What? Wortys? Oh..those Brassica's!

Another remodel--the sun room which is attached directly to the kitchen making using the kitchen a challenge! So I thought I would try to cobble together a few more quick posts. Today's discusses the first five recipes found in Two fifteenth-century cookery-books : Harleian MS. 279 (ab 1430), & Harl. MS. 4016 (ab. 1450), with extracts from Ashmole MS. 1439, Laud MS. 553, & Douce MS. 55 by Thomas Austin, discussing wortys.  What are worts? Some of them might surprise you.

Medieval Wortys

.j. Lange Wortys de chare. -  a budget friendly and delicious dish of greens cooked in homemade beef broth thicked with bread crumbs and gently seasoned to your taste.  A noble dish for any table.

.ij. Lange Wortes de pesoun. - The second recipe in the pottages section elevates a simple dish of greens, lange wortys de chare, by adding peas that have been cooked to a mush and onions.  The pea's add a pleasant sweetness to an otherwise savory dish.  A must try.

iij - Joutes. - take a dish of greens, wild foraged or store bought, cook them in beef broth and "serve it forth in a dish, an bacon boiled in another dish, as men serve furmenty with venison."  Sound familiar? 

.iiij. Caboges. - another dish that should sound vaguely familiar and one of two recipes in the pottages section of the MS 279 specifically mentioning cabbage.  This has become my go-to for cooking "beef and cabbage", elevate this dish by following directions and "when you serve it in, knock out the marrow of the bones, and lay the marrow, two pieces, or three, in a dish as it seem best, and serve forth."

.v. Whyte wortes. - I grew up eating creamed spinach and was pleasantly surprised to find this recipe for creamed greens, appropriate for lent.  Almond milk is used instead of cow's milk to create this very simple dish which has become a family favorite.