Updated 13 December 2006
By our Feast Steward: Antonia Stefani - antonia@heraldshill.org, who received a much-deserved standing ovation after feast.
32 Cups assorted firm vegetables, such as cabbage, beets, carrots
½ C caraway seeds
3 T anise
4 t pepper
Saffron
4 C balsamic Vinegar
8 C honey
3 T dry mustard
Mix all ingredients and marinate in refrigerator at least 24 hours.
Original recipe from Das buch von guntor spise (#48)
6 heads cabbage, chopped
12 onions, diced
10 leeks, chopped
Salt to taste
20 C beef broth
1 t each ground cardamom and coriander
Bring all ingredients to a boil and simmer until cabbage is cooked.
From Pleyn Delit, Medieval cookery for Modern Cooks, #22
16 C lentils
4 medium onions, diced
20 cloves garlic, minced
2 quarts vegetable broth
1 C fresh chopped parsley
10 slices cooked and diced bacon
Salt to taste
1. Put lentils in water to cover, bring to a boil, remove from fire, and soak for 1 hour.
2. Drain lentils, saving water
3. Put lentils in vegetable broth and bring to a simmer.
4. Add onion and garlic and simmer until nice and thick (four hours?), adding soaking water as necessary.
5. Add fresh chopped green herbs to the lentils and simmer 5 minutes, stirring.
Add bacon and simmer another 5 minutes.
From Marx Rumpolt, Ein New Kochbuch, German 1581
Finