GTOD Vigil Recipe - Rindfleisch Knödel (Rumpolt, 1581)

One of the things I wanted to do when requested to put together the vigil table was to make sure that there was a little something for everyone from the savory to the sweet.  For the carnivores I planned on offering a selection of meats; smoked pork, sausages made of pork, and pork and beef, chicken and meatballs of beef.  I wanted to make sure that everything was bite size.  In the past I have used meatballs to "round out" a course.  They are inexpensive and easy to make and if you use a tablespoon measure, you can get approximately 30 meatballs for a pound of meat. In this case, I was able to get more meatballs because of the addition of the bread.  My original intention was to roll them out into a log shape, but I served them up as balls instead.  They were delicious with the spicy brown mustard, cherry sauce and Käeßsuppen. 

Original German (Ein New Kochbuch by Marx Rumpolt)

Ochsen 67. Knödel zu kochen auff ein andere manier von Rindtfleisch. Nim~ Rindtfleisch/ schneidt es klein/ vn~ klaub das Fett darvon/ hack es klein durcheinder/ nim~ ein wenig gestossen Pfeffer/ gerieben Saffran/ vnd ein wenig Saltz/ auch drey oder vier Eyer/ weich ein beschnitte~ Weck oder Sem~el eyn/ druck sie wol mit den Händen auß/ vnd hacks vnter das Fleisch/ thu saubere groß vnd kleine schwartze Rosein darvnter/ mach runde oder lenglichte Knödel darauß/ wie es dir wirt gefallen/ mach Butter heiß/ vnd rößt die Knödel darinnen fein langsam/ daß sie fein braun/ vnd nicht schwartz werden. Vnd wenn du sie hast außgerößt/ so thu sie in einen gekochten Pfeffer/ der wol


English Translation: (by M. Grasse)

Beef #67: Meatballs of beef to cook in another manner. Take beef/ and cut it small/ and trim the fat away/ hack (mix) it small and together/ take a little pounded pepper/ rubbed saffron/ and a little salt (salz in German)/ also three or four eggs/ soak a trimmed loaf or roll/ press (the liquid) out well with the hands/ and hack (mix) under the meat/ put clean large and small black raisins thereunder/ make (form) round or longish dumplings (meatballs) therefrom/ as it pleases you/ heat butter/ and slowly fry the meatballs therein/ that they become fine brown/ and not black. And when you have cooked them through/ put them in a cooked pepper/ that well testing and fixed is/ let them come to a boil again in the pepper/ so it is well tasting/ a good meal for poor and rich.

RECIPE:

1 pound ground beef (80/20)
1 tsp. black pepper
2 tsp. salt
4 eggs
1 c. bread crumbs soaked in water or milk 
¾ c raisins (you can vary this to taste)

Please Note: I deviated from the recipe by boiling the meatballs in broth instead of frying. 

Mix all ingredients together adding water until the meat forms a paste.  Divide meat into portions and roll into shape (balls or logs as you desire).  If you are following the recipe, you will want to brown the meatballs in some fat in a pan.  

If you want to follow my shortcut, season some broth with the seasonings below (vinegar, black pepper, ginger), drop the meatballs in and cook a small batch at a time until they float.  Once they float, they can be removed, cooled and frozen until needed. 

I cannot claim the black pepper sauce recipe.  This is hosted on "The Inn at the Crossroads" website.  Another resource I like to use.  Their recipe is below:

Poivre Noir : Black Pepper Sauce

ORIGINAL RECEIPT:

165. Poivre noir: Black Pepper Sauce. Grind ginger, round pepper and burnt toast, infuse this in vinegar (var.: and a little verjuice) and boil it. – Le Viandier de Taillevent, 14th century


Ingredients

1 slice bread, toasted until black
1/3 cup verjuice, or equal parts cider vinegar and water
1 Tbs. wine vinegar
1 Tbs. ground black pepper
1/4 tsp. ground ginger

Soak the burned bread in the liquid until it has fallen apart; mash with a fork. Stir in the spices and slowly bring to a boil. For a thinner sauce, add more liquid; for a smoother version, press through a sieve.

