GTOD Vigil Recipe - A delicious marcipan with quinces and almonds - Recipes from Anna Wecker’s Köstlich New Kochbuch (1598)

Marzipan of Quince and Almond

Found in Recipes from Anna Wecker’s Köstlich New Kochbuch (1598) this recipe for a marchpane made with quince sounds divine, and so it must be tested.  I have made marchpanes previously for a 12th Night feast, and was eager to try something a little different for this one. 

Ein köstlich Marcipan von Quitten und Mandeln in hefftigem Durchlauff von schwachem Magen (p. 49)

A delicious marcipan with quinces and almonds for strong diarrhea and weak stomachs Take nice quinces and steam them with quince juice in a tightly closed pot, or if you do it right they can produce the broth themselves (i.e. can be cooked without adding liquid). When they are nicely soft, remove their skin and take the best of their marrow or flesh so that no stone is added to it. Then take finely ground almonds and clean, bolted sugar as much as there are quinces and almonds. Take the half part of this and boil it into a syrup with rosewater or cinnamon water. Add the flesh of the quinces to this and let it dry or roast in a brass pan together. Then stir it well in a dish and the almonds with it, then place it on a clean table, work in the remaining sugar, and when it is like a gingerbread dough (ein teig zu Lebkuchen), shape it as you like, press in moulds, dry it in a baking oven or a stove (roehrofen). The same way, you may make pears or various kinds from pure quince flesh, or make krapfen (filled fried pastries) of this stuff, but do not work it so it becomes too stiff, leave it nicely soft. You can also fill wafers with it (for fritters).

Ingredients

Quince
Ground Almonds
Sugar
Rose or cinnamon water

I will use my previous recipe for Marchpane with the addition of quince paste.  With that thought in mind, I am trying a new method with my quinces.  I have cut three quinces in half and have placed them into a crockpot with enough apple juice to cover the bottom (about 2 ounces), and have set the crock pot on low.  I will allow the quinces to cook until they are soft. The idea to cook the quince in a crockpot came from a blog post I had found from well fed, flat broke "crock pot membrillo".

NOTE: I did not add sugar at this point because I want to follow the recipe as exactly as possible and I amnot making quince paste.  If this does not work as expected to cook the quinces to a pulp that can be put into marchpane, then it will become quince paste ;-) it will not be wasted. 

let the experimentation begin!

A short while later....

Quinces smell very good and are starting to soften but all of the apple juice has been absorbed or cooked off :-/ added more juice and water to come about halfway up the fruit--some of them were getting a bit brown. Still cooking on low and planning on continuing to do so for several more hours.

DAY 2

Pictured below are the lovely cooked quinces.  They cooked in the slow cooker for about six hours yesterday and are just now starting to get a reddish color.  Curiosity is prompting me to clean them of their skin and cores and return them to the crock pot for a bit longer.   I must have done it right, because the pot is full of "juice".  There is more there then what I put in yesterday and the fruit is nearly covered with it.  My next step is to remove seeds and cores, remove skins and remove most of the juice, return the fruit to the crock pot and continue to cook it.  There will not be any additional  sugar added to the fruit. 

Also, a small correction from yesterday--it was fresh pressed cloudy apple cider that was added yesterday--not apple juice.  It's the only "apple juice" I drink--sorry for the confusion for those who are following along.  Aren't they lovely?? Heavy,  glossy, and starting to break down!?

Day Three-- Complete!!

Today I finished the marzipan and ohmygoodness! It is delicious!.  The quinces cooked down to a beautiful maroon color which is offset by the almond flour. 

Finalized Recipe

3 tbsp. quince 

3/4 cup + almond flour

9 tbps. + confectioner sugar

Mix all ingrediants together until you get a dough that is similar to medieval gingerbread.  Mix two tbsp. almond flour with 1-2 tbsp. confectioner sugar and sprinkle it on your countertop.  Roll to approximately 1/4" and cut into shapes.  Allow to dry in a very low oven. 

