On Sallets - On Salads

Originally Published Oct 8, 2022

[Caveat- I did not translate the Salad's from Rumpolt. The translations belong to M. Grasse at the link found under sources.}

Click here to visit a digitized copy of  Marx Rumpolt's "Ein New Kochbuch"

SALLETS in general con∣sist of certain Esculent Plants and Herbs, improv'd by Culture, Industry, and Art of the Gard'ner: Or, as others say, they are a Composition of Edule Plants and Roots of several kinds, to be eaten Raw or Green, Blanch'd or Candied; simple, and per se, or intermingl'd with others according to the Season. The Boil'd, Bak'd, Pickl'd, or otherwise disguis'd, variously accommodated by the skilful Cooks, to render them grateful to the more feminine Palat, or Herbs rather for the Pot, &c. challenge not the name of Sallet so properly here, tho' sometimes mention'd; And therefore, Those who Criticize not so nicely upon the Word, seem to distinguish the*Olera (which were never eaten Raw) from Acetaria, which were never Boil'd; and so they derive the Etymology of Olus, from Olla, the Pot. (Acetaria a discourse of sallets)

Von allerley Kräuter Salat/ weiß und grün/ wie nachfolget

Of assorted herbal salads/ white and green/ as follows.

I. Endive salad with oil and vinegar prepared/ and with
salt.

2. White endive salad cut nicely small.

3. White head (lettuce or cabbage?) salad.

4. White head salad soaked (poached) in water/ and again cooled/
prepared with vinegar/ oil and salt/ white sugar/ that is crushed/
poured over/ is also good.

5. Green head salad that is half raw and half poached/ is in both ways good/ be it sweet or sour.

6. Green field salad (field greens) prepared / with pomegranate seed sprinkled/
is pretty and decorative.

7. Green salad/ that is small and young/ red beets cut small/ and tossed thereover/ when the salad is prepared/ and the red beets are cooked and cooled

8. Of a white head salad/ that is cut nicely small/ one part poached in cooked water/ and one part raw. And under the poached put capers.

9. Watercress salad/ created in a garden/ or grown near a running creek/ is not bad either.

10. Cooked onion salad/ or roasted (fried)/ make it sweet with a white sugar/ or with small black raisins.

11. Pimpernel Salat

12. White Rapunzel (Bot. Campanula Rapunculus. L.) Bellflower aka little turnip / the root poached/ and a part raw combined with the greens/ is in both ways good to prepare.

13. Round Rapunzzel (Bot. Campanula Rapunculus. L.) poached/ are also not bad to eat.

14. Hops salad/ that is poached.

15. Asparagus salad/ that is also poached/ and cut small/ or prepared whole/ is in both ways good. You can make it with Peabroth/ with a little butter/ pepper and vinegar/ served warm to the table.

16. Chicory root salad/ that is peeled nicely clean/ cut the pit from it/ poach it well/ but that you do not overcook it/ cool it/ make it sweet or sour/ so it is in both ways good.

17 Chicory greens salad/ that is green/ that is poached/ make it sweet or sour. If the greens are young. So one can serve it with vinegar/ oil and salt.

18. Large capers soaked and poached.

19. Small caper salad.

20. Peel the Cucumbers/ and cut them broad and thin/ season them with oil/ pepper and salt. But if they are salt-preserved/ they are also not bad/ are better than raw/ because one can salt it with Fennel and with caraway/ that both can be kept over one year. And near the Rhine-stream one calls it Cucummern

21. Take white beet stems/ peel and poach then in water/ prepare it with oil/ vinegar and salt.

22. Pale salad/ that is green and young/ poach it in water/ season it with vinegar/ oil and salt. And this salad one should not eat much of/ because it purges much.

23. Take hard boiled eggs/ serve them especially beside the salad/ sprinkle them with green parsley and salt/ and pour vinegar over.

24. Sour orange salad/ peel and cut them nicely thick/ sprinkle them with
white sugar.

25. Salad of pomegranate seeds/ sprinkle also with white
sugar.

26. Sorrell salad.

27. Take lemon salad/ cut it broad and thin/ and sprinkle it with
white sugar.

28. Nettle salad.

29. Red beet salad/ when they are cooked/ so cut them small/ long or diced/ season it with oil/ vinegar and salt/ may make it sweet or sour.

30. Artichoke with a pea broth/ good butter/ pepper/ salt/ and a little broth given to the table/ and crushed pepper on the side.

