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Dressing for Fruit Salad
(Sweet.) Boil one cup of sugar and half a cup of water five minutes, then pour on to the beaten yolks of three eggs; return to the fire and cook over hot water, stirring constantly until thickened slightly; cool, and add the juice of two lemons. Half a cup of wine may be used in the place of the lemon juice, retaining one tablespoonful of the lemon juice.
This is a sabayon in all but name: a hot sugar syrup beaten into egg yolks, then thickened over water. The hinge is heat control — the yolks must never touch direct heat once the syrup is in.
- The syrup stageOne cup sugar to half a cup water boiled five minutes will land somewhere around the thread stage, though how far depends on the pan and the heat. It should be clear and slightly viscous, not colored; if it starts to tinge, it has gone too far.
- Pour slowlyAdd the syrup to the yolks in a thin stream while beating hard, or you will get sweet scrambled egg. An electric mixer or a second pair of hands makes this straightforward.
- "Cook over hot water"A double boiler, or a bowl set over a pan of water held just below a simmer. The bowl should not touch the water. Direct heat will curdle it in seconds.
- How thick is "thickened slightly"Take it to about 175-180F, when it coats the spoon and holds a brief ribbon. It stays pourable — this is a sauce, not a curd, and it thickens further as it chills.
- Cool before the acidLemon juice or wine added while the mixture is hot can thin it and encourages curdling. Cool it to room temperature first, then whisk in the juice of two lemons — roughly 4 to 5 tablespoons.
- The wine versionHalf a cup of a sweet white wine, sherry or Madeira in place of the lemon, plus the one tablespoon of lemon juice kept back for brightness. Uncooked wine will be perceptible, so choose one worth tasting.
- Yield and useAbout one cup, enough to dress fruit for six to eight. Spoon it over cut oranges, grapes, melon and banana rather than tossing, and serve cold.
- KeepingRefrigerate in a covered jar and use within two days. It separates a little on standing; whisk to bring it back. A few tablespoons of whipped cream folded in at serving turns it into a richer dessert sauce.
Turn-of-the-century American cookery drew a firm line between the "French" oil-and-vinegar dressings and the boiled or cooked dressings built on eggs and sugar, and fruit salad — then often served as a light dessert or a ladies' luncheon course rather than a starter — got the sweet kind. This one is essentially the Italian zabaglione or French sabayon technique, yolks whipped with hot syrup over water, redirected from a warm dessert to a cold sauce by finishing it with lemon juice or wine. The lemon alternative may owe something to the fact that by 1900 citrus was said to be reaching northern cities year-round by rail, leaving the cook to decide which sort of house she was keeping.