As you can see I tried to decorate with edible gold stars but they do not show up well on the dough. I wish I could have gotten a better picture of it for you, it is a lovely orangy-pink in color and probably does not need any further decoration.  It is a lovely taste! You taste the quince, then the almonds, and towards the end of the bite, the flavors mix together and it tastes -almost- like cherries.  This is a go for FEAST!

GTOD VIGIL RECIPE - Käeßsuppen - Cheese Spread (not soup) - Marx Rumpolt, Ein New Kochbuch, c. 1581

Original Recipe:

Nimm ein neuwen Käeß/ der vber Nacht gemacht ist/ vnd rüer jhn ab mit saurem Rahm/ thu frische Butter darein/ vnd laß darmit auffsieden/ so zergehet der Käeß. Vnnd wenn du wilt anrichten/ so nimm gebeht Schnitten Brot/ oder von Weck/ vnd geuß die Brüeh darüeber/ so ist es ein gute Vngerische Käeßsuppen. 

46 Take a new cheese/ that (was) made overnight/ and stir it up with soured cream/ put fresh butter therein/ and let (it) come to a boil therewith/ so the cheese breaks down. And when you want to prepare it (serve it)/ so take sliced bread/ or from a loaf. And pour the broth over (it)/ so is a good Hungarian cheese soup. 

This recipe reminds me of Sir Kenelm Digby's Savoury Tostyde which is absolutely out of this world delicious. 

We will start with similar proportions as those given by Digby, which creates a very delicious "cheese goo", that can be made ahead and heated day of.  

1/2 lb butter 
1/2 lb cream cheese - Sub sour cream 
1/8 lb new cheese

**1/4 t white pepper (to taste)

**Salt to taste

YUM

Day 2: What is a "New Cheese" 

The recipe specifies "a new cheese / that was made overnight"  so it is assumed that while this "soup" is supposed to be flavorful, it is to be a mild flavor.  Fortunately, we don't have to look very far for instructions on how to make a "New Cheese".  The " Nyeuwen cooc boeck by Gheeraert Vorselman" supplies the following recipe: 

2.198 Om plattekaas te maken

Neem wat stremsel, doe het in room of melk en laat dat een nacht staan bezinken. Doe het dan in de [kaas]mandjes. Leg [eerst] in de mandjes schone doekjes, en giet de gestremde melk erin. Belast het met een steen en laat het dan uitlekken. Doe er dikke room over.

2.198 To make fresh (soft) cheese

Take some rennet, add it to cream or milk and let it set for a night. Then put it in [cheese] baskets. [First] put clean cloth in the baskets, then pour in the curds. Weigh it down with a stone and then let it drain. Pour fat cream over it.

Rennet

Milk

**Salt

I have not worked with rennet to make cheese before.  I am very familar with the cheese made from adding an acid agent to it.  In order to better learn how to do this, I visited one of my favorite blogs-Grow, Forage, Cook, Ferment, who has a very well written set of instructions for making a simple rennet cheese.

Third Day - Test Recipe

The test recipe was made using 2 tbsp. large curd cottage cheese, 2 tbsp. sour cream and 1 tbsp. butter, pinch of white pepper. I chose cottage cheese because it is similar to fresh made acidic cheese (the process is the same) and appears to resemble the simple rennet cheese from previous research.  There are four kinds of  ready made fresh cheeses that can be purchased; the most period appropriate (for this event)  is quark followed by cream or cottage cheeses. Since the cheese is not specified as acid or rennet created, only new, I chose cottage cheese for it's overall availability.

First impression - not bad but it could be better.  This creats a tangy soup with lumps of cheese curd in it.  I was hoping the cottage cheese would break down a bit more, but instead it firmed up and became chewy which I did not care for.  This may change if using something like "quark", and I know it will be smooth using "cream cheese".

Instead of using a "new cheese" I might opt for something along the lines of a Gouda or Muenster or a mix of the two.  Both Gouda and Munster enjoy a long history. Gouda is dated to around 1184 and is a Dutch cheese.  Munster is a French cheese, not to be confused with Muenster, which is an American made cheese that imitates the French style of cheese. 