Testing Recipes - Of various accompaniments to roasts/ for dipping. Marx Rumpolt, Ein New Kochbuch, c. 1581

I would not consider these "dishes" so much as garnishes--things to put around the roast to make it look pretty.  This is one of those "if there is room in the budget" dishes.  Still fun to decipher and try to create a recipe for.  These are from Rumpolt's Ein New Kochbuch. 

2. Weiß Ruben im Senff/ mit neuwem Wein/ der süß ist/ angemacht/ wol dick gesotten/ vnnd durch ein Härin Tuch gestrichen/ die Ruben in Wasser erst gesotten/ das fein steiff ist. Oder daß man die Ruben brat/ vnd wenn sie gebraten seyn/ so schelet man sie/ vnd leßt sie kalt werden/ schneidt sie zu vier stücken/ vnd thu sie in Senff/ laß darinnen ligen/ so wirdt es gut vnd wolgeschmack.

2. White turnips in the mustard/ mixed with new wine/ that is sweet/ cooked until thick/ and strained through a hair cloth/ the turnips are first boiled in water/ that are nicely stiff/ Or one can roast the turnips/ and when they are roasted/ then peel them/ and let get cold/ cut them in four pieces/ and put them in the mustard/ and let them lay in it/ so it becomes good and well tasting.

Ingredients

Turnips

Wine

Mustard

Note: Can be boiled or roasted. 

Since this is a second course dish, the turnips should be roasted--to roast I will need to add a bit of oil, and salt and pepper to satisfy modern taste. 

My recipe

1 pound turnips

2 tbsp. Oil

2 tsp. Salt

1/4 tsp. Pepper

1 tbps. Wine (sub vinegar)

1 tbsp. Mustard (Do you use same mustard as you used for sausages?? or an alternate mustard recipe?)

Opt.  Additional oil for sauce to thin it?? 

Peel turnips and cut into quarters, liberally salt and pepper, and lightly coat with oil.  Heat oven to 375, and roast turnips until fragrant.  Mix wine with mustard, add turnips and serve. Add additional oil if sauce appears to thick to properly coat turnips.

4. Nim~ ein rot Häupt Kraut/ wirffs in einen heissen Ofen/ da man dz Brot hat außgebacken/ wenns wol gedempfft ist/ so zeuchs herauß/ vnd laß kalt werden/ schneidt das verbrannte hinweg/ schneidts viertheil weiß/ vnd thu es in ein Hafen oder in ein Feßlein/ thu ein wenig Fenchel darzwischen/ geuß halb Wein vnd halb Essig darüber/ schneidt auch rote Ruben/ die vorhin gesotten/ vnd kalt seyn/ darein/ thu ein wenig gestossenen Merrettich darvnter/ so ist es gut vnd wolgeschmack.

4. Take a red head cabbage/ throw into a hot oven/ that one has baked bread in/ when it is fully steamed/ then pull it out/ and let become cold/ cut the burned away/ cut in fourths/ and put it in a pot or in a cask/ put a little fennel between/ pour half wine and half vinegar over it/ also cut red beets/ that cooked earlier/ and are cold/ into it/ put a little grated Horseradish under it/ like this it is good and well tasting.

Since vegetable "steaks" are all the new rage, it's nice to see that everything that is old is coming around again.  I LOVE LOVE LOVE roasted cabbage, so this is a definate must have on the list. Question..fennel seeds or fennel bulbs?? Sauce or marinated? Maybe a slaw?? Ohh the possibilities--something is missing in translation, or maybe there is an assumption the cook knows what to do?  

