Give it Forth: Adventures in Medieval Cookery

Baronial 12th Night  Stanley, the guest of honor, created by Mary Dahlberg Soteltie – a Boar’s head with sweet meats and fine pies (here be the bean and the pea) & Trayne Roast (mock entrails) On Table Bryndons-a sweet and fruity sauce - Harl. MS 279, 1430 Mortrews of Chicken & Pork and Fish - an early form of pate Harl. MS 279, 1430 Compost -pickled vegetables, olives and capers Forme of Curye, 1390 Let Lardes – hard custard flavored with herbs cooked in bacon grease Harl. MS 4016, 1450 First Course Rastons Harl. MS 279, 1430 Blawnche perrye with peas – creamed leeks and onions with peas Harl. MS 279, 1430  (milk subbed for almond milk) Beef-y-stewed –stewed beef Harl. MS 279, 1430 Brawn with Mustard- pork with mustard The good husvvifes ievvell, 1587 Garbage - stewed chicken offal (hearts, gizzards, livers, feet, neck) Harl. MS 279, 1430  Second Course Capon Farced – chicken stuffed with a mixture of sausage, onions and grapes, roasted Harl. MS

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 Thomas Austin contains instructions for a custard made exclusively with egg whites. This dish appears to have been very popular and instructions for it can also be found in the later tudor period. As previously discussed, custards enjoy a long history. The Romans enjoyed many sweet and savory egg based dishes, but it wasn't until the middle ages that "custards", as we understand them, hit their prime. Some of these dishes, like the hardened custards known as let lardes or milke rosty's have fallen out of favor. I recently served this at our local Baronial 12th Night alongside stewed apples or pears (pictured above.) I discovered that my own interpretation was nearly identical to that of Peter Breverton's found in his Tudor Cookbook. It is his interpretation I have included here whic

I was fortunate enough to find suet at a local grocer (anyone who has looked for Suet outside of winter at the local grocer may have an idea of how frustrating looking for suet is! Sometimes I can get it from the butcher). This was an extra step I took to add authenticity to mince pies which I served at a recent local event. This is not a step you need to take. Suet, lard and vegetable suet are interchangeable. However, if you get the opportunity, you *should* try to make your own rendered suet, aka tallow.  Many manuscripts refer to the use of "white fat" in cooking which played a vital role in sausages and pies adding moisture to food. What is the difference between suet, tallow and lard? Real suet is the fat around the kidneys.  I have a sneaky suspicion that most "suet" that you receive is not necessarily "real" suet, but fat located throughout the body.  Real suet has a higher melting point then muscle fat, and this will affect your cooking. Maybe n

xlix. Bryndons One of the very first recipes that I wanted to try after receiving 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 as a gift was this one. I am uncertain why I have not tried to interpret this sooner. The instructions are very straightforward and creates an absolutely divine fruit sauce that when paired with the fried noodles is surprisingly modern. .xlix. Bryndons. —Take Wyn, & putte in a potte, an clarifiyd hony, an Saunderys, pepir, Safroun, Clowes, Maces, & Quybibys, & mynced Datys, Pynys and Roysonys of Corauns, & a lytil Vynegre, [leaf 13.] & sethe it on þe fyre; an sethe fygys in Wyne, & grynde hem, & draw hem þorw a straynoure, & caste þer-to, an lete hem boyle alle to-gederys; þan take fayre flowre, Safroun, Sugre, & Fayre Water, ande make þer-of cakys, and let hem be þinne Inow;

I am not sure about you, but when I need to know a conversion, I usually spend quite a bit of time researching on the network, or digging through my cooking books. Now I know where to look :-) I hope you find this as helpful as I do.   Liquid Measure Equals Equals 2 Tbsp. 1 fluid ounce 3 Tbsp. 1 jigger 1.5 ounces 1/4 cup 2 fluid ounces 1/2 cup 4 fluid ounces 1 cup 8 fluid ounces Temperature conversion To convert Fahrenheit to Centigrade 1. Subtract 32 2. Multiple by 5 3. Divide by 9 To convert Centigrade to Fahrenheit 1. Multiply by 9 2. Divide by 5 3. Add 32 To scale your recipes up or down: Converting recipe quantities seems like a mystery but once you know the number of servings you wish to serve, and you know how many servings the recipe you are using creates the conversion is quite simple. To find your conversion factor (the number that you are going to use to scale up or scale down) simply divide the desired number of

Harleian MS. 4016, (~1450) Guisseƚƚ. Bread Dumplings Baronial 12th Night  Guisseƚƚ.-- An interesting dish which makes very thrify use of bread that has been turned into bread crumbs, eggs and broth flavored with parsley and sage and colored with saffron. Sounds a lot like dressing, yes? My recipe creates many small, irregularly shaped "curds", or dumplings. Bonus? The broth thickens as the bread cooks leaving you with a gravy that you can use elsewhere. I do not recommend using it with your dumplings. They become very sticky and unappetizing! The instructions 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 by Thomas Austin. Harleian MS. 4016, ab. 1450 A.D. The instructions are just vague enough that I wasn't very certain of what I would end up with once it had been interpreted and cooked. I was half expecting a wet mucky (and

Illustration from The Book of Wonders of the Age” (St Andrews  ms32 ) This is one of several recipes that I will interpret but will not prepare. Eating fish offal is just a little bit more adventurous then I prefer. While eating offal is part of the new movement of nose to tail dining, where no part of an animal is wasted, eating specific fish offal carries with it particular risks related to toxins in our water. Cod liver is enjoyed in many parts of the world and if you cannot find it at your local fish market, it can be ordered through Amazon . The liver is described as being creamy and fishy and mild in the bitter offal flavor. If you are feeling adventurous you can prepare the recipe below, and if you are not feeling so adventurous, you can prepare this using an assortment of fish fillets and omit the livers. Fish heads contain a surprising amount of meat, including the cheek and jowl and collar considered to be the tastiest and most succulent bits of meat on a fish.  Y

Below is a class I had written addressing "Cooking with Kids" . It is one a series of presentations I had hoped to do that would introduce the younger members of the SCA to the culinary arts. This is a very general introduction to cooking with children which includes information on safety tips, age based skills and strategies that you can use at home. Why cook with your children? The earlier your child learns how to cook, the sooner they will learn an essential life skill. Spending time in the kitchen gives children confidence and boosts their self esteem. It also teaches responsibility. An added benefit is that your children are learning science, language, fine motor skills, reading, problem solving, weighing, measuring, budgeting, sequencing, following directions and patience--and they don't even realize it :-) Meals prepared from scratch are usually healthier, containing more nutrients, fewer calories, chemicals and sweeteners then prepackaged foods. Preparing

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