The advantages of using these two semi-soft cheeses is that they are a little more flavorful then cottage cheese, and will stand up better to the sour cream which overpowered the cottage cheese.  Additionally, I am hoping for a creamier smoother soup, vs a creamy soup with the occasional lump.  Personal preference. 

Alternatively, cream cheese could be used with a little bit of "another cheese" for color and flavor.  We will see. 

Fourth Day

This recipe really bother's me. So I'm doing more research. On to my favorite site for research "Medieval Cookery" hosted by Dan Myers, where I did a search on "cheese". I found another recipe from a similar time period and same region for brouet (brodittum) of cheese in the Registrum Coquine hosted by Volker Bach! WIN!

Thus make a brouet (brodittum) of cheese. Take fresh cheese mixed with eggs, and add saffron with other sweet spices. After that, take fat broth and put it in, and do not stir (moveas) it until you wish to eat it. Then put into (serving) dishes as much as you wish, and put the spices on top. And this will be for Frenchmen and Englishmen.

This seems to be a more workable recipe and more familiar to modern tastes then the previous and therefore this *might* be what I will work with.  

Ingredients

Cheese (fresh)

Eggs

Saffron

"other sweet spices"

Broth

This has a close resemblence to my interpretation of  "Arbolettys" which creates a very cheesy comforting soup flavored with sage.  It is delicious. 

A comparison between arbolettys and the brouet of cheese ingredients yields the following differences: 

Milk instead of broth
No Butter
Herbs in addition to spices (parsley & sage)

A comparison of the brouet of cheese to the original recipe for  Käeßsuppen yields the following differences: 

No eggs

No Saffron

Sour cream instead of broth

No spices or herbs

I will be testing the brouet of cheese later today.  Here are my thoughts on the recipe which should be enough to create a single serving of soup. 

Test Recipe

1 cup broth (chicken)
2 tbsp butter
1/4 cup or to taste cottage cheese mixed (it's what I have)

2 eggs

Similar Recipes: 

Fourme of Curye [Rylands MS 7] - .lxxxlx. Brewet of ayroun.

Gentyll manly Cokere (MS Pepys 1047) - Egges yn brewte.

Something to look forward too for LUNCH!! 

Day 5--AARGHS!!

Armed with the original recipe's ingrdients I've spent the past several days researching.  I think, it's not a soup.  I think it's a sop, that is, something that goes on top of bread.  This is why.

With the exception of seasoning, the original recipes ingredients are directly identical to modern day Pfälzer Spundekäs, a spread that is regionally associated with North Rhein Westphalia and Rhineland Palatinate. It is a cheese paste, typically served on toasted bread or with pretzels. 

Here is the recipe--note, butter is missing in favor of onion, garlic, pepper, salt and paprika.  I was correct in the assumption that this resembles Digby's cheese goo.  So do I want to serve a spread on toasty bread or a soup in a bread bowl? 

Ingredients

4 ounces cream cheese
4 ounces Quark cheese
1/2 cup sour cream (100 ml)

4 tbsp. butter

1/2 onion
garlic
pepper
salt
2 teaspoons paprika

Instructions

Mix the cream cheese, quark and sour cream together in a bowl and beat until creamy. Dice the onions finely and add to the mixture. Season with pressed garlic, paprika, salt and pepper and allow to sit for 3 hours in a refrigerator.

Final Decision -- There is no soup at this feast, there will however be great slabs of the pastry flavored with fennel and bacon and made with a mixture of wheat and rye, assorted cured meats and/sausages, the mustard pickled vegetables, and the pears in syrup for the first course.  YUM!!

I will include the salt and pepper for modern taste, but none of the other spices in the modern recipe.  I do plan on serving an onion relish though, that should make up for any loss of flavor by not including the garlic, onion, pepper or paprika.  