Since the recipe specifically states putting the cabbage into a cask, we are led to believe this is similar to a kraut.  Yummmm

Ingredients

Red cabbage

fennel

wine

vinegar

red beets

grated horseradish

My Recipe

1 head red cabbage cut into quarters

1 fennel bulb thinly sliced

1 tbsp. Salt (for modern taste)

1 tsp. Peppercorns  (for modern taste)

5 tbsp. Wine 

5 tbsp. Vinegar

1 Beet cubed

Opt: Pinch of Sugar

Heat oven to 375.  Place cabbage in a baking dish and put in the oven.  Cook cabbage approximately 45 minutes.  Remove from oven and allow to cool.  While cabbage is cooling, cut fennel into very thin strips.  Grate about a teaspoon of fresh horseradish into the bottom of the jar, begin layering cabbage and fennel in the jar, sprinkling with a little bit of salt and pepper between layers.  Finish with a layer of beets. 

Heat together wine and vinegar and a pinch of sugar, pour over cabbage.  

Note: this might be good to make a few days in advance and to allow to mellow. Also note: Fill any remaining space with water and place in fridge. 

10. Seudt Birn in süssem Most/ thu sie auß auff ein saubers Bret/ vnd laß kalt werden/ laß den Most weiter sieden/ biß er dick wirt/ laß jn darnach kalt werden/ streichs mit braunem Senff durch/ thu alsdenn die gesottenen Birn darein/ so wirt es gut vnd wolgeschmack.  Wiltu aber ein guten Senff haben/ so stoß Aniß vnnd Coriander durcheinander/ streichs durch mit braunem Senffmehl/ vnd süssen gesottenem Wein/ so wirt es gut vnnd wolgeschmack.

10. Seethe pears in sweet grape juice/ take them out on a clean board/ and let cool/ let the juice boil again/ until it becomes thick/ then let it become cold/ strain through with brown mustard/ and then put the boiled pears in it/ so it becomes good and well tasting. However if you want to have a good mustard/ then crush anise and coriander together/ strain through with brown mustard powder/ and sweet boiled wine/ so it becomes good and well tasting.

Doesn't this sound decadently delicious? This is a thought for mustard in the second course to serve with the turnips.  The brown mustard referred to is a very simple dish of brown mustard seeds that have been mixed with vinegar. The recipe goes on to say, that if you want to make a good mustard, yyou add spices to the powdered mustard seeds and this is the part of the recipe that I would be interested in recreating. 

Ingredients

Anise

Coriander

Brown mustard paower

Sweet boiled wine

Recipe Courtesy Ranvaig the Weaver. 

Sweet Pear mustard 1 lb pears, 1 c sweet grape juice, 2 T brown mustard seeds Soak the mustard overnight in a little water or juice. Simmer pears and juice until thick. Cool and process with the mustard. Age at least 3 days before serving. 

Spicy mustard 1/2 c black mustard seed, 1 1/2 c sweet wine, 1 tsp coriander, 1/2 tsp anise Soak the mustard over night. Process until smooth. Age at least 3 days before serving.

To Broil Bace, The Accomplisht Cook, Robert May

To Broil Bace, The Accomplisht Cook, Robert May 

Take a bace, draw it and wash it clean, broil it with the scales on, or without the scales, and lay it in a dish with some good sallet oyl, wine-vinegar, salt, some sprigs of rosemary, tyme, and parsley, then heat the gridiron and lay on the fish, broil it on a soft fire on the embers, and baste it with the sauce it was steeped in, being broild serve it in a clean warm dish with the sauce it was steeped in, and the herbs on it, and about the dish, cast on salt, and so serve it with slices of orange, lemon , or barberries.


Or broil it in butter and venegar with herbs as above-said and make sauce with beaten butter and vinegar.

To Broil Bass

2 pound fresh water bass
½ cup white wine vinegar
1 tsp. salt
½ tsp thyme and rosemary
¼ c minced parsley
4 tbsp butter melted
½ lemon sliced thin

Make a marinade of the vinegar, salt, thyme, rosemary and parsley. Place the fish in a shallow baking dish and pour the marinade over it. Marinate for at least half an hour. Sprinkle half the butter over the fish and bake at 350 degrees until cooked. Garnish and serve.

