Food - Drink
The Original Cream Soda Recipe Was Off-Putting
By KATHERINE BECK
Cream soda is an old-fashioned favorite that symbolizes a simpler time, but when you hear the list of ingredients in the first cream soda, you likely won't be feeling so nostalgic.
Created by E.M. Sheldon in the mid-1800s, the first cream soda didn't have any vanilla or cream. Instead it had milk, eggs, cream of tartar, Epsom salts, sugar, and tartaric acid.
It wasn’t unusual for sodas to be made with egg whites at the time, and the cream of tartar might have helped stabilize the whipped egg whites and keep the syrup from crystalizing.
There’s a theory that the cream of tartar may also be why it’s called "cream" soda. As for the Epsom salts, they are a mineral high in magnesium and have a bitter taste.
The good news is that the recipe evolved and nowadays, makers of cream soda in the United States add vanilla flavor, which gives the impression of creaminess.