Touching base

Almost better will post a new recipe soon.

Langue wortes de pesoun

I am not even bothering to write out amounts on this one. It really is dependant on personal taste and style. You can use fresh peas in season, frozen peas or dry green peas. The flavor will vary but you will find that it makes no sizable difference inpreparation. You can use a vegetable broth, a chicken broth or beef broth or just some of the reserved pea water. Wortes are fresh seasonal greens anything from spinach and turnip greens to parsley and sage. This is a versatile recipe in that it can be turned into a sort of vegetable cracker or a dense soup. It can be used on fish days, flesh days or anything in between. Finally it can be served in spring when it is seasonally fresh which has a light flavor or in winter when it would be denser with the stronger flavors of preserved and dried foods.

This recipe highlights one of the things that we forget about medieval cuisine which is that they did have ways to extend the life of their ingredients and their recipes reflect that. They didn't need to be told about that fact because they lived it. I advise trying this recipe following the path of seasonality to get yourself into the medieval mindset. In fall and winter, try dried peas, cold hardy greens, dried herbs and onions. In spring, try baby peas, early greens, early herbs and chives or green onions. In summer, try fresh garden peas, varietal greens, fresh herbs and garden fresh onions. Try seasonal broths as well and I think that you will begin to see the variety possible within even a small range of ingredients.


Langue wortes de pesoun- dry green peas, onions, fresh herbs and greens, oil, salt, saffron

.ij. Lange Wortes de pesoun.—Take grene pesyn, an washe hem clene an caste hem on a potte, an boyle hem tyl þey breste, an þanne take hem vppe of þe potte, an put hem with brothe yn a-noþer potte, and lete hem kele; þan draw hem þorw a straynowre in-to a fayre potte, an þan take oynonys, and screde hem in to or þre, an take hole wortys and boyle hem in fayre water: and take hem vppe, an ley hem on a fayre bord, an cytte on .iij. or iiij., an ley hem to þe oynonys in þe potte, to þe drawyd pesyn; an let hem boyle tyl þey ben tendyr; an þanne tak fayre oyle and frye hem, or ellys sum fresche broþe of sum maner fresche fysshe, an caste þer-to, an Safron, an salt a quantyte, and serue it forth.


Wash and clean the dry peas and put to boil until they break and become a paste. Cut up onions, boil fresh herbs and greens and cut them up, and add both to the pea soup. Bring back to a boil until tender and thick. You can now either fry the peas and greens paste in oil or add fish broth with salt and saffron and serve as a hot soup.

Passing of a Friend

I woke this morning to find that a friend has lost his long struggle with leukemia, and a condition called monosomy 7. His long struggle is documented at http://www.healemru.com/index-en.php and on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=9635600965.

I have no words except that being on the bone marrow donor list can save lives, I have lost two people to diseases that could be cured with a timely match and the only way for that to happen is to have as many as possible on the list. That means that regardless of your ethnicity, you need to be on the list, you need your family on the list and you need your friends on the list. You may never be needed, you may never match but if you do then you can save a life. There is nothing better than that.

Remembrance Day

We will remember.

In Flanders Fields

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved, and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

— John McCrae (1872-1918)

Egredouncye

This is a nice beef or pork stew. It is easy to make and if you want to make it into a porridge then that is possible as well simply by adjusting the breadcrumb/grain and stock levels. The herb issue seems to be fairly undefined and I think that this is a good place for people to experiment with fresh herbs and their seasonal availability. There is a huge number of herbs that would have been grown in home gardens and pots, trial and error will give you an idea of how they effect the outcome of a stew. I like to add sorrel, a leafy relative of rhubarb, because it adds an acid undernote and melts into the liquid. Sorrel is easy to grow, likes cool weather, is available from early spring and shouldn't be eaten raw. It is exemplary in soups and stews.


.Cxl. Egredouncye.—Take Porke or Beef, wheþer þe lykey, & leche it þinne þwerte; þen broyle it broun̛ a litel, & þen mynce it lyke Venyson; choppe it in sewe, þen caste it in [leaf 24 bk.] a potte & do þer-to Freyssh brothe; take Erbis, Oynonys, Percely & Sawge, & oþer gode erbis, þen lye it vppe with Brede; take Pepir & Safroun, pouder Canel, Vynegre, or Eysel Wyne, Broþe an Salt, & let ȝet* boyle to-gederys, tylle þey ben y-now, & þan serue it forth rennyng.

1 kg. stewing beef or pork in 1-2” cubes
2 litres beef broth
3 tblspns. Mixed seasonal herbs
2 large onions, chopped
1 tblspn. Chopped parsley
1 tblspn. Chopped sage
2 cups bread crumbs (you can add whole grains)
1 tspn. Pepper
½ tspn. saffron
1 tspn. cinnamon
500 milliltres white wine
Add more broth to loosen
Salt to taste

Take stewing beef and brown it in a pan. Put it in a pot with beef broth, take herbs, onions, parsley and sage and other good herbs. Add the rye berries. Add pepper, saffron, cinnamon, white wine more broth and salt to taste. Boil it until the rye is soft and serve.