Baronial 12th Night - Roasted Chestnuts, Turnips and Sage Le Menagier de Paris, 1393

Roasted Chestnuts, Turnips and Sage Le Menagier de Paris, 1393 - - Venison of Deer or Other Beast, If you wish to salt it in summer, it is appropriate to salt it in a wash-tub or bath, ground coarse salt, and after dry it in the sun. Haunch, that is the rump, which is salted, should be cooked first in water and wine for the first boiling to draw out the salt: and then throw out the water and wine, and after put to partly cook in a bouillon of meat and turnips, and serve in slices with some of the liquid in a dish and venison.

Item, if you have small young turnips, you should cook it in water and without wine for the first boiling, then throw out the water, and then partly cook in water and wine and with sweet chestnuts, or if you have no chestnuts, some sage: then serve as above.

Roasted Chestnuts, Turnips and Sage

2 pounds turnips, peeled and quartered
Vegetable broth
1 cup white wine (opt. I used only vegetable broth)
1/4 pound shelled chestnuts
½ tsp. dried sage or 1 sprig fresh sage
salt to taste

Parboil turnips in 4 cups boiling, salted water for five minutes. Drain and recover with remaining cup of water and wine. Add shelled chestnuts and sage and a little more salt and bring back to the boil. Lower the heat and simmer gently for 30 minutes. --Courtesy Pleyn Delit: Medieval Cookery for Modern Cooks, By Constance B. Hieatt, Brenda Hosington, Sharon Butler

Baronial 12th Night - Guissell- Bread Dumplings Harl. MS 4016, 1450

Spatchcocked roast chicken served with "farce" balls and giussel along with pickled blueberries (pickled barberries)

Harleian MS. 4016, ab. 1450 A.D. Guisseƚƚ. [supplied by ed.] *. [Taken from Douce MS. ] [folio 15.] Take faire capon̄ brotℏ, or of beef, And sette hit ouer the fire, and caste þerto myced sauge, parcelly and saffron̄, And lete boile; And streyn̄ the white and þe yolke of egges thorgℏ a streynour, and caste there-to faire grated brede, and medle hit togidre with thi honde, And caste the stuff to the brotℏ into þe pan̄; And stirre it faire and softe til hit come togidre, and crudded; And þen̄ serue it forth hote.

Guissell. (Note: Taken from Douce MS.) Take faire capon broth or of beef, and set it over the fire and cast thereto minced sage, parsley and saffron, and let it boil; and strain the white and the yolk of eggs through a strainer, and cast thereto grated bread and meddle it all together with your hand, and caste the stuff to the broth into the pan; and stir it fare and soft till it come together, and curded; and then serve it forth hot.

Guissell- bread dumplings Harl. MS 4016, 1450

2 cups bread crumbs (1/2 cup sage and onion stuffing mix and 1 1/2 cups bread crumbs)
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
3 eggs
1 small onion minced and parboiled
4 cups broth
1 tsp. sage
1 tbsp. parsley
Pinch of saffron

Served as side dish

Put your breadcrumbs, salt and pepper, (which was added for modern taste) into a bowl, create a well and add in your eggs one at a time until it starts to form lumps. Add your onions, and then enough water to form a smooth stiff "dough". If serving your dumplings dry (not in a flavored broth) add sage, parsley and omit the saffron.

Shape your dough into balls (I used a tablespoon) and drop them into boiling broth and remove with a slotted spoon when they begin to float. Serve.

Served as pottage

If you are not serving the dumplings dry, but are serving them in a flavorful broth, heat the broth, sage, parsley and saffron till it comes to a boil and then lower the heat to simmer. Shape your dough into balls, or add the dough in small batches until the dumplings float. Serve with broth.

Baronial 12th Night - Capon Farced – chicken stuffed with a mixture of sausage, onions and grapes, roasted Harl. MS 279, 1430 and How to Spatchcock Chickens

Spatchcocked roast chicken served with "farce" balls and giussel along with pickled blueberries (pickled barberries)

I had originally planned to serve the chickens stuffed with the farce. The time to cook the chickens was problematic, and the last time I served chickens stuffed with a meat stuffing, the stuffing tinted the meat closest to it a light pink and despite the fact that the chickens were *falling apart* the diner's complained that because of the tint (I used veal and pork in the stuffing) the meat was not cooked. Not wanting a repeat of that experience I elected instead to spatchcock (butterfly) the chickens which would cook them evenly, and halve the cooking time. I also elected to turn the stuffing into "sausage balls" that was served as a side to the chickens.


How to Spatchcock (butterfly) Chickens


Word of advice--buy a cheap pair of kitchen shears if you are going to be doing this to a large number (16) of chickens. My shears needed to be resharpened when I had completed this process. I found it easier to remove the backbone from the chicken while they were still semi frozen, then when they were thawed. I would not attempt this while frozen.

The tailbone of the chicken is also referred to as the parson's nose, and now I can't stop referring to it as that. Turn the chicken so that it is breast side down. Using your shears cut the chicken along each side of the parson's nose which removes the backbone from the bird.

Turn the chicken back over onto its breast and put the frustration of trying to cut through some of the thicker bones into flattening it by placing your hands into the middle of the bird and pushing down until she gives up fighting and lies down complacently flat for you. Ignore any odd noises you might hear.

You can also take the extra step of cutting out the breast bone, but I didn't do this. I think that chicken cooked on the bone is more flavorful and moister then chicken not on the bone.

Original Recipe: XXXV. Capoun or gos farced. — Take Percely, & Swynys grece, or Sewet of a schepe, & parboyle hem to-gederys til J^ey ben tendyr; J^an take harde plkys of Eyroun, & choppe for-w/tA ; caste ])er-to Pouder Pepir, Gyngere, Canel, Safroun, & Salt, & grapis in tyme of jere, & clowys y-nowe ; & for defawte of grapis, Oynons, fyrst wil y-boylid, & afterward alle to-choppyd, & so stufFe hym & roste hym, & serue hym forth. And jif ]70 lust, take a litil Porke y-sode, & al to-choppe hit smal a-mong )7«to|ier ; for it wol be J^e better, & namely ^ for ]>e Capoun.

Translated: 35. Capon or Goose stuffed. Take parsley & swines grease, or suet of a sheep, and parboil them together till they are tender; then take hard yolks of eggs, and chop forthwith; cast thereto powdered pepper, ginger, cinnamon, saffron & salt & grapes in time of year, and cloves enough; & for default of grapes, onions, first well boiled & afterward all chopped, & so stuff him & roast him, & serve him forth. And if thee like, take a little pork seethed, & all chop it small among that other; for it will be the better, & especially for the capon.

Capon Farced – chicken stuffed with a mixture of sausage, onions and grapes, roasted Harl. MS 279, 1430

For the chicken

1 chicken
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. ginger
1/4 tsp. pepper

For the stuffing

2 small onions minced
1/2 cup chopped parsley
¼ cup water
½ cup chicken broth
2 tbs. bacon fat, lard or suet
1 pound mild spice sausage (I used sage)
1 hardboiled egg
1/2 cup seedless grapes
½ tsp. cinnamon powder
1/4 tsp. cloves

To Roast Chicken

Pat your chicken dry and lightly coat it with butter or oil. I prefer European butter because it results in a crispier skin. Mix together salt, ginger and pepper, and sprinkle over the chicken, being sure to coat inside and outside of your bird. If you are stuffing your bird, add the stuffing, and cook your chicken at 350 degrees for about an hour and a half.

If you are serving the sausage as meatballs on the side, and have spatchcocked your chicken, cook your chicken at 400 degrees until the chicken is browned (about 45 minutes) and has an internal temperature of 165 degree's measured in the thickest part of the thigh.

For the stuffing balls:

Put parsley, water, broth, fat and onions in a pot and bring to a boil. Cook for five minutes. Remove the pot from heat, drain and allow to cool. Meanwhile, finely chop the hardboiled eggs and grapes. Add onions, grapes, parsley, cloves, cinnamon, salt and pepper to the sausage and form into balls. I use a tablespoon to shape the sausage balls.

To cook your stuffing, bring a pot of water to boil, and place the balls into it. They will float when they are done. Drain. At this point you can freeze them (they freeze well) or serve them.