"Ye be welcome. Wyll it please youe to sytt or stonde be the fyre a litell while? The nyghtes be prety and colde now. A roste apple ye shall have, and fenell seede. Mor we wyl not promyse youe."
A Fifteenth Century Schoolbook, p. 74, no. 307
A Boke of Gode Cookery is James Matterer's collection of Medieval recipes which he has translated and adapted for the modern cook. James has been preparing Medieval food since 1979 and has been working from period sources and creating his own contemporay redactions since 1989. Each recipe here is derived from his own personal experience in the recreation of that dish.
Each recipe contains the original documented Medieval version, followed by James' modern translation and redaction, along with notes and a bibliography of the period source. See his web page for the links to metric, celsius, & gas mark equivalencies for measurements & temperatures.
Two Fifteenth-Century Cookery-Books, p. 15
a: Bryndons. Take wine, & put in a pot, and clarified honey, sandlewood, pepper, saffron, cloves, mace, & cubebs, & minced dates, pine nuts and currants, & a little vinegar, & boil it on the fire; and boil figs in wine, & grind them, & pass through a strainer & add, and boil all together; then take flour, saffron, sugar, & water, and make cakes, and make sure they're thin; then cut them in thin slices, and put in oil, and fry a little while; then take them out of the pan, and place in a dish with the syrup, and so serve it, the Bryndons and the syrup, in a dish; & make sure the syrup is runny, & not too stiff.
· 4 1/2 cups flour
· 2 cups sugar
· 1/2 cup (or more) cold water
· few drops yellow food-coloring
· 1/4 tsp. salt
· vegetable oil
· 1 bottle (750 mll) of an inexpensive sweet red wine
· 1 1/2 cups honey
· 1/2 cup red wine vinegar
· few drops red food coloring
· 1 tsp. each pepper, cloves, & mace
· 1/2 cup each chopped dates, currants, & pine nuts (or slivered almonds)
· 1 cup figs, diced
Simmer the figs in a little wine; set aside. Bring the wine & honey to a boil; reduce heat and skim off the scum until clean. Add the vinegar, red coloring, pepper, cloves, mace, fruits, figs, & nuts, return to a boil, then reduce heat to a low simmer.
In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, sugar, & salt. Dye the water yellow with a few drops of coloring, then slowly work into the flour enough of the water to make a smooth dough, similar to pie pastry. Roll out on a floured board, then cut in strips about 1 inch wide and 4 inches long. In a deep skillet or pan, fry the strips in oil until lightly browned and very crisp. Drain. Place the cakes on a serving platter, then spoon on the fruits & nuts, being generous with the syrup. The yellow cakes and the red topping make an interesting contrast in colors, and the wine will soften the cakes.
---------------------------------------------------------
B: Makerouns. Take and make a thynne foyle of dowh, and kerue it on pieces, and cast hym on boiling water & seeŝ it wele. Take chese and grate it, and butter imelte, cast bynethen and abouven as losyns; and serue forth.
b: Macaroni. Take a piece of thin pastry dough and cut it in pieces, place in boiling water and cook. Take grated cheese, melted butter, and arrange in layers like lasagna; serve.
· 1 lb. egg noodles (freshly home-made & undried if possible, or use dried commercial)*
· 1 tbs. oil
· large pinch salt
· 2 cups grated Cheddar cheese
· 1 stick butter
Boil noodles with oil & salt until al dente (tender-crisp). Drain well. In a serving bowl or platter place some melted butter and cheese. Lay noodles on top and add more butter and cheese. Serve as is or continue adding layers of butter, cheese, and noodles. Use extra cheese as necessary. Serve immediately, or place in a hot oven for several minutes and then serve. Serves 8.
Makerouns appears to be the ancestor of macaroni, and this dish may best be described as "medieval mac-n-cheese." The period receipt advises to prepare it like "losyns" (lasagna), with layers of noodles, butter, and cheese. I find Cheddar cheese the tastiest, but feel free to try other varities. The dish is wonderful when prepared with undried freshly made noodles, but works with a dried purchased variety as well.
*If using dried noodles, you may need to increase the amount to 3-4 lbs., in order to compensate for the differences in quantity & weight.
