Evaporate a quantity of the extract to about y^ its orig-
inal volume. Add enough water to restore the first volume.
The resins which give the flavor will appear as a brown
feathery mass which sinks to the bottom or "precipitates."
If a precipitate is formed, add a few drops of hydrochloric
acid, stir, filter through a small funnel in which filter paper
is folded and wash out the acid by pouring water through
the filter three or four times. Dissolve the precipitate on
the paper with a little alcohol. Divide this into two por-
tions. To one add a piece of ferric alum, and to the other
a few drops of hydrochloric acid. If neither produces more
than a slight change of color, the pure extract of the vanilla
bean was used. If there is a distinct change of color, ex-
tracts from other sources are present.
2. Lemon
To a test tube nearly filled with water add i t of the ex-
tract. If the real lemon is present it will come out of solu-
tion and will give a turbid appearance to the solution, and
will form an oily layer on the top of the water. If the solu-
tion remains clear after diluting with water, very little if
any oil of lemon is present.
To Test for Sulphides
1. Wet the sample of meat or other food with water
and stir well.
2. Pour into a flask or wide mouth bottle and add small
pieces of pure zinc and a little hydrochloric acid. If sul-
phide preservatives are present the unpleasant odor of
hydrogen sulphide will be noticed. To test this dip a piece
of filter paper into lead acetate solution and suspend it in
the flask. A black color on the paper indicates the presence
of hydrogen sulphide.
To Detect Alum in Baking Powder
1. Put some logwood chips in a small agate-ware dish,
cover with water, and bring to a boil. Throw the water
away. Do this three times, then save the fourth extract.
2. Fill a test tube about half full of water and add i t
baking powder. Warm it and shake till effervescence
392 LESSONS IN COOKING
ceases, then add a drop or two of hydrochloric acid to make
the solution acid.
3. To this solution add 4 or 5 drops of the logwood ex-
tract. A bluish red color indicates the presence of alum.
A yellow color shows its absence. Try a small bit of alum
dissolved in water with the logwood extract to become
familiar with the color.
To Test Ice Cream
1. For glucose:
Add an equal quantity of Fehling's solution to i t of the
cream to be tested and boil. If a red precipitate appears
glucose is present.
2. For starch :
Add a few drops of tincture of iodine. A dark blue color
indicates the presence of starch,
3. For gelatine:
To 3 T of ice cream add 6 T of cold water and 3 T of
acid mercuric nitrate. Shake vigorously, then let stand 5
minutes. Filter through filter paper. If much gelatine be
present, it will be impossible to get a clear solution. Mix
a portion of the filtrate with an equal amount of a strong
("saturated") water solution of picric acid. If any gelatine
be present a yellow precipitate will be produced immediately.
To Test for Artificial Coloring in Candy and Jellies
1. Place some of the sample in water and boil to dis-
solve it.
2. Place in this liquid a few pieces of white woolen
yarn, and boil for 5 or 10 m, stirring occasionally.
3. Remove the yarn and wash in hot water. If it re-
mains brightly colored, the presence of artificial dyes is
shown.
Page 218
Presented as published in 1912. Historical recipes may not meet modern food-safety standards. Cook from the modern interpretation, not the original instructions.
AI-modernized reading of the original text
Evaporate a quantity of the extract to about y^ its original volume. Add enough water to restore the first volume. The resins which give the flavor will appear as a brown feathery mass which sinks to the bottom or "precipitates." If a precipitate is formed, add a few drops of hydrochloric acid, stir, filter through a small funnel in which filter paper is folded and wash out the acid by pouring water through the filter three or four times. Dissolve the precipitate on the paper with a little alcohol. Divide this into two portions. To one add a piece of ferric alum, and to the other a few drops of hydrochloric acid. If neither produces more than a slight change of color, the pure extract of the vanilla bean was used. If there is a distinct change of color, extracts from other sources are present.
2. Lemon
To a test tube nearly filled with water add i t of the extract. If the real lemon is present it will come out of solution and will give a turbid appearance to the solution, and will form an oily layer on the top of the water. If the solution remains clear after diluting with water, very little if any oil of lemon is present.
To Test for Sulphides
1. Wet the sample of meat or other food with water and stir well.
2. Pour into a flask or wide mouth bottle and add small pieces of pure zinc and a little hydrochloric acid. If sulphide preservatives are present the unpleasant odor of hydrogen sulphide will be noticed. To test this dip a piece of filter paper into lead acetate solution and suspend it in the flask. A black color on the paper indicates the presence of hydrogen sulphide.
To Detect Alum in Baking Powder
1. Put some logwood chips in a small agate-ware dish, cover with water, and bring to a boil. Throw the water away. Do this three times, then save the fourth extract.
2. Fill a test tube about half full of water and add i t baking powder. Warm it and shake till effervescence
ceases, then add a drop or two of hydrochloric acid to make the solution acid.
3. To this solution add 4 or 5 drops of the logwood extract. A bluish red color indicates the presence of alum. A yellow color shows its absence. Try a small bit of alum dissolved in water with the logwood extract to become familiar with the color. To Test Ice Cream
1. For glucose:
Add an equal quantity of Fehling's solution to i t of the cream to be tested and boil. If a red precipitate appears glucose is present.
2. For starch :
Add a few drops of tincture of iodine. A dark blue color indicates the presence of starch,
3. For gelatine:
To 3 T of ice cream add 6 T of cold water and 3 T of acid mercuric nitrate. Shake vigorously, then let stand 5 minutes. Filter through filter paper. If much gelatine be present, it will be impossible to get a clear solution. Mix a portion of the filtrate with an equal amount of a strong ("saturated") water solution of picric acid. If any gelatine be present a yellow precipitate will be produced immediately.
To Test for Artificial Coloring in Candy and Jellies
1. Place some of the sample in water and boil to dissolve it.
2. Place in this liquid a few pieces of white woolen yarn, and boil for 5 or 10 m, stirring occasionally.
3. Remove the yarn and wash in hot water. If it remains brightly colored, the presence of artificial dyes is shown.