One of the few things I was able to get after my mother's death was the contents of her recipe drawer. In it, carefully typed on 4x6 pink cards with our old Underwood typewriter, were recipes my sister had copied from her Home Ec class. One entire set was about sodas, back in the 1950s when soda shops still were popular, right before they fell from favor.
Most "druggists" also had a small shop and a lunch counter. A common job for teen boys was "soda jerk." They also were "baggers" for grocery stores and pumped gas. It's funny to me, but those grocery stores I felt were so modern could fit in the produce and bakery section of our Super Walmart today.
Here is a little printable booklet form of some of those soda recipes my sister typed up. Her Home Ec teacher was the daughter of the local drugstore owner, and I think some of these were early "copycat" recipes from the business. I put this up on my old blog, too, I think. I like the Brown Cow one best. Sometimes we called it a Brown Cow, and sometimes we just said "Coke Float" if we weren't going to put the chocolate syrup in.
To avoid the unpleasant part of the foam, be sure to put some of the fizzy soda in first each time. Then put in the ice cream. Then top with more soda. It does cut down on the "sea scum" aspect of a float.
I was surprised to see a recipe calling for alcohol! Even just a tablespoon. It's in the Milk Punch recipe. It has malted milk powder, too. I have a lot of that, in my "prepper" grab-n-go bags. Lots of dry malted milk, because it's very helpful in a survival circumstance. I used to have compressed malted milk tablets but those are rare now. I have uncoated malted milk balls instead, in mylar packaging.
As always, don't save the images of these printables. Use the Google link, so that they will print the correct size and be clear when printed. Cut them out, punch a hole in the top left corner, and tie with a bit of ribbon or string. This would be a cute gift tied to an ice cream scoop or a handful of paper straws.
Does anyone else remember paper straws, the first time around? When bored, talking after lunch, I remember unfurling them. They were soggy by that time. Now that paper straws are a thing again and we are newly allowed to talk without masks at our restaurants here, I guess I will be back to unfurling them after lunch at a restaurant! Did you hang the spirals from your ears? I remember my seventh-grade self doing that.
Kind regards,
Olde Dame Holly
Use the LINK-Sheet 1 and LINK-Sheet 2 <-------- stored in the Google Drive cloud.
That's nice that you got your Mom's old recipes, Holly. Yes, I remember the paper straws! They still have the baggers at the grocery stores, and I appreciate them so much. Many times they take the groceries out to your car. And oh, how I miss when the workers used to pump our gas for us. That was a great time, wasn't it?
ReplyDeleteHave a lovely and peaceful Sunday, Holly.
~Sheri
Oh yes, Sheri, I remember that, and they would also clean the windshields, check the oil, and so forth! My brother worked his way through college doing that.
DeleteThere was a soda fountain on my way home from school. My interest, though, was peanut butter sundaes.
ReplyDeleteGosh those sound good!
DeleteWhat a treasure old recipes are, and these are no exception, THANKS!! But I'm seeing that some "vintage recipes" are making a comeback, and so many deserve to, because they're simple and really good. However, lately I've seen a few using aspic-- apparently some chefs are treating it as the new shiny ingredient in the kitchen. Blech .....
ReplyDeleteKim, natural aspic can be good for a picky foster pup or kitten! I have boiled up chickens and let them sit in the water (just an inch or so) and gotten the aspic, and also the aspic from the turkeys at holiday time. When I know I will save the aspic for the pets, I don't season the poultry. For me, though, NO, although my mother loved it! I have seen lurid "aspic molds" with bits of meat and shrimp and sliced olives, etc. Like something from an alien's potluck!
DeleteThere's no talk here as yet about easing up on restrictions. I think masks will be mandatory for a while yet. I wish we would be given some time line about the whole "going back to normal" but so far nothing.
ReplyDeleteI hope they ease your restrictions. I cannot get a good breath with the masks and get a terrible headache every day. Have my eye out for a job where the masks aren't required!
DeleteMy "soda" of choice at the drug store counters was a root beer float. I also remember cherry cokes. And paper straws...I hated 'em.
ReplyDeleteI adore Cherry Cokes with the actual maraschino cherry in there, with a long stem so it can be "dunked" awhile!
DeleteOh how wonderful! I used to love a chocolate soda, and have never had one since the soda fountains at Woolworths and other drug stores closed down. I would LOVE to have one again. I do love Root Beer Floats, and/or a Coke Float. Yes, our local downtown Drug Store also had cherry coke and vanilla coke if you wanted it. Paper straws...I guess that's all we had back then in the olden days before plastic. LOL. Giving away our age here, aren't we? Those were the good old days. Thank you for taking me back!
ReplyDeleteI am iwith you on those chocolate sodas! We used to get a bottled one, too, called a "Chocolate Soldier." Gosh I wish I had one of those old bottles, just the bottle would do at this point! I would put it "on display" in my kitchen!
Deleteon the rare occasion we had a dollar to spare, we got off the school bus and stopped at the soda fountain in woolworths and got Vanilla Cokes or Chocolate Cokes. and really rare a chocolate sundae... never made any at home, in our house there was no money for ice cream or sodas. several times a year on holidays mother made a churn of home made ice cream... colas were specail treats once in a while but not at home
ReplyDeleteAll the recipes are wonderful. I don't like coffee so I won't be making any Coffee Hounds. The malt powder etc is great for calming an upset stomach. When I was in junior high school we lived in a very small town. Our phone was on a two party line with the drug store that made the most heavenly phosphates. Cherry was my favorite with the teeny diced cherries in the syrup used to make them.
ReplyDeleteLove that your Mom neatly typed recipes!!!
ReplyDeleteWhen we purchased our Old Corner Drug Store, it still had a Soda Fountain. Eventually, it ceased paying, to keep it open, and we had to close it, and use the area for products, which were profitable.
It was a bit of a local happening, when the Corner Drug Store Soda Fountain closed...
Just pausing my "Blog Pause",
for tiny bit...
🌿🌼🌿💛🌿🌼🌿
Such high praise from you on my rose post! Thanks so much. That red page warning happened to me too. Made me panic a bit, but it was all a Blogger glitch. Thank heavens that resolved itself! Albuquerque still has Model Pharmacy and the old soda fountain, but now nothing like it was in the old days. I always think of those opening scenes of "It's a wonderful Life." Great old recipes!
ReplyDeleteVery interesting. I like Coke floats with just coke and ice cream, or root beer and ice cream. Call me simple. LOL Janice
ReplyDeleteThat brought back memories of my mom's stories. She was a soda jerk during her high school years! I often wonder what my kids will keep of mine after I'm gone. I've got a bright pink journal (I'm not a pink person!) in which I've written some important spiritual thoughts. I'm hoping they might read that. You never know what will happen when you're gone, lol. I'm a bit of a prepper myself. I have several totes in the spare bedroom full of non-perishables. I hope we never need them! :)
ReplyDeleteSorry I'm so late visiting, Holly. I've been a bit busy since Monday. I appreciate the beautiful recipes you shared. I love the idea of a brown cow. You are SO generous to share these, dear.
ReplyDeleteI had to laugh at your comment to me about WalMart having postcards. There are four Super WalMarts and at least three Marketplace WalMarts in Wichita. I checked there before I checked with anyone else. You may have them in YOUR stores, but they don't make it to Wichita. I swear, I checked WalMarts, Targets, book stores, the Wichita information center, and museums. I finally gave up and realized how many postcards I DO have that I can send, just nothing from Wichita, or even the sunflower state.