If you thought deep-fried sweets like funnel cakes, elephant ears/beaver tails and doughnuts were modern inventions for the county fair, think again. Fried pastries have been around since ancient Egypt and China. The Romans ate something called scriblita, a fried pastry dough. Fried doughs were common throughout Asia, the Middle East and Europe in various…
Tag: Recipes
Italian Blackberry Sauce, c. 1464
There is no shortage of 15th century Italian recipes thanks to Maestro Martino de Rossi, a well known and influential “celebrity” chef who worked in some of the greatest kitchens of late Medieval/Renaissance Italy. In 1464/65 he wrote Libro de Arte Coquinaria (The Art of Cooking), which is widely considered to be the first modern…
Apple Muse: an Ancient Apple Pottage
Apple Muse was an extremely popular medieval dessert, likely enjoyed in some form at every level of society due to the availability of the three core ingredients. There are many versions of this recipe found in a variety of manuscripts but often under different names: Appylmoes, apulmos, appillinose, etc. All versions I’ve found call for apples,…
Almond Milk the Medieval Way: Pt. 2
This is part two of a three-part series of medieval almond milk recipes. Part One includes some background information about the important role that almond milk played in medieval cooking. If you haven’t done so already, I highly suggest reading Almond Milk the Medieval Way. Today’s almond milk recipe comes from a medieval cookbook called…
Hallowe’en Salad, a Retro Gelatin Treat
This mid-century recipe is incredibly easy to make and is about as authentic as it gets.
Salat, an Aromatic Medieval Salad
It may surprise you to learn that people in the Middle Ages ate salad. And they ate it often. Unlike today, salads weren’t for calorie-conscious women on diets. Salads were very common meal starters and were loaded full of herbs and aromatic vegetables found in every household garden. Salads were not only genuinely enjoyed by people of…
Egredouncye, a Medieval Sweet and Sour Dish
This delicious English pottage (c. 1420) features pork stewed in a sweet and sour gravy.
Elizabethan Jumbal Biscuits
Two of my all-time favorite things are history and food so I thought, why not put them together? Perhaps the easiest way to experience and connect with the past is to eat authentic ancient food. Since such dishes can be hard to come by, our best option is to make them at home! A (very) brief overview of Elizabethan food During the Elizabethan…
A Dollop of History 