( I have replaced the breadcrumbs with the rye berries at times to make it gluten free.)

Cryspes

Crisps are fried dough. Fried dough is good and it is period and it is probably eternal. This is quick and fun and, if you keep an eye on them, a way to get children involved. Make sure the dough is runny enough to drip off the fingers but sticky enough that it forms strings. Adjust the milk/flour ratio as needed.


.lj. Cryspeȝ.—Take Whyte of Eyroun, Mylke, & Floure, & a lytel Berme, & bete it to-gederys, & draw it þorw a straynoure, so þat it be renneng, & not to styf, & caste Sugre þer-to, & Salt; þanne take a chafer ful of freysshe grece boyling, & put þin hond in þe Bature, & lat þin bature renne dowun by þin fyngerys in-to þe chafere; & whan it is ronne to-gedere on þe chafere, & is y-now, take & nym a skymer, & take it vp, & lat al þe grece renne owt, & put it on a fayre dyssche, & cast þer-on Sugre y-now, & serue forth.

3 egg whites
1 cup milk
1 ½ cup flour
1 tspn yeast
1 tblspn sugar
Salt to taste
Oil
Icing sugar

Mix egg white, milk, flour and yeast into a runny dough. Let the dough rest, covered, until it starts to bubble. Add sugar and salt to taste then drip into a pan of hot oil and fry until crisp. Drain on a towel and cast sugar on it and serve it forth.

Waffres

This is a variation on the pancake. The egg whites are the rising agent and the soft cheese adds a sour note to the flavor. They work well when you are serving a gooey or loose dish such as an applade as the wafers can be used like chips.

Waffres- yogurt cheese, flour, egg white, sugar, ginger


.xxiiij. Waffres.—Take þe Wombe of A luce, & seþe here wyl, & do it on a morter, & tender chese þer-to, grynde hem y-fere; þan take flowre an whyte of Eyroun & bete to-gedere, þen take Sugre an pouder of Gyngere, & do al to-gederys, & loke þat þin Eyroun ben hote, & ley þer-on of þin paste, & þan make þin waffrys, & serue yn.

Wafers- Take the womb of a pike and simmer it well and grind it in a mortar and tender chese thereto, grind them together; then take flour and egg white and beat together, then take sugar and ground ginger and mix it all together and look that your grill is hot and lay on it a thin paste and make thin wafers and serve.


1/2 cup yogurt or soft cheese
1 cup flour
3 egg whites
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tspn ground ginger

Mix yogurt, flour and egg white into a thin paste, add sugar and ginger to taste and then fry the paste on a hot skillet or griddle in thin wafers and serve.

Oatmeal Bruet

This is an unfinished recipe, even though I have served it. I used it in a vegetarian version using ground almonds and no broth. It is not impossible to make without measurements because you make the oatmeal groats separately and then add the sauce which means that if there is some of either left over there is no problem. With the sauce you can personalize it: more or less sweetness, more or less sourness, more or less spiciness. I would advise playing with those elements to find your own level and flavour notes.

My advice to a medieval cook who is just starting out- get whole grains and by that I mean shaped like the grain, not processed. So oats groats, whole barley, rye, wheat, spelt and brown rice should be tried at least once. Buy just a cup to experiment with and cook them exactly the same way and see the differences in texture, flavour, the liquid left in the pot, the stickiness and all the other differences that make these grains such an important part of the medieval diet. Modern cooks are used to working with highly processed grains and medieval cooks used those same grains in many different capacities. They each have their own strengths and work in different ways to make a dish special. Rolled oats will not work in this dish in the same manner because they absorb liquid in a different rate, because they get mushy faster and because the feel in the mouth is radically different.

Verjuice is not vinegar but it is an acid note in a recipe. So just as lemon juice is an acid note but no one would say that it is the same as vinegar, neither is verjuice. It is available in middle eastern markets and a medieval cook needs to find an oppurtunity to try it experimentally to understand how it works differently to produce flavour results.

I will be posting measurements at some future time but I encourage new cooks to experiment with those two elements- whole grains and verjuice as an alternative to vinegar.

Oatmeal bruet- whole oat groats, verjuice, white wine, almond milk, white ginger, grains of paradise, sugar, saffron

