Tag: Food

Category: An item of food or drink your persona may have grown, prepared, consumed, or known of.  “Do you think because you are virtuous, that there shall be no more cakes and ale?”

Persona period inspiration and use:

This recipe comes from Sabina Welserin’s cookbook, Das Kochbuch der Sabina Welserin (1553). The Welser were international mercantile bankers and venture capitalists, members, with the Fugger and the Hochstetter families, of the mercantile patriciate of Augsburg.  These recipes, compiled for a rich urban German household, seem suitable for a noble Saxon women like Christian, although she probably would not have baked them herself. The recipe collection was not originally intended for publication or circulation; it may have been possibly written by the Sabina herself, but was more probably written by her kitchen professionals on her behalf.

I made these pies to take for a picnic lunch at an event; they are ideal for this purpose as they taste good hot or cold, and (as the pies have a top crust) they travel well.  For picnics I tend to make small finger-food-sized pies for convenience, but when cooking a feast these pies work equally well as individual or ‘family’ sized pies.  They are a good protein dish for vegetarians, and also a useful pie for those who don’t eat eggs.

Design, Materials and Construction: 

• Recipe 30: To make Genovese tart.  Take eighteen ounces of chard or spinach, three ounces of grated cheese, two and one half ounces of olive oil and the fresh cheese from six ounces of curdled milk. And blanch the herbs and chop them small and stir it all together and make a good covered tart with it.
• The Kochbuch has a number of recipes for pastry, or you could substitute your own recipe.  I tend to use less olive oil than the original recipe, to make a less-wet filling, which makes the pie more robust for travel and I prefer the taste.  The flavours of this tart will vary with the greens, or the types of cheeses, you choose (see Bach for a discussion of German cheeses). You can make fresh cheese yourself, or use any type of fresh cheese you prefer.   
• I forgot to take a photograph on the day, so please forgive the tatty-looking leftover pie that made it into my lunch box several days later.

Reference:

• Das Kochbuch der Sabina Welserin, 1553, http://www.daviddfriedman.com/Medieval/Cookbooks/Sabrina_Welserin.html
• Bach, V.  The kitchen, food, and cooking in Reformation Germany.  Rowman and Littlefield, Maryland, 2016.

Category: An item of food or drink your persona may have grown, prepared, consumed, or known of.  Do you think because you are virtuous, that there shall be no more cakes and ale?

Persona period inspiration and use:

• The Kochbuch of Sabina Welserin contains many recipes for fruit pies, and this seemed a good choice for sweet treat for a picnic lunch at an event.  I decided on an apple pie as it was too early in the season for most of the other fruits.  The book includes numerous apple pie recipes, and, looking for something a little different, I came across a description (but not recipe) for an apple and raisin pie from Philippine Welser that appealed.
• Philippine Welser, wife of Archduke Ferdinand II of Further Austria, and a member of the same family as Sabina, edited and published her own recipe collection, De re coquinaria, in 1545.  This has not been published in English, but some recipes are included or described in Bach.

Design, Materials and Construction: 

Recipe: Sabina Welser has a recipe (number 14) in which apples are sliced, “floated” in fat until brown, layered in a pie with spices and raisins, and baked with a crust on top.  For the convenience of the picnic, I was making small individual pies, which made layering fiddly, so I choose a simpler recipe described by Bach as “chopped apples, precooked in fat with raisins, sugar, fat, and cinnamon”.  I chopped some apples and, along with some raisins, sautéed these gently in butter (my preferred choice of fat for a vegetarian friendly pie), and mixed in sugar and cinnamon to taste.  This was baked in a pie with a double (top and bottom) crust.

I completely forgot to take a photograph of these pies (although they did look just like the Genovese Tarts).  They were delicious.

Reference:

• Bach, V.  The kitchen, food, and cooking in Reformation Germany.  Rowman and Littlefield, Maryland, 2016.
• Das Kochbuch der Sabina Welserin, 1553, http://www.daviddfriedman.com/Medieval/Cookbooks/Sabrina_Welserin.html

This sweet wee entry in the category “Do you think because you are virtuous that there shall be no more cakes and ale” is explained thusly:

Sugar Cone

Many, many years ago, in London, I found myself intrigued by a number of things I saw in museums; one of which was reproduction sugar cones and a couple of original moulds.  Having not really had the chance to explore this particular fascination, I asked myself some of questions: “did they use sugar in 16th century cooking?”, “what did period sugar look like?” and “ was it actually transported or sold in cones?”

A little light research (in period recipe books I have on hand) indicated that yes, sugar was used in late 16thc cooking.  Some more research suggested it could be purchased in a variety of forms and degrees of refinement.

Construction: I mixed brown sugar, caster sugar, and demerara sugar together until I got the sort of colour indicated in my notes from the museums I visited in 2003.  I then sprinkled in a few drops of water, (just enough for the sugar to hold together when pressure was applied) and mixed it through. A small amount of the sugar mixture was transferred to a lightly oiled mould and pounded into shape with the end of a chopstick.  I roughed up the surface of the moulded sugar before adding more and pounding that into the mould.  This was repeated until the mould was full.  After drying for a couple of days, the sugar cone was tipped out and allowed to fully air dry.