31. Artichoke cooked with beef broth/ and brought warm to the table.

32. Take endive stems/ serve them poached or raw/ cut nicely small.

33. Take a red head lettuce (red cabbage)/ cut it nicely small/ and poach it a little in
warm water/ then cool it quickly/ season it with vinegar and oil/ and when it soaks a while in the vinegar/ it gets nicely red.

34. Of the same greens the stems cut nicely small/ seasoned with vinegar and oil.

35. Take young pumpkin/ that are not large/ peel and cut them nicely long/ remove the seeds/ poach it a little/ cool it thereafter/ and season it with vinegar/ salt and oil.

36.Roman Wicken (Bot. Vicia sativa L.) (common Vetch, the seeds seem to be similar to red lentils, but may well be slightly toxic) and poach them well in their shells/ cool them/ and season them with vinegar/ salt and oil.

37. Take lemon/ chop it small/ season it with nice clean sugar/ that has been crushed/ sprinkle it with pomegranate seed/ that are nicely red/ so it is also delicate and good.

38. Curley salad/ that is nicely green.

39. Take sugar (sugar beet!)/ season it and scrape it/ so they turn white/ poach then
in water/ and cool/ season it with vineger/ oil and salt. You can also serve them
raw/ if they are clean and well peeled or scraped.

40. Salad of red leaf (red cabbage).

41. Take roman beans/ poach and cool them/ prepare them with oil/ vinegar and salt.

42. Take borage, parsley, pimpernel/ lemon balm and hyssop/ astragalus and tarragon/ so it is a combined salad of welltasting herbs/ with borage flowers tossed over/ it is pretty and decorative.

43. Take borage root/ scrape it/ and cut the core therefrom/ and dispose of it/ poach the remaining / and cool it/ season it with oil and salt/ so it is healthful and good.

44.Take radish / and cut it small/ broad and thin/ poach it in
water/ cool it / season it with oil/ vinegar and salt. You may sprinkle it with sugar or not.

45. Or take a radish/ cut in small and thin/ or fine diced/ season it with vinegar/ oil and salt/ so it is good too.

46. You can also arrange a salad in a bowl/ green white and red/ nicely made like a rose/ so it is decorative/ good and welltasting.

47. Kollis Fioris is a Spanish salad/ that one can prepare in all sorts of ways.

48. Take white salad/ that in Italian is called lettuce/ poach it in hot water/ cook it nicely clean/ and cook it with beef broth and fresh butter/ that is unmelted/ make it sweet or not.

49. Take white salad/ that has been poached/ grate a white loaf and parmesan cheese/ cut nutmeg thereunder. Take egg yolks and fresh butter/ that is unmelted/ cut beef marrow thereunder/ and put the salad thereunder/ and a little crushed ginger/ so it is wonderful and filling/ make a dough with egg whites/ work it well/ roll it nicely thin/ as a veil/ that it is translucent/ put the filling therein/ and take each a quarter of the lettuce/ wrap it in the dough with the filling/ and make krapffen (crullers) therefrom. Take a good beef broth and a little whole nutmeg-blossom (mace?)/ set over coals/ and let come to a simmer/ put the crullers one after the other therein/ and let simmer gently. So makes one Schlickrapffen of lettuce/ that are delicious to eat.

50.Take head (lettuce) salad/ cut it in quarters/ and poach it in water/ press it well (to remove water)/ and take a parmesan cheese/ that is well grated/ and grated bread/ mix it together/ and prepare it with egg yolks and fresh butter/ take also a little crushed ginger thereunder/ stir it all together/ and when you want to wrap it in dough/ so take the salad/ that you have quartered/ roll each quarter especially in the filling/ wrap it in the dough/ cook with a pea broth and butter. You may serve it dry/ or in the broth/ as you want to have it.

Source

"Acetaria A Discourse Of Sallets / By J. E. ...". Quod.Lib.Umich.Edu, 2022, https://quod.lib.umich.edu/e/eebo2/B22628.0001.001/1:5?rgn=div1;view=fulltext;q1=salad. Accessed 8 Oct 2022.

"Rumpolt Salad". Web.Archive.Org, 2022, https://web.archive.org/web/20081002110840/http://clem.mscd.edu/~grasse/GK_salad1.htm. Accessed 8 Oct 2022.

Insalata di arance tagliate a fette, servite con zucchero e acqua di rose - Sliced Oranges served with Sugar and Rose Water

Insalata di arance tagliate a fette, servite con zucchero e acqua di rose

Originally published Sep 5, 2022

I have a confession to make. I am uncertain where I located this recipe. I found it and copied it with the notation "Scappi" - however, after further research I think this recipe may have come from another source and Scappi was on my mind. I will continue to look for the source and attribute once I have located it. Because I am unable to attribute the source, this recipe must fall into the realm of "probability".