. An oatmeal bruet of capons: and to give understanding to him who will make the oatmeal bruet of capons, let him take his fat first-year capons and pluck them cleanly and wash them well and properly, and then put them to cook and meat therewith, that which it needs, that is in the season of winter good fresh chines of pork and pigs' feet, and if it is summer good kid and veal and salt pork as is needed, which should be very well cleaned, washed, and parboiled a little beforehand. And those who are making it would be well advised, the day before he makes the said oatmeal bruet, to arrange that he has good whole oats and pick over and clean them very well and grain by grain so that there remains nothing but the pure grain, and then wash it very well in three or four changes of lukewarm water and then put it to boil in fair water in a fair and clear and clean pot; and let him do this according to the quantity which he is ordered to make. And when it is half cooked draw it out and remove it and take it out of the pot and the water in which it has boiled, and put it back to boil in fair, clear, and clean water and put it back to cook for an hour or so. And when it is boiled enough let him put it to rest until the next day. And according to the quantity of the bruet which he has been ordered to make let him arrange that he has almonds and blanch, clean, and wash them very well, then bray them in a mortar and moisten them with the capon broth and draw them up with it, and according to the quantity of the said potage which he wants to make let him put in some of the said broth, and let him flavor it with verjuice and white wine; and according to the quantity of the said bruet which he is making let him put in spices, that is white ginger and grains of paradise, and strain all this with the almonds; and, all this being strained together, let him arrange that he has according to the quantity of the broth a clear, fair, and very clean pot and put them in, and then put them to boil over a fair and clear fire, and put in a great deal of sugar according to the quantity of the said broth, and salt in measure and a little beaten saffron to give it a little color. And then take the said oatmeal which he has resting, and separate the water from it with a good strainer, and check and see that there is nothing in it that should not be there; and, this being done, put it into the said broth above made and devised. And, this being done, take out onto fair and clean boards the said capons and meat, and then arrange the said capons and meat on fair serving dishes and then put the said oatmeal bruet on top.



Boil the oat groat until they are tender and strain out the liquid remaining. Put aside while you make the Sauce. Mix almond milk with the oat water and flavor with verjuice and white wine bring to a boil and add sugar, ginger, grains of paradise, salt and saffron. Add the groats to the broth and serve forth.

Rapeye

As recipes go this is where we see the usefulness of studying Chinese dimsum cooking before trying medieval recipes. Both rely on fast, hot and low energy cooking techniques and produce stunning results. What the rapeye looks like at the end is all in the hands of the person folding and filling the casings. I have done these as simply as a filled log that looks a little like a peascod and as fancy as a little purse with a flower top. It is great to serve with dishes like Apple Muse or Applade Ryalle as the crispiness of the Rapeye matches with the softness of the apple dishes.

These can be made ahead, stored in containers that don't allow moisture to accumulate and then reheated in an oven.

Rapeye- egg roll wrappers, figs, raisins, almond milk, pepper, galingale, cloves, egg wash, oil

.xlvij. Rapeye.—Take dow, & make þer-of a þinne kake; þanne take Fygys & raysonys smal y-grounde, & temper hem with Almaunde Milke; take pouder of Pepir, & of Galyngale, Clowes, & menge to-gederys, & ley on þin kake a-long as bene koddys, & ouer-caste þin kake to-gederys, & dewte on þe eggys, an frye in Oyle, & serue forth.

Rapeye- Take dough and make thereof a thin cake; then take figs and raisins ground small, and temper them with almond milk; take ground pepper, galingale and cloves and mix together and lay on the thin cakes as long as good cods (peapods?) and fold over the cake and dot with eggs and fry in oil and serve forth.

1 cup figs
1 cup raisins
¼ cup almond milk
½ tspn. Black pepper
½ tspn. galingale
¼ tspn. ground cloves

2 eggs
25 wonton covers
oil


Grind figs and raisins and add a little almond milk to thin. Add pepper, galingal, cloves and mix well. Place on egg roll wrappers and form packets sealing with egg mixture, add an egg wash and then deep fry and serve.

Pork pie in another manere

This is a good dish to make ahead and rewarm or to assemble on site and cook. It is also good to make as tartlets for a sideboard feast or a demo. I went gentle on the spices but the rather simple ingredients list allows you room to make it spicier or sweeter to serve your purposes. You can make more filling and overstuff the pie but the filling is a little dry if not covered and dense if it is covered. It goes well served with a gravy or chutney. It is also a good filling to use in the Chinese manner with wonton shells- you can steam or deep fry and serve with mustard, plum sauce or hot chili paste. Though if you are doing it in that style I would advise using fresh grated ginger for snap.


Pork Pie- ground pork, egg yolks, pepper, ginger, and honey, pie shell (flour, vegetable shortening, and salt)

.iij. A-noþer manere.—Tak fayre porke y-broylid, & grynd it smal with ȝolkys of Eyroun; þan take Pepir, Gyngere, & grynd it smal, & melle it with-al, & a lytel hony, & floryssche þin cofyns with-ynne & with-owte, & hele hem with þin ledys,* & late hem bake, & serue forth.


Take ground pork and brown it. Mix it with egg yolks, pepper, and ginger and honey. Put in pie shells and cover with thin lids and bake.


1 lb. ground pork
3 egg yolks
½ tspn. ground black pepper
1 tspn. ground ginger
¼ cup honey or to taste
9” pie shell with lid
1-2 beaten eggs to color the crust

Brown the meat and break it up into small pieces. Mix with other ingredients and set aside. Paint the pie shell inside and on the lid with the beaten eggs. Add meat mixture, cover and bake at 375 F until crust is browned. Serve warm.