---------------------------------------------------------
C: Apple Muse.---Take Appelys an sethe hem, an Serge hem ŝorwe a Sefe in-to a potte; ŝanne take Almaunde Mylke & Hony, an caste ŝer-to, an gratid Brede, Safroun, Saunderys, & Salt a lytil, & caste all in ŝe potte & lete hem sethe; & loke ŝat ŝou stere it wyl, & serue it forth.
c: Potage Dyvers. Take apples an boil them, and pass it through a strainer into a pot; than take almond milk & honey, and add, and grated bread, saffron, sandlewood, & a little salt, & put all in a pot & let it boil; & see that you stir it well, & serve it forth.
(Unfortunately, this section of the modern recipe is still under construction. It is my belief, though, that any decent cook can prepare this dish by following the instructions, sans measurements, below.)
· apples, peeled, cored, and sliced
· honey
· unseasoned bread crumbs
· few threads saffron
· red food coloring
· salt
Boil the apples until very soft; drain. Mash the apples (by hand or with a food processor) until completely smooth. Place the apples in a large soup pot, and blend in the almond milk, honey, bread crumbs, spices, & food coloring. Cook on low, stirring every few minutes, until the potage is completely hot and has thickened to desired consistency (add more bread crumbs as necessary). Serve.
This is a pottage, a thick, blended dish that could be made from dozens of different ingredients in dozens of different ways. Pottages were very popular & quite common in Medieval cookbooks; Apple Muse comes from a manuscript entitled Potage Dyvers (Various Pottages). This particular pottage can be made as thick as a pudding or as thin as a thick soup, and can also be served either hot or cold (although the original receipt has it served just after being cooked).
Saunders, or sandlewood, was used as a red food coloring in Medieval cooking. Since the product is grainy and does not have an appealing taste, red food dye is an appropraite substitute. Keep in mund that the final coloring should be red, not pink!
As saffron is a particularly expensive spice, you may wish to substitute by using a small amount of yellow food coloring, or simply leave the ingredient out of the recipe, as it will not be overly missed.
Feel free to garnish with Pouder Douce, a common Medieval spice mixture containing sugar, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, etc.
-----------------------------------------------------------
D: Pykes in brasey. Take pykes and vndo hem on the wombes and waisshe hem clene, and lay hem on a roost irne. Thenne take gode wyne and powdour gynger & sugur, good wone, & salt, and boile it in an erthen panne; & messe forth the pyke & lay the sewe onoward.
d: Grilled Pike in Sauce. Take pikes and undo them of the wombs and wash them clean, and lay them on a grill. Then take good wine and powder ginger & sugar, a good quantity, & salt, and boil it in an earthen pan; and serve forth the pike and lay on the sauce.
· 2 - 4 small to medium-sized fish, gutted & cleaned (see note below)
· 2 cups red or white wine
· 1 1/2 tsp. ginger
· 1 tbs. sugar (or to taste)
· salt to taste
Roast or grill the fish until done. Prepare the sauce by bringing the wine to a boil. Reduce heat, then add the spices, stirring until the sugar is dissolved. Lay the grilled fish on a serving platter, then lightly cover with the wine, or present the sauce as an accompaniment in a separate serving dish.
Pike are a long-snouted freshwater game & food fish, very similar to carp. Obtaining fresh fish, especially carp & pike, may be a bit difficult for some people; however, most of us can obtain some sort of whole fish from the seafood or frozen food sections of large grocery markets. Look for fish that have been gutted and cleaned, but left whole, and go for whatever variety suits your taste and pocketbook. If all else fails, feel free to use any cut of fresh fish that you can obtain.
----------------------------------------------------------
E: Blawmanger. Tak the two del of rys, the thridde pert of almoundes; wash clene the rys in leuk water & turne & seth hem til thay breke & lat it kele, & tak the melk & do it to the rys & boyle hem togedere. & do therto whit gres & braun of hennes grounde smale, & stere it wel, & salte it & dresch it in disches. & frye almaundes in fresch gres til they be browne, & set hem in the dissches, & strawe theron sugre & serue it forth.
e: Blancmange. Take two parts of rice, the third part of almonds; wash the rice clean in lukewarm water & turn & boil them til they break and let cool, & take milk and add to the rice and boil together. Add white grease & ground dark chicken meat, & stir well, & salt it and place it in dishes. Fry almonds in fresh grease until brown, & set them in the dishes, and strew on sugar & serve it.