Verdict: In this form, the sugar is a bit shattery to use, but fun to make and it looks sufficiently different from modern sugar to not look out of place in a period style spice box.  
As I don’t have any sugar nippers, I have to shave or grate off any sugar I want to use.  This difference also serves to remind me that sugar was an expensive “spice” in the 16th century, and should be used sparingly.  The fact this sugar cone causes that change in my mindset while cooking is particularly pleasing.

Resources

• “The art in which sugar is made” by Jan van der Straet, early 1580s, Posner Library
• “Sugar” Medieval Cookery website http://medievalcookery.com/notes/sugar.html
•  “Sugar versus honey in Byzantine recipes” by Petros Bouras-Vallianatos (contains an image of period sugar moulds and molasses pots)

Another entry from Maestra Isabel Maria under the category “Do you think because you are virtuous that there shall be no more cakes and ale?” She describes her ongoing spice box project:

“As I like to “play house” at Canterbury Faire, (rather than consider myself as going “on campaign” or “on pilgrimage” etc) I am trying to make sure all the items I regularly use are persona-appropriate so that I no longer need to hide items away in my tent.  One thing that annoyed me last year were modern cardboard spice boxes sitting on my work surface.  So, with regard to keeping valuable spices secure and yet convenient for use, I once again asked “what did they use in period?”, which lead to, what I assume is a wee spice box (below right), shown in the 1570 Scappi manuscript. 

Although I have been unable to find an equivalent in a Spanish resource, making do with an item from a neighbouring area (Italy), with which Spain had significant commerce,  seemed reasonable.
My Version: Collation of this project began with the careful shopping for a suitable box and bottles.  The box is one for transporting essential oils, so had the small compartments already fixed in place.  I chose corked bottles of brown glass, because they were available, affordable and, most importantly, fit in the box compartments.  (That the darker colour would help reduce the amount of light reaching the expensive spices is a bonus.) 
As for the spices contained in the box, I have chosen only those spices used in the specific 16th century English and Spanish recipes I like to cook, namely: 

• Anise
• Black pepper
• Carraway
• Cinnamon quills
• Cloves
• Ginger
• Mace
• Nutmeg (and grater)
• Salt
• Saffron
• Sugar cone

I still have some empty spots for other spices that I acquire as my repertoire of recipes increases, or for mysterious spices like grains of paradise, long pepper and galingale etc.  

Verdict: First used on the spiced water project where it proved convenient, although I’m looking forward to see how it works at Canterbury Faire. 
I suspect I will need to find a way to label the bottles for ease of use, probably on the top of the cork lid since I don’t want to have to lift each bottle out to see what is in it, once it gets a little empty.  Similarly, I’m not overly happy with the plain corks securing each bottle as they seem a little… unfinished compared to the period illustration.”

Resources

• “The Opera of Bartolomeo Scappi (1570): L’arte Et Prudenza D’un Maestro Cuoco”
• “English Huswif’s Jewel” by Thomas Dawson (1596)
• “Libre del Guisados” by Roberto de Nola (a Spanish edition of Libre del Coch), published in 1529 ,  translated by Lady Brighid ni Chiarain

A delicious entry from Mistress katherine kerr under the heading of “Do you think because you are virtuous, that there shall be no more cakes and ale?” She says:

“Soul Cakes, Soul Cakes, please good Mistress a Soul cake

For that it lies near the Feast of All Souls Day and for that said day is the Natal Day of the lovely Lady Vigdis, know that the November Monthly Tourney on the iiid day of said month shall be graced by Soul Cakes for the sustance of all. And further, the aforementioned month occasioning the Feast Day of St Catherine upon the xxvth day, there will be Cattern Cakes for my saint’s name’s sake. For those not approving of the old saints, then it is a day in especial honour of lace-makers and the Queen.

I wanted to encourage activities at the barony’s monthly tourneys which didn’t revolve around the fighting. Everyone likes cakes so….

Soulmass cakes were traditionally baked  at the beginning of November to celebrate All Hallows E’en and All Souls’ Day. The small cakes are filled with spices and mixed fruit, and usually have a cross marked on them. I used a recipe redacted from that of Lady Elinor Fettiplace (1604).

Cattern cakes are similar but have caraway seed and currants for flavouring. They are associated with St Katherine of Alexandria or, in England, with Queen Katherine of Aragon, who was said to have destroyed her lace to give employment to the local women. This is remembered in the following rhyme:

Queen Katherine loved to deck with lace
The royal robes she wore;
But though she loved to wear her lace,
She loved the lace-folk more.
So now for good Queen Katherine’s sake
Put bones and sticks away,
And keep the yearly festival
And sing on ‘Kattern Day

In France, unmarried women over the age of 25 were called “Catherinettes”. They consoled each other on their unwed state, singing:

A husband, St. Catherine!
A handsome one, St. Catherine!
A rich one, St. Catherine!
A nice one, St. Catherine!
And soon, St. Catherine!

As form of  consolation prize, their friends would make them yellow or green hats, so they might demonstrate their faith and wisdom, respectively.

There are vague references to earlier St Catherine’s Day celebrations when women dressed up in male attire and indulged in “unfettered merry-making, including amorous (or violent) advances to passing men” !

The cakes got eaten before I thought about taking photos — didn’t notice any ladies in men’s clothing though….

katherine kerr”