Give it Forth: Adventures in Medieval Cookery

Harleian MS. 279 (ab 1430) - Cxxxvj. A potage of Roysons - Rice Porridge with Apples and Raisins Today's adventure in cooking from from the " 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 " was a very interesting dish called Cxxxvj. A potage of Roysons. The end product was a kind of cream of rice cereal with chunks of apples and raisins in it. I would serve this as a camp breakfast, or even at an event which is offering breakfast.   The taste testers declared it "tasty, but not delicious", which is a very fair assessment of this dish.  I have created similar recipes that I would prefer to serve over this one. Perhaps it is because I am not a fan of raisins??  .Cxxxvj. A potage of Roysons. —Take Raysonys, & do a-way þe kyrnellys; & take a part of Applys, & do a-way þe corys, & þe pare,*. [? peel.

.Cxxxv. Applade Ryalle Prepared for Nede, Flesshe Day and Fysshe Day Today's adventure in cooking from from the " 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 " was Applade Ryalle, loosely interpreted as "Royal Apple" or "Apple Royal". It includes instructions for producing three vastly different flavored soups using the same base. The soups are made with beef broth (for a flesh day), almond milk (for a fish day) and "in need" with a broth made of wine and honey. The base of the soup is quite simple, apples that have been boiled until tender (read falling apart) and then strained through a strainer.  I made all three of the soups today and the taste testers (God bless them) tried each of them. We all agreed that the soup "in need" and the soup for a fish day were the better of the reci

.Cxxxiiij. Apple Moyle - Apple Soft  Apples belong to the Rosaceae family along with pears, quince, loquat, medlars and yes, roses. It is believed that there has been over 10,000 different apple cultivars that have been developed, many of which are now lost. There are at least 100 different varieties of apples that are grown commercially, but of those, only ten make up 90% of the production in the United States. I find this distressingly sad. As mentioned in my previous post on .lxxix. Apple Muse it is generally believed that domesticated apples has their origins in Central Asia. Apples are documented as early as 6500 B.C. in Jericho and the Jordan Valley. Theophrastes records in 323 B.C the process of budding, grafting and general tree care of six different varieties of apples that were known at the time. There are many legends regarding this fruit, the most well-known is that of Adam and Eve wherein Eve tempts Adam to eat of the "forbidden fruit". Apples are

Harleian MS. 279 (ab 1430) - .lxxix. Apple Muse - Apple Mousse Fall is here and with it an abundance of apples! What better way to pick up the pen again then with this fruit?? Apples have a long and varied history. Carbon dating of seeds found in Southwestern Asia suggest that apples may have originated there. There is also evidence of fossilized apple seeds dating to the Neolithic period found in England which suggests that a variety of wild apple was known.  Whatever the origin, we do know that the Greeks were familiar with apples.  Homer writes about them in the Odyssey.  Hippocrates recommends sweet apples with meals as a way of aiding in digestion. The Romans however, developed the fruit that we are aware of today through the process of cross breeding for sweetness and grafting.   Pliny the Elder describes multiple varieties of apples that were cultivated in Rome. After the Roman occupation of Britain, many of the orchards were left abandoned.  It was through the efforts

Venyson in Broth with Furmenty This post features two 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 . The first recipe, viij. Venyson with Furmenty, includes instructions on how to create a popular grain based dish, Furmenty and serve it with Venyson. The second recipe, .xxij Venyson in Broth, is instructions on how to prepare a pottage of venison.  Frumenty was a hot porridge that normally accompanied a roasted meat or fish in the second course, however, I couldn't resist pairing this colorful dish, that might have been the medieval equivalent of mashed potatoes with the venison in broth.  I am glad I did! The name, frumenty comes from the latin frumentum  which means "grain". I used an ancient form of wheat called Kamut to make this dish. Kamut is a close relative of modern wheat but differs from modern wh

