An Old-Fashioned Recipe for Root Beer

Original old-fashioned root beer was made with roots, berries, flowers, bark, leaves and spices. This recipe by Jenny includes traditional ingredients like sassafras root bark, sarsaparilla root, licorice root, ginger root, juniper berries and more. She shares a site where she buys most of the ingredients.

Jenny explains how to simmer the ingredients, create a sweetened infusion, and then add the key ingredient that will create a fermented beverage. It’s a terrific recipe.

She also includes the history of root beer. It’s interesting to realize that a lot of the herbs and spices  used in traditional root beer recipes were considered medicinal in nature. Sassafrass was used as a diuretic, considered a blood cleanser and promoted a healthy complexion. Wintergreen was used to ease gas and improve digestion. And Sarsaparilla was another diuretic that improved the complexion.

The recipe is actually pretty easy to make. You infuse filtered water with sassafrass root, sarsaparilla root, licorice root, juniper berries and the other herbs and spices.  After straining the infusion, you add sugar. Then you add a ginger bug or whey or kefir as the starter culture. After bottling, you allow the root beer to ferment for 3 to 4 days and then refrigerate for a couple of more days. The final drink is rich, full-flavored, and filled with healthy probiotics.

To read the complete article and see Jenny’s recipe, click on the An Old-Fashioned Recipe for Root Beer link below:

An Old-Fashioned Recipe for Root Beer.