Historical Recipe of the Week!

-

Robert May, born in 1590, published his one and only cook book at the age of 70. It covered all the decades of his life, drawing on the changing styles of cookery in the 17th century and encompassing new culinary fashions, including those of the Restoration Court and at the tables of the rich.

Many dishes were cooked in pastry cases to protect the contents from the heat of the hearth or oven. These cases were not for eating. But as kitchens improved and cooks became more inventive the pastry cases were adapted to become not merely decorative but also to be edible.

Sweet dishes were also cooked in pastry to protect the delicate custard or cheese-based fillings from the fire. As a change from yet more pastry, here is a non-pastry based dessert.

Rose Cream

1 pint double cream
3 tablespoons rose water
2 tablespoons caster sugar
5 leaves of gelatine

Soak the gelatine in water for 5 minutes until it turns into a jelly. Put the jelly into a linen bag and squeeze it out. Place the rose water in a bowl set in a pan of hot water and add the gelatine, which will dissolve. Gently heat a quarter of the cream in a pan with the sugar, stirring to dissolve. When it has, add to the gelatine and rose water liquid. Stir until completely incorporated, remove from the heat and add the remaining cream. Pour into a wetted mould and chill until set.

Comments

Carol Townend said…
Ooh, that sounds worth a try, I love recipes with rosewater in them. Last Christmas I made some Turkish Delight, and while it didn't last quite as long at the shop-made Turkish Delight, the smell in the kitchen was heavenly!
27 February 2010 at 17:47
Anna Campbell said…
Nicola, that actually sounds tasty. I have to say when I hear about historical recipes, they're usually quite revolting! Especially the ones that combine the sweet and the savory - bleuch! And often the sweet stuff is sickeningly sweet. Thanks for putting it up!
27 February 2010 at 18:29
Jan Jones said…
I like the fact that it is a manageable quantity! Usually they begin "Take two gallons of..."
27 February 2010 at 18:56
Nicola Cornick said…
Glad you like the sound of it. I do too, but then I tend to like anything that starts off with a pint of cream! Carol, that Turkish Delight sounds fabulous!
27 February 2010 at 21:23
Kate Hardy said…
This sounds scrummy.

I did try rose ice cream a couple of weeks back (more like a sorbet than an ice cream, and possibly too much rosewater as it was very, VERY scented).

I bet this would be nice with orange flower water, too.
28 February 2010 at 18:05
Nicola Cornick said…
I love the sound of that ice cream, Kate, and what a lovely idea to try this recipe with orange flower water too. As it's such a warm sunny afternoon I'd love to have some right here right now! I must ask the dh to give that a try. He's made some very unusual ices before. My favourite was lavender flavour, which was surprisingly delicious!
1 March 2010 at 15:27
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Books of Your Childhood.

-
Image
This is a fantastic meme from Michelle Styles for anyone who loves to talk about books, especially the books that captured you when you were a child and are still with you now. Name at least one book that you read as a child (ie 11 or under) that still exists in your memory as a perfect story. You can say why if you wish, or simply give a list -- your choice. It can be a story that you are now uncomfortable about having loved or were uncomfortable at some point and have now come back to or alternatively just one that you have always loved. Here is my list: 1. A Traveller in Time by Alison Uttley. History fascinated me even as a child, as did the idea of stepping back in time. I’ve been hooked on timeslip romance ever since! 2. The Weirdstone of Brisingamen by Alan Garner. I could name just about every Alan Garner book for this list. I was totally hooked on his writing. The combination of adventure, magic and something just a little bit strange and spooky fascinated me. Plus the fact
Read more

Farewell to the rugged look!

-
Image
As you know, I'm all for blogging about hot-looking actors in period costume. Any excuse! So an article in the Observer newspaper at the weekend was a bit of a gift. Under the headline of "Farewell to the rugged look as new male beauties sweep all before them" it suggested that the leading men of film and TV are becoming interchangeable. Gone are the days of actors with such individual looks and charisma as Marlon Brando and Al Pacino and in there place are bland clones. Among the new breed of actors cited were Zac Efron, Edward Pattinson and Jonathan Rhys Myers, whose appealing baby eyes apparently sealed the role of Henry VIII in The Tudors (odd when you think about it, since of all the things that Henry was renowned for, his baby face wasn't one of them). Experts claim that these boy-men are chosen for their cherub cheeks and gentle jaws, and that women prefer them because they associate these softer looks with fidelity and warmth. So what is going on? What happen
Read more

A Brief and Selective History of Swimming!

-
Image
I've taken a longer-than-expected break from the blog over the past couple of weeks due to a terminally stubborn set of book revisions that simply refused to work. I knew there were problems with the manuscript and, hard as I worked to fix them, my writer's intinct told me that there was still something wrong even when I had finished draft 2. I tinkered, I re-wrote, I changed one thing which led to another which brought the whole thing down like a pack of cards. I had a fabulously helpful set of revision notes from my editor but still I could not do it. I cried. I comfort ate. I didn't sleep. Now I have draft 3, a sleep deficit, and no idea whether the book is any good since my judgement is shot to pieces. I love being a writer. Anyway, now I've emerged into the daylight I see it is a beautiful hot sunny day so to get back into the blogging I decided to post a piece about aspects of the history of swimming, some of which is taken from an article I read in the Daily Tel
Read more