG CREAM.

The yolks of 6 eggs, 1/2 pint of water, juice of 1 lemon, 2 oz. of sifted sugar, a little cinnamon. Beat up all the ingredients, put the mixture into a saucepan over a sharp fire, and whisk it till quite frothy, taking care not to let it boil; fill into glasses and serve at once."[5]

Another from the same year (1915) uses both ingredients, though the intent here seems to be to reinforce whipped egg whites:

"3. EGG CREAM.

2 tablespoons fresh cream, the white of 1 egg.

Put the white of egg on to a plate and beat to a stiff froth with the flat of a knife. (A palette knife is the best.) Then beat the cream into it. This makes a nourishing dressing for either vegetable salad or fruitsalad. Especially suitable for invalids and persons of weak digestion."[6]

This supports another likely explanation for the name, which relates to the fact that the term "egg cream" was a very common term in the past (especially in the United States) for beaten egg whites, and the foam on the top of the beverage resembles these.

Recipe

File:Eggcreamparts.jpg
The ingredients of an egg cream: chocolate syrup, seltzer, and whole milk.

Because a traditional egg cream relied upon seltzer under high pressure being delivered via a siphon nozzle rather than poured from a bottle, modern preparation has been slightly altered to preserve the traditional layer effect.[7][8][9]

Pour one part very cold whole milk, optionally froth with handheld Aerolatte-style frother or equivalent. Pour two or three parts seltzer from a just-opened bottle, add a quarter to half-inch of chocolate syrup, and froth just a second or two at the very bottom to mix, preserving distinct layers.

This method gives a chocolatey top. Another method froths the milk and seltzer then pours the chocolate syrup in, causing a chocolate-colored bottom and white top.

Variations

The Brooklyn Egg Cream consisted of chocolate syrup while the New York Egg Cream used vanilla syrup. The vanilla egg cream was offered for 5 cents in the 1950s and 1960s at classic Manhattan candy and newspaper shops in Yorkville and East Harlem.

Similar beverages

Other sweet soda- and milk-based beverages include the Vietnamese soda sữa hột gà, a beverage prepared with sweetened condensed milk, egg yolk, and soda water.

Milkis, a beverage made by the Korean Company, Lotte Chilsung, is also a sweet-soda-milk drink. It's a citrusy soda base mixed with a little milk. Milkis comes in a variety of flavors, including strawberry, orange, and muskmelon.

A Smith and Curran (or Smith and Kearns) is an alcoholic beverage, developed in North Dakota during the mid-20th century oil boom, made of coffee liqueur, cream, and soda water.

There may also be other alcoholic cocktail variants that make use of eggs, often called a "something sour", see Sour (cocktail) for details.

World's largest

In June 1980, Stuart Grunther and Ron Roth owned a siphon seltzer distributing company in NYC called Seltzer Unlimited. They were responsible for creating the world's largest chocolate egg cream in Central Park, NY. It was 110 gallons in size and the contents were given away. Major media coverage included the AP wire services. The event was sponsored by Fox's U-Bet syrup and the NYC Parks Department.[10][11][12]

References

  1. ^ John F. Mariani (1999), Encyclopedia of American Food and Drink, Lebhar-Friedman:New York
  2. ^ Fix the Pumps
  3. ^ New York Egg Creams - An evolution of the original milkshake.
  4. ^ Elliot G Storke, Domestic and rural affairs.: The family, farm and gardens, and the domestic animals, Auburn, N. Y.,: The Auburn publishing company, 1859; page 102
  5. ^ Thomas R. Allinson, The Allinson Vegetarian Cookery Book, 1915
  6. ^ Florence Daniel, The Healthy Life Cook Book, 1915
  7. ^ http://www.jaykeller.com/cooking/eggcream.htm
  8. ^ http://whatscookingamerica.net/History/NYEggCreamHistory.htm
  9. ^ http://www.homemade-dessert-recipes.com/egg-cream-recipes.html
  10. ^ NY Post June 6, 1980 Page 35
  11. ^ Village Voice Centerfold Week June 4–10, 1980
  12. ^ The SoHo News June 11, 1980 Page 5
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