Recipe

1 cup quark or cottage cheese
4 TBSP unsalted butter, softened
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup sour cream

Note: Although not period to make a smoother sauce add 1/2 tsp. baking soda if you are using cottage cheese. 

Mix all ingredients, cover with plastic wrap and let stand in a warm place for 1 hour.

Then put it into a heavy bottomed pan (or double broiler) and simmer over low heat stirring  with a wisk until cheese has started to melt and everything has blended to a smooth consistency. Can be made ahead of time and heated day of. 

Homemade Quark - Instapot recipe

1/2 gallon whole milk
1 quart butter milk
Cheese cloth

Put the milk and buttermilk in Instant Pot and set for Yogurt. Put the lid on and press ‘YOGURT’ then ‘ADJUST.’ Hold the adjust button until it says ‘BOIL.’ Then after it beeps press ‘YOGURT ‘ and set time for 13 hours (overnight). Once done put cheese cloth in a strainer over large bowl and pour out, reserving the liquid (whey). I used that later for the ricotta. Put in fridge for another six hours in cheese cloth over a bowl to continue to drain. Then use as desired.

 

Testing Recipes -- Om mosterdsaus te maken - To Make Mustard SauceNyeuwen Coock Boeck

Taken from Gent KANTL 15, volume 1: [Nyeuwen Coock Boeck, C. Muusers (trans.)]:

1.32. Om mosterdsaus te maken

Neem wat appelmoes en doe er wat mosterd bij met wat gemalen paradijskorrels. Meng dit samen goed.

1.32. To make mustard sauce 

Take some applesauce and add some mustard with ground grains of paradise. Mix this well together.

The first recipe to come together is this sweet mustard that will be served alongside the pork.  It reads very simply. I do feel that I should make a period "Apple Sauce" to add  the mustard to, in order to ensure that the flavor is as authentic as I can make it.  

Into the rabbit hole....

Ein Buch von guter spise is a logical source. It is dated between 1345 and 1354, a bit early for most of the reciepts that I will be using, but how much could a basic apple sauce change? 

The original recipe is located here: Ein Buch von Guter Spice

The recipe reads thus: 

(69.) Ein apfelmus.

Wilt du machen ein apfelmus. so nim schöne epfele und schele sie. und snide sie in ein kalt wazzer. und süde sie in einem hafen. und menge sie mit wine und mit smaltze und ze slahe eyer mit wiz und mit al. und tu daz dor zu. und daz ist gar ein gut fülle. und versaltz niht.

Google Translates offers this rather hilarious translation: 

Will you make an apple sauce.  so take beautiful apples and scold them. and cut it into cold wazzer. and south you in a harbor. and mix them with wine and with smaltze and ze slahe eyer with wiz and with al. and close it. and there is even a good fullness. and not oversalted. 

 

Pretty funny, right? Further research found that this recipe is rather common and has been translated from by multple sources whom I consider peers.  Dan Myer's offers this translation on his Medieval Cookery site. 

How you want to make an apple puree. So take fine apples and skin them. And cut them in a cold water. And boil them in a pot. And mix them with wine and with fat and also beat eggs with white and with all. And do that thereto. And that is a very good filling. And do not oversalt. [Ein Buch von guter spise]

My own interpretations for recipes of a similar nature can be found here: lxxix. Apple Muse - Apple Mousse &  .Cxxxiiij. Apple Moyle - Apple Soft.  

Ingredients for Applesauce 

Apples

Wine

Fat (butter or lard)

Eggs

Salt

I find these ingredients confusing, because the addition of fat and eggs means that the sauce itself will be thicker and richer and not what we traditionally think of when we think of applesauce. Traditional fats in medieval cooking were lard, oils, and when available butter. It reminds me a little bit of lemon curd recipes (eggs, sugar, butter and lemon zest and juice).  

It's been ages since I made mom's lemon curd, but that is the recipe I first look up.  Here it is: 

Mom's Lemon Curd

Juice of 2-3 lemons ~1/3 cup

Zest of 1 lemon

4 egg yolks

2/3 cup granulated sugar

6 tbsp. butter

pinch of salt

This gives me an approximate idea of how much of each ingredient for the interpreted recipe I will need.  

