Medieval Rapeye (Harleian MS. 279) — Apple, Date & Almond Pudding Recipe

Harleian MS. 279 (ab 1430) — .Liiij. Rapeye — Date & Apple Pudding

Rapeye (Harleian MS. 279, c.1430) — Apple, Date & Almond “Pudding”

Originally published 3/26/2017 / Updated 10/1/2025

What is “Rapeye”?

The name can sound jarring to modern ears, but in Middle English it had an entirely different meaning. You’ll find it spelled rapeye, rapy, rape, or rapé across manuscripts like Harleian MS. 279, Forme of Cury, Liber cure cocorum, and A Noble Boke off Cookry. The most likely origin is the Old French rapé (“grated” or “rasped”), from the verb raper (“to grate, scrape”). This makes sense: most recipes called for grated or pounded dried fruit, thickened with rice flour or bread.

In practice, Rapeye could mean either a sauce or a fruit paste/pudding. Some versions are clearly sauces for meat or fish; others, like this one, stand as thick fruit dishes in their own right. The Forme of Cury has a “Rape” made of figs and raisins strained with wine; the Liber cure cocorum “Rape” is a raisin sauce sharpened with vinegar. Our apple–date Rapeye is more of a spoon dish or pudding, but the common thread is fruit grated or mashed, spiced, sweetened, and thickened until “chargeaunt” (stout or substantial).

Parallels exist in other European traditions: Latin glossaries sometimes link rapa (turnip) to grated preparations; Italian rappigliare means “to curdle or thicken.” While etymologies vary, the consensus is that Rapeye signified a grated fruit preparation that could flex between sauce, sweetmeat, or pudding depending on context.

Rapeye shows up multiple times in fifteenth-century English cookbooks and seems to be a flexible category—sometimes a sauce, sometimes a fruit paste, sometimes (like this one) a spoonable “pudding.” In Harleian MS. 279 the fourth Rapeye (.Liiij.) combines almond milk with minced dates and raw apples, thickened with rice flour and perfumed with ginger, cinnamon, maces, cloves, sugar, and a touch of saffron or sanders (sandalwood) for color. It’s comforting, gently spiced, and—per my taste testers—popular even with folks who “don’t like dates.”

Original Recipe & Translation

Middle English (Austin, UMich)

.Liiij. Rapeye.—Take almaundys, an draw a gode mylke þer-of, and take Datys an mynce hem smal, an put þer-on y-now; take Raw Appelys, an pare hem and stampe hem, an drawe hem vppe with wyne, or with draf of Almaundys, or boþe; þan caste pouder of Gyngere, Canel, Maces, Clowes, & caste þer-on Sugre y-now; þan take a quantyte of flowre of Rys, an þrowe þer-on, & make it chargeaunt, an coloure it wyth Safroun, an with Saunderys, an serue forth; an strawe Canel a-boue.

Modern-English 

Make a good almond milk. Mince dates finely and add plenty to the milk. Peel raw apples, pound them, and strain with wine or with the almond “draff” (the pressed solids), or both. Add ginger, cinnamon, mace, cloves, and enough sugar. Sprinkle in rice flour to thicken (make it chargeant), and color with saffron and sandalwood. Serve, strewing cinnamon on top.

Seasonal Note: With apples at their peak in autumn and the warming spices of ginger, cinnamon, mace, and cloves, this Rapeye fits naturally into a fall table. In the medieval calendar, it would have been equally at home during cooler seasons and fasting days when almond milk stood in for dairy. Today, it makes a wonderful harvest-time pudding.

Menu Placement

• Fish/fasting days (Lent-friendly): Made with almond milk (no dairy), fruit, rice flour, and spices—ideal as a pottage or spoon course.
• Entremet / Subtle “pudding”: Served warm and “standing thick,” dusted with cinnamon—works between savory courses or as a gentle sweet near the end.
• Breakfast tavern / camping: Holds well and reheats; can be made ahead and served warm or room temperature.

