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Drink

Iceland Moss

A cold beverage made by boiling Iceland moss with water and sweetening with loaf sugar.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 3 ingredients
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Iceland Moss

Iceland Moss

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare the moss

  1. Wash the Iceland Moss well in cold water.

  2. Soak the moss in a basin of cold water overnight.

  3. Remove the moss from the water and squeeze it dry in a cloth.

Make the drink

  1. Place the moss in a saucepan with 1 quart of cold water.

  2. Bring the saucepan to a boil and let it simmer for 1 hour, stirring frequently.

  3. Strain the mixture through a sieve into a basin and sweeten with loaf sugar.

  4. Serve with either wine or milk, according to taste.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.

Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it

Explore the science

What each ingredient does

Iceland moss
Its gel-forming starch thickens the water into a soft, jelly-like drink as it simmers.
Loaf sugar
Adds sweetness to balance the mild, slightly bitter flavour of the moss.

The step that matters

Simmering the moss for 1 hour. Simmering slowly and stirring often keeps the moss from scorching on the bottom of the pan and lets its starch dissolve evenly, which gives the drink its body.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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