Here are my guesses at interpreting the recipe: 

Wine would substitute for the juice of the lemon. 

Apples to replace lemon zest and lemon juice. 

2 Whole eggs instead of four egg yolks

No Sugar??

Keep salt to enhance flavor and please modern tastes

No Spices??? 

Interpreted Recipe

1-2 Apples, peeled, cored and cut into chunks - Use a mix of apples - better flavor

2 whole Eggs

~ 1/3 cup wine  - use lemon juice in lieu of wine for more "child friendly" sauce

up to 6 tbsp. of butter

salt

*Opt. Sugar and Spices

Following the recipe, the apples should be peeled and cored and added to a pot with water.  The assumption is that you boil them until they are soft and then mix the softened apples with wine, butter and then the eggs to thicken it.  At the end of the recipe salt is mentioned so salt should also be added.  Noteably what is missing are spices!  You would expect to have spices in this sauce.  The only flavorings are the apples and the wine.  

Having made lemon curd in the past I know that I am going to use a double boiler to create this dish.  I know my first step will be to cook the apples until they are soft in either water or the wine/lemon juice, and since I want this to be a sauce, I know I will puree the apples before moving into the next step. 

The next step will involve heating the  pureed apples with the eggs,  sugar and the eggs  until the eggs are fully cooked --approximately two to three minutes - at which point I will add in the butter a tablespoon at a time until the mixture begins to thicken.  I assume that like lemon curd, apple curd can be stored in sterilized jars up to a month or so. 

I am wrestling with the idea that there is no sugar or spices, and after the first test, I may add sugar to it.  We will see.  The other recipe I found for applesauce in lent also foregoes sugar, so it may not have been used in this region during this period.

1.16. Appelmoes in de vastentijd

Neem appel, geschild en in stukken gesneden. Doe ze in een pot, neem de lever van kabeljauw of schelvis en laat deze met de appels koken. Roer het vaak. Wrijf saffraan fijn. Stoot dan [de saffraan] in [het appelmengsel] en vermeng het met amandelmelk. Pureer het als het klaar is, schep het op schotels en strooi er specerijen bovenop.

1.16. Apple sauce in Lent

Have apples, peeled en cut in pieces. Put them in a pot, take the liver of cod or haddock and bring this to the boil with the apples. Stir it frequently. Grind saffron finely. Pound [the saffron] in [the apples] and temper with almond milk. When it is ready purée it, serve it on plates and sprinkle spices on top.

Modern Adaptation: Medieval Apple Sauce

Day 2: Moving Forward and testing this recipe to make apple curd

Time to test making apple curd- because I do not have wine we will be using water and lemon juice to cook the apples. I only have medium eggs available, and I'm using three apples that are past their eating prime--yay me.  With those exceptions I will be using the recipe I created yesterday.  If it works, I will be adding mustard and grains of paradise to it.  I must confess that while I've made mustard from scratch in the past, I currently use a stoneground mustard that is pre-made.  

Test Results

I followed the recipe for the applesauce exactly as I wrote it.  It does create a soft pale colored sauce that is very "fragrant" with apples, however the texture is not what I would think of as  modern "Applesauce"--it is a sauce, similar to a gravy. With the savory flavoring of butter and egg so prevalent this dish could be offputting if it was not served correctly--as a sauce.  

If I were to serve this as a side dish, I would add some sugar or honey to enhance the sweetness a little bit more, and cut down on the butter and egg..maybe using half as much as the recipe called for, 

As a savory sauce--it is good, and it was a great way to use up older apples that were starting to go a bit mealy. That said, I moved ahead and prepared it with the mustard.  I was very aggressive with the seasoning for the mustard and veered off from just the grains of paradise.  I found a recipe for a traditional sweet german mustard and used just the spicing from that. 

