Five ounces of bitter almonds, cold-steeped six days in a gallon of whiskey.
Mrs. Christopher Patterson.
One gallon of strong malt whiskey, four pounds of lump sugar dissolved in one pint of boiling water, five ounces of bitter almonds, five ounces of sweet almonds, five ounces of bruised ginger, the rind of six lemons; mix all in a jar; in five or six days filter and bottle.
The Home Cook Book, 1887. Public domain; transcription unaltered.
Bitter almonds convert to hydrogen cyanide on contact with moisture and the enzyme present in the nut itself. Five ounces is a great many nuts, and six days is a thorough, unhurried extraction.
There is no heat anywhere in the method, so nothing drives the cyanide off. The alcohol does not help; it is simply the solvent.
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The House-Keeper's Guide and Indian Doctor · 1851
Dilute battery acid, orange syrup, two gallons of water. “Entirely harmless, even if taken in considerable quantities.”
The 20th Century Home Cook Book · 1906
“Provide leaden moulds… oiled with oil of sweet almonds.” Boiling candy syrup goes straight into the lead. The sweets are for children.
Mackenzie's Ten Thousand Receipts · 1867