Elizabethan pancake recipe

[kestrell]

from History Today

An Elizabethan pancake recipe, courtesy of the British Library.
The Good Huswifes Jewell - Pancakes and Puddings
http://m.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bl.uk%2Flearning%2Fimages%2Ftexts%2Fcooks%2Ftranscript839.html&h=rAQGZ7WjC&enc=AZMvzS9xaNNEqdwoMXA0v41o8QqS1FRmaSJrmwp1BqjR7hFK3iq9hdYrJA7doy_ah2asm_T1OsLnqwo8E8Pk-Wy7mZAepayom0J_apA_ccjW4xv3WUxdOATbL-POX04RZrNQo9yNFmfAw1LIVH6Cj0ZLnU_VH86UUDlyMbCHhB5HwRy7wQ_-pwXIFT6ntoIxvQ8

Comments

[jesse_the_k]

Hey Kes -- I don't know how, but someone that URL starts with the mobile Facebook page, and includes many password-like or cookie-like characters.

I no longer have a FB account. When I clicked it, I got a page that looked like "Official FB is Official" which warned me against sharing my password, and then one click took me to the recipe, whose URL starts here:

http://www.bl.uk/learning/images/texts/cooks/transcript839.html

[kestrell]

Hey, Jesse, thanks! I usually try to check for a shorter link when I get a deep link like that, but this morning I took a Benedryl for my allergies, and things got a little muddled from there. This may be tmi, but I thought you would appreciate the irony: having incredibly itchy prosthetic eyes from the pollen. Wtf?

[jesse_the_k]

Hardly TMI, in fact, that's a fabulous detailed grossness that some clever writer should include when bemoaning the health woes of the little 4-eyed himalayan leaf hoppers. (I was *really* drowsy and watching Nature.)

I imagine it's not the eyes, but the sockets, but pooh on rationality.

And WTF are you reacting to? I find one of the true joys of winter is LESS DUST! LESS POLLEN! LESS itchy sneezy cranky.

[kestrell]

I thought it was too early for pollen, also, but I guess things are already germinating. Alexx told me his WII Fit has an image that represents pollen and it's already showing up. Also, we've had an incredibly mild winter in Boston--every other week the temperature has been going up to high forties or mid-fifties. Friday or Saturday it is supposed to get up to 53 degrees or so.

Now as to content!

[jesse_the_k]

Oh My God

What an amazing thing those recipes are! I'm understanding only 30%, but it's worth it. My favorite is "See that your livers bee not too much parboyled" as the introduction to a dessert recipe. How many livers? From what beaste? And did that cook actually get people to eat liver pudding? (Or maybe pudding didn't mean that then?)

Re: Now as to content!

[capri0mni]

I think (about 85% sure -- maybe ?) that "pudding" originally meant:

"Some sort of starch, steamed or boiled together with some other sort of food, so that it thickens to a smooth, even, custard-like consistency." In our culture today, the "Some sort of starch" is most often corn starch, and the "other sort of food" is a sweet (chocolate, fruit, or spice) flavoring.

But back in the day, "Puddings" were more like what we think of as meatloaf -- they were a great way to extend the little scraps of meat from many sources (doesn't matter which beaste -- any and all of them) with flour and fat. Imagine putting the ingredients of a meatloaf into a linen bag made for the purpose, and suspending it in a giant pot over -- but not in -- the boiling water, and sticking a lid on top, so that it cooks thoroughly, and stays moist. Then, you bring to the table a near perfect half-sphere of a dish that everyone gets a slice of.

From Mother Goose:

Sing, sing. What shall I sing?
Cat's run away with the pudding bag string!

Do, do. What shall I do?
Cat's run away with the pudding bag, too!

Re: Now as to content!

[jesse_the_k]

Nursery-rhyme lyrics as forensic cookery! YAY!

What you said about the origins of pudding makes perfect sense. When it comes to the mediaeval, I think I'm going to be on another continent entirely, eating sushi.

Re: Now as to content!

[capri0mni]

"Nursery-rhyme lyrics as forensic cookery!"

Actually, it's the other way around; as an English / Creative Writing major in college and grad school, I read a lot of Elizabethan and Victorian literature, and occasionally came across references to people having a grand supper with a pudding as the main dish. And a light bulb clicked on as I remembered the nursery rhyme from my childhood.

Here's a Wikipedia article about pudding, in general, with links to different kinds of puddings from around the world:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pudding.

...And I am hungry, now. And have no pudding, either sweet or savory...

No... I have an almost pudding: the last chicken, rice, and bean burrito in my freezer. It may not be there an hour from now ;-)

Re: Now as to content!

[kestrell]

Yes! I wish that there was a British mysteries cookbook--lately, I've been reading a lot of P. D. James and Kate Atkinson.

Re: Now as to content!

[kestrell]

As someone who has a couple of housemates who are both foodies and SCAdians, I have to admit that there is a lot of yummy medieval food. Just this weekend, my landlord made hundreds of crepes at a Carnival event for a hundred or so of his closest friends. Also, a lot of the savory pies and tarts are extremely tasty, and one housemate makes a pork and apple pie which is absolutely delicious and, in our house, counts as a traditional Thanksgiving food.

Re: Now as to content!

[capri0mni]

*nods* When I was in high school, we did a semester on Medieval history, and concluded with a role-play communal feast, with everyone dressing up in costumes (somewhat, not strictly, accurate), and having "period" food (ditto on the accuracy).

As a present that year, my mother bought me an illustrated history of medieval cooking, that had recipes in the back. I haven't had a chance to try them, but several are on my "Ooh, that sounds good!" list -- like baked pears stuffed with figs and red lentils, and spiced with ginger, etc.. Of course, I absolutely love spicy food, and sweet & heat & savory combinations will win me over almost every time.

But if your palette and stomach are more attuned to the milder end of the flavor spectrum, a lot of medieval and Renaissance food would probably put you off.

Re: Now as to content!

[kestrell]

Also, as someone who reads a lot of British novels, I run across mention of puddings occasionally, and it is clear from the context that this is still servved as a savory main meat course, usually by pubs and restaurants which seem to focus on traditional British food.