Beef y-Stywyd  This recipe from  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  is very reminiscent of the same flavor profiles one would expect when eating Cincinnati style chili.  It was a huge hit and the taste testers were very quick to remark on how "modern" this recipe tasted. It was also very quick and easy to put together and I plan on serving it at a future lunch tavern and it will definitely make an appearance at a feast. It is believed that the aurochs, an ancient ancestor of the modern day cattle was domesticated sometime around 8000 BC.  Modern day cattle are believed to have emerged from Turkey. The word cattle is derived from the Anglo-Saxon catel  from the Latin capitale meaning "a sum of money, capital." The word cattle  originally meant "moveable personal property".   Cattle had multipl

Wardonys in Syryp - Pears in Syrup There are several recipes 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 Thomas Austin which feature pears that have been stewed in wine, sweetened with sugar or honey, and flavored with cinnamon and other varied spices. The first recipe that I interpreted was  Perys en Composte  which was declared the favorite of the two recipes which I interpreted.  The second was Wardonys in Syryp, a very flavorful dish.  Among one of the oldest cultivated fruits is the pear, and it is sad that today most of us are only aware of a few of the many varieties of pears that are available; Bartlett, Bosc, Anjou, Comice, Asian and Seckle. Pears are thought to have originated in Asia over 4,000 years ago and were being actively cultivated in Europe approximately 1000 B.C.  The Greeks had a special love of pears, and they were considered to

Chardewardon or Pear Custard Chardewardon is one of several pear recipes that can be 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 Thomas Austin . It is quite simple to make and has the texture of a velvety applesauce when completed. One of my taste testers said it reminded him vaguely of pumpkin pie in texture and suggested that perhaps it would be delicious in a tart.  Several recipes published online have layered this dish with another medieval dish, snowe , which I imagine is very delicious as snowe resembles whipped cream flavored lightly with rose water.  .xxxiv. Chardewardon .—Take Pere Wardonys, an sethe hem in Wyne or in fayre water; þan take an grynd in a morter, an drawe hem þorwe a straynoure wyth-owte ony lycoure, an put hem in a potte with Sugre and clarifiyd hony, an Canel y-now, an lete hem boyle; þan take it fro þe fyre, an let ke

Perys en Composte There are several recipes 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 Thomas Austin  which feature pears that have been stewed in wine, sweetened with sugar or honey, and flavored with cinnamon and other varied spices.   I prepared this dish for the  Coronation of Cadagan and AnnMarie  approximately two weeks prior to the event. I canned it and kept it in the fridge.  This is an excellent dish which can be made ahead for any event. The longer the pears are kept the deeper the color of the wine they absorb and the fuller the flavor. This is on my "make again" list and will most likely end up being a go to dish prepared when pears are in season. .xxxv. Perys en Composte. —Take Wyne an Canel, & a gret dele of Whyte Sugre, an set it on þe fyre & hete it hote, but let it nowt boyle, an draw it þorwe a straynoure; þan t

Cxxvj. Rede Rose   There are a number of dishes 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 Thomas Austin , which make a pudding, or custard flavored with edible flowers. I interpreted the recipe for Rede Rose, which creates a lovely rose flavored custard, that would be wonderful for a vigil, or luncheon or served at the end of a meal. I have also included similar recipes found in the manuscript for Cviij - Prymerose , Cxxvij - Prymerose and .Cxxviij. Flowrys of hawþorn which I have not interpreted, partly because, they say "to create this dish in the same manner as  vyolette ", and partly because I do not currently have access to primroses or hawthorn flowers.  For more information on the kinds of flowers that were eaten, and thus, a way to add considerable variation to this simple dish, please visit Agnes deLanvallei's "Medieval

Pumpes - Meatballs in Almond Milk Here is another meatball recipe from  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  Thomas Austin .  This is very pretty to look at, but without salt or pepper the dish is a bit on the bland side.  My guess is that the majority of the seasoning would come from whatever seasonings might have been used in the pork when it was cooked.  I used ground raw pork to make the meatballs, and would highly suggest that you add additional seasoning then just clove and mace (I did).   .Cxxxviij. Pumpes . —Take an sethe a gode gobet of Porke, & noȝt to lene, as tendyr as þou may; þan take hem vppe & choppe hem as smal as þou may; þan take clowes & Maces, & choppe forth with-alle, & Also choppe forth with Roysonys of coraunce; þan take hem & rolle hem as round as þou may, lyke to smale pelettys, a .ij. inches a-bowt