Humoral Notes

Medieval diners balanced dishes by qualities (hot/cold, dry/moist). Almonds were often classed as warming & drying; dates generally warming & moistening; apples tending cooling & drying. The spicing (ginger, cinnamon, mace, cloves) nudges the dish warmer; almond milk and gentle cooking temper dryness; rice flour adds drying/“binding.” Likely seen as moderately warm and tending moist—comfortable fare for cooler seasons.

See also: Rapeye of Fleysshe and Rapeye (.Liij.).

Modern Recipe: Rapeye (Apple–Date Almond Pudding)

Serves 2–3 as a small bowl course, or 4–6 as tasters.

Ingredients

• 1 cup (240 ml) unsweetened almond milk
• 8 soft dates, minced very fine
• 2 medium tart apples, peeled & finely chopped (or grated)
• 2 Tbsp white wine or 2 Tbsp reserved almond “draff” diluted in water (optional)
• ¼ tsp ground ginger
• ⅛ tsp each ground cinnamon, mace, and cloves
• 1–2 Tbsp sugar (to taste)
• 2–3 Tbsp rice flour
• Pinch saffron threads ✧ (see pantry box below)
• Optional: whisper of sandalwood (sanders)
• Pinch salt
• Cinnamon to strew on top

Method

1. Warm almond milk in a small pot; add minced dates and simmer 3–4 minutes.
2. Add apples and wine (or almond draff). Cook until apples soften. Mash lightly or purée smooth.
3. Stir in ginger, cinnamon, mace, cloves, sugar, and a pinch of salt.
4. Simmer and whisk in rice flour gradually to thicken (chargeaunt).
5. Color with saffron (and optionally a trace of sanders). Adjust seasoning.
6. Spoon into bowls; strew cinnamon on top. Serve warm or room temperature.

Cook’s notes: Rice flour thickens quickly; add in small amounts. For make-ahead, cool in a shallow dish and rewarm with a splash of almond milk. Slow-cooker friendly once thickened on stovetop.

Cook’s Pantry: Bring medieval color and spice to your kitchen:

• High-quality Saffron Threads 🌼
• Monk’s Medieval Blend 🕯️

Affiliate links help support the blog at no extra cost to you.

Note on Almond Milk: This recipe begins with almond milk. I’ve written up a period-style version here: How to Make Almond Milk (Medieval Method). Store-bought unsweetened works well, but making it the period way adds wonderful authenticity.

🥕 Dietary Notes & Substitutions

• Vegan (as written); gluten-free if using pure rice flour.
• Nut-free: Use oat milk instead of almond.
• Apple swap: Pears work well.
• Coloring: If skipping sanders, saffron alone gives a warm gold.

Working with Medieval Food Colorants

Colorant	Hue	How to Extract
Saffron	Gold/yellow	Soak threads in warm liquid 10–15 min; add both liquid and threads.
Sanders (sandalwood)	Reddish rose	Steep powder in hot water/wine; strain for clear tint.
Alkanet	Red-purple	Infuse root in warm wine/oil; strain before use.
Amydon	Bright white	Mix starch with water into paste; used as whitening thickener.

Medieval cooks prized bold color. A vivid gold or red dish signaled costliness and status at table.

Similar Recipes

• Forme of Cury, “Rape. XX.IIII. III.” (figs & raisins; rice flour; sanders).
• Liber cure cocorum, “For to make a rape.” (raisins in wine; spiced, thickened).
• A Noble Boke off Cookry, “To mak rape …” (raisins; wine; vinegar; spices).

Sources & Further Reading

• Two Fifteenth-Century Cookery-Books, ed. T. Austin (Harleian MS. 279).
• The Forme of Cury (ed. Pegge).
• C.M. Woolgar, “Medieval food and colour.”
• Ken Albala, Almonds Along the Silk Road.