· 1 cup rice
· 3 cups
· 1 cup ground cooked chicken, dark meat only
· dash salt
· 1/4 cup fried slivered almonds
· sugar to garnish
Bring to a boil the rice, milk, & salt. Reduce heat, stir in chicken, & cover; allow to cook, stirring occasionally, until liquid is absorbed and rice is fluffy. Garnish with almonds and a sprinkle of sugar.
Judging by the many versions of this recipe that appear in period cookbooks, it is certain that most (if not all) Medieval cooks were at least familiar with this dish. By the strictest definition, Blawmanger (also known as blankmanger) is any bland, white pottage based on almond milk, and (except for a few fish-day versions) contains ground poultry, thickened with rice flour; the standard English flesh-day version was ground capon (or chicken) with rice and almond milk. In some recipes the poultry is in chunks, rather than ground up. Today's modern blancmange is a type of rice-pudding dessert, much beloved by the English, and only bears a slight resemblance to its medieval forerunner.
---------------------------------------------------------
Medieval meat pies usually consisted of beef, pork, venison, or fowl, or a mixture of those meats. The meat was either broiled or boiled, then either used in small bite-sized chunks, or else reduced to a paste by mashing or "mortering," and mixed with other ingredients. To make a basic medieval meat pie, choose your meat - a nice roast or even a cheaper cut will do nicely. Don't use pre-ground raw meat (such as hamburger) - it's not period, and will completely change the taste of your product. Use about 1 ½ lbs. for a pie that will feed 6-8 people. Broil or boil it until tender, remove from the broth or drippings and let cool. Chop in bite-sized chunks, mince very small, or chop up and place in a food processor and blend until completely pureed. Mix into the meat any of the following: egg yolks (for liquid and binding), raisins, currants, nuts, cheese, dates, figs, a splash of wine, seasonings (ginger, salt, pepper, etc.) - be creative and have fun! Mix these ingredients either with the meat chunks or blend them in with the meat paste and place in a pre-baked pie shell . The final mixture should be a little too moist and just slightly runny - it'll stiffen up when baked, and the extra moisture will keep the pie from going dry. Liquid to use: egg yolks, wine, broth, etc. Medieval pies (sometimes called "bake metis" in Medieval days) were often topped with either a pastry shell (often called a "coffin") or "byrdys." (Medieval man had a reputation for eating practically anything with wings! "Byrdys" could be any small bird, ranging from swallows, sparrows, to game hens. For the 20th c. kitchen, small cooked chicken pieces such as small thighs or the "drumstick" section of the wing will do nicely.) After preparation, the pies can either be cooked at once or frozen in the raw state to be thawed & cooked later. When baking time comes, keep them in the oven until the pastry is golden brown. Meat pies can be served hot, at room temperature, or even chilled from the fridge. This means that the busy feast cook can make the necessary pies in advance, and freeze or hold refrigerated until the feastday. They can then be easily cooked or re-heated, or simply served at room temperature. (Be careful, of course, to not let the pies stand in the open too long. Food poisoning is period but as welcome as the plague.) One of the best sources that I know of for finding medieval pie recipes is Austin's Two Fifteenth-Century Cookery-Books (consisting of 2 period manuscripts) which has an entire section devoted to "Bake Metis."
F: Recipe for Basic Meat Pie
· 1 ½ lbs. meat (beef, pork, venison, rabbit, poultry, etc. or any combination), parboiled and in small chunks or mashed
· 1 9" pie shell (lid optional)
· cooked chicken pieces (wings, thighs, etc.) (optional)
· 4 egg yolks
· ½ to 1 cup meat broth (quantity depends on the dryness of the other ingredients - use your discretion. The final mixture should be on the wet side.)
· splash of red or white wine
· 1 to 2 cups TOTAL of any of the following, separate or in combination: minced dates, currants, raisins, minced figs, ground nuts (almonds, walnuts, etc.), grated cheese, etc. The variety of ingredients & the total amount used depends on personal taste.
· ĵ tsp. salt
· ĵ tsp. pepper
· 1 - 2 Tbs. TOTAL of any of the following spices, separate or in combination: ginger, allspice, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, cardomon, cubebs, galingale, etc. The variety of spices & the total amount used depends on personal taste.
Mix well all ingredients except chicken. Place in pie shell and top with either a pastry lid or the cooked chicken pieces. Bake in a 350° F oven for 45 minutes to an hour, or until the pastry is golden brown and the filling set. Serve hot or cold. Serves 6-8.
 |