The traditional german sweet mustard recipe can be found here. Bavarian Sweet Mustard (Bayerischer Süßer Senf)

For the mustard part of this dish I used stoneground mustard mixed 1/3 with dijon mustard.  

Spice Mix

4 Juniper Berries

1/2 tsp. Grains of Paradise

4 Cloves

8 Black Peppercorns

It is currently mellowing in the fridge so the flavors can meld together. I will test it next week.  The guinea pig enjoyed the mustard sauce and pronounced it good. 

No pictures as yet, because this is just a test run.  

On to the next rabbit hole.....

11/9/2021 - Update

I had to do more research on the applesauce...I thought perhaps I had misunderstood what kind of an apple sauce was needed. I may need to rethink the recipe above based on this recipe I found while rsearching "apple sauce". Sabrina Welserin suggests this as a proper sauce for game and small birds. 

8 To make a sauce with apples for game and small birds

Take good apples and peel them and grate them with a grater and put a little fat in a pan over [the fire] and let it become hot and put the apples in it and let them roast therein. After that put good wine thereon, sugar, cinnamon, saffron and some ginger and let it cook together for a while, then it is ready. One should boil the small birds first and then roast them in fat.

Instead of a smooth sauce I might be looking at a chunkier sauce of apples cooked with wine, spices and then mustard added?? Time to research the roast and to determine how much is too much on spicing. 

Yay!

Into the Rabbit Hole!

 I have been asked to try to document my process on creating the recipes I use for a feast.  This is difficult for me to put into words as I have been cooking since I was old enough to stand at a stool at the stove.  Sometimes my mind just *knows* how to put something together to make it work.  That being said...welcome to the Adventure. 

I'm excited to be asked to cook for this event.  Our SCA is opening up after the pandemic and I must confess that the loss of the ability to share food which I have researched and prepared with friends had effected me more then I had expected.  I still cooked for family during this time, stretching my boundaries and making new and interesting dishes.  I've discovered that a new family favorite is Navajo Fry-bread.  I have fond memories of fry-bread from my youth and it was exciting to share what I consider a festival treat with my family on a regular basis.  But--these things are for modern day cooks, and not things I could write about in a blog I had designed for quick reads and immediate access to workable recipes. 

I must confess, that I have kept my toes in the pond by finishing up interpretations for the remainder of the pottage recipes in the HarlMS279. I also started combining similar recipes together, and I've decided to make changes on the blog to reflect my idea of how to create a "Modern Medieval Feast".  You may have noticed a new section in the blog "Index of Recipes by Category".  Here I am starting to index the work I have done, to fit into appropriate medieval appetizers, first course, second course and dessert dishes.  I am also working to create categories for Medieval Breakfast foods which are mostly the cereal based pottages, breads and pastries and drinks. Indexing the large body of work is tedious and slow--but it is getting done.  So I've not been entirely quiet during this time. 

Which brings me to the next feast.  Specific rules indicate that it can be served either potluck or tavern style.  Hopefully by January, we will have moved beyond the restrictions that I must create the menu within.  Either way, there will not be servers at this point.  My last 12th Night feast was extremely elaborate in terms of menu and food prep, and I have to confess, it is my preferred style of cooking. It consisted mostly of dishes I had interepreted myself and the style of the feast was using my "Modern Medieval Feast template".  

What is this template? The template is a method of serving food that closely follows the dietary regimen of the 15th Century based upon Greek Dietetics, the idea that food must be eaten in the appropriate manner to retain maximum health. When looked at this way, the layout of the feast is very easy--appetizers meant to awaken the appetite and open the stomach, brothy or saucy dishes, heavier roasted dishes, then foods meant to close the stomach and prepare it for digestion.  Yes, it is remarkably modern in design. It also makes it easy for me to create a menu that not only is cost effective, but easy to arrange. 

For this feast I am limited in what and how I can serve.  So I already know that I will be serving "Pot-luck" in two courses, because that is what fits my cooking preference the best. Tavern style means limited dishes in a two course settting.  I can't recall the last time I created a feast that had six dishes or less :-/ Part of the challenge for me is to expose my diners to as many dishes as I can to create the illusion of an elaborate feast for nobles. 