It is a deceptively simple and easy-to-put-together dish, and quite delicious. I did not have rosewater, so I added orange flower water instead. It was very refreshing and lasted several days in the refrigerator, making it a terrific make ahead and serve feast dish.

Insalata di arance tagliate a fette, servite con zucchero e acqua di rose - Sliced orange salad with rosewater and sugar

4 to 6 oranges (or lemons)

1-2 tbsp. rose water or orange flower water

squeeze of lemon juice

Opt:

2-3 Medjool dates, halved lengthways

2-3 pistachios finely chopped 3 tbsp. mint, finely chopped icing sugar, to garnish

Instructions

1. Peel the oranges with a sharp knife and remove any pith.

2. Slice into very thin half moons. Try to capture the juice and pour it into the serving bowl or platter. 3. Arrange the orange slices on a serving platter.

4. Sprinkle over rose water and a squeeze of lemon juice. 5. Garnish dates, pistachios, mint, and, just before serving, dust over some icing sugar.

Note: Can be served cold, or at room temperature

Per far minestra di Lenti secche - To prepare a thick soup of dried lentils

 The Opera of Bartolomeo Scappi, 1570

I love lentils! They are one of my favorite legumes and they have a very long history of cultivation dating back between 8000 and 10000 years ago. When I found this recipe in Scappi's Opera I knew I had to try it. It makes a delicious (and inexpensive) soup, but an even better salad. This particular "salad" was first created for a luncheon for House Beauvisage. I needed something easy to put together, that would fit a vegetarian diet, and would be ok served cold or at room temperature.

I have to confess, I cheated and used canned lentils for the salad, but you could make this even less expensive and purchase dried lentils and cook them yourself according to your package's directions. I have included the soup recipe here, along with the changes I made to convert this from a soup to a salad.

Original Recipe

Per far minestra di Lenti secche

Pulite le lenticchie dallo sporco e mettetele in una pentola con acqua tiepida; togliere quelli che galleggiano e far bollire il resto nella stessa acqua. Mentre cuociono, con un cucchiaio grande e forato tirate fuori quelli che salgono in superficie e metteteli in un'altra pentola: questo è fatto in modo che la sabbia che a volte entra nel loro buchino fuoriesca e cada sul fondo della pentola. In una pentola mettete delle buone lenticchie con l'olio, il sale, un po' di pepe, lo zafferano, l'acqua e una manciata di erbe fini sbattute; finire di cuocerli. Affinché il piatto sia buono, rendere il brodo piuttosto denso. Con essi si possono cuocere anche spicchi d'aglio, pezzetti di tinca e luccio.

My Interpretation

Clean dirt off the lentils and put them into a pot with warm water; remove any that float and boil the rest in the same water. While they are boiling, with a large, holed spoon lift out any that rise to the top and put them into another pot: that is done so that the sand that sometimes gets into their little hole will come out and drop to the bottom of the pot. Put good lentils into a pot with oil, salt, a little pepper, saffron, water, and a handful of beaten fine herbs; finish off cooking them. For the dish to be good, make the broth rather thick. Cloves of garlic can also be cooked with them and bit pieces of tench and pike.

ngredients

1 ½ c. lentils

2 ½ c. water

2 T olive oil

1 tsp black pepper

2 cloves garlic chopped

3/4 tsp salt

¼ tsp. Pepper

Herbs to taste; basil, rosemary, oregano, fennel, thyme, parsley, or sage Pinch saffron Opt: Onion (for modern taste), additional olive oil, lemon

Instructions

NOTE: The beauty of lentils is that they do not need to go through a prolonged soaking period. Do make sure to rinse your lentils before you add them to your pot of water, and do make sure that as they cook you remove any that rise to the top, and any scum that forms while they are cooking. You can if you choose cook your lentils in vegetable stock but it is not a necessary step.

2. Bring water (or stock) to a boil. Add your seasonings, and then lower the heat to a medium-low and simmer your soup until the lentils are tender.

NOTE: You may add any herbs you wish. I usually add a handful of kale to this soup along with some onion, thyme, basil, and parsley.

3. To serve, garnish with a drizzle of oil and a squirt of lemon.

To Make into a "Salad" - Make a dressing using lemon juice or vinegar (about 1/4 cup), olive oil (about 3/4 cup), herbs, and spices, and mix with your lentils while warm. Can be served warm, room temperature, or cold.