I know from my template that appetizers and pottages will create the first "course" and that roasted/baked and dessert dishes will create the second course. I know that I am cooking for a very limited number of people so I have room to play with fussier dishes if I want to.  I know that I have suggested to the Event Stewards that they should plan for 24-36 diners, and that they should consider limiting to tables of 6 versus tables of 8 to increase the space between diners and lower the possibility of infection rates.  I have also suggested that feast be reservation only.  I am still waiting the event stewards decisions.  Should the stewards take my suggestions there will be six tables with six diners each, or, if we keep to eight per table as usual, then I will be cooking for five tables and 40 diners. No servers, so I will not need to worry about cooking for servers, but there will be staff to help cook day of (masked and gloved of course), so one additional table of food to plan so everyone can eat.  

I reached out to a friend of mine, Volker Bach, who has been posting regularly in my "Historic Cooking" facebook group and asked permission to use their interpretations of manuscripts to create my own recipes.  I got a YES! This is the first of many attributions to Volker Bach you will see. This gives me a  direction to research in and a "style" of cooking to use, German/Dutch for 12th Night. 

To reiterate at this point in time where the rabbit hole is taking me: Pot-Luck Style, Two Courses, Multiple dishes--some can be very fussy!, and limited people to cook for.  Pandemic precautions in place in the kitchen. 

Some thoughts on things I might like to do: 

Pork Roast, stuffed with fruit and served with gingerbread sauce

Cheese Soup served in a pastry (the original recipe does not call for yeast, and is a mix of flours, wheat and rye) that is flavored with fennel and bacon--this may not work as I might want.  Thoughts include adding sour dough to ferment and raise the dough a bit, or just serve it to dip on the side. 

A Neat's Tongue (it sounds better then a cow's tongue doesn't it?) that has been first salted, then smoked, and served very thinly sliced 

Roasted Peas - looks fun, although flavor may be doubtful

A pickled component or two along with other cured meats to serve with the soup similar to a garnish then an actual dish..however, could be part of a salad if using "winter greens" like kale. 

Gingerbread to be made for the sauce

Roasted Milk - this dish seems to be a staple in this style of cooking and therefore is a must in the feast--it should technically be served either in appetizer or second course.

Herbed Dumplings or Rice Fritters for the starch component of the roast--it's up in the air at this point--both are easy to make-- rice fritters are fussier then dumplings and dumplings might add a needed "green" component beside the pork and gingerbread sauce. 

Mustard-found great recipe made with roasted apples and hot mustard...reflects fruit used in pork..might be a good accompaniment. --need to find recipe again... :-/ should have saved it--Found it!

Marchpane-- easy 12th Night Must Have Dish

Comfits and candied peels - chamber spices -- coriander and cinnamon? Maybe Anise..but may be too much "licorice" given fennel in the pastry and possibly sausages. Can Mint be saved from frost? Sugared mint leaves would make a nice background for the comfits.

Pears in wine to be served over a custard (cream pudding) for sweet dish--note..if using roasted milk do you want custard? That puts dairy in every course..cheese soup, roasted milk, custard.  Yeowches...perhaps funnel cakes instead? Serve with "Snow" fruit sauce (cherries?)

Baked oranges?? Sounds delish and easy --should be a stunning presentation if served as described

Things to avoid -- "expected dishes" like pickled beets and saurkraut..because..they are expected--this does not mean that beets and kraut won't show up, they may be components of another dish or serve as garnishes.  They won't be main or side dishes. 

Sotelty - Here be the bean and the pea - Sugar Paste Walnuts filled with sugar candies (Holliplen?), red and green ribbon - will need the reservations to ensure there are enough red/green walnuts to denote male/female for bean/pea. 

You are encouraged to visit Volker Bach's website here: Culina Vetus

Mustard Sauce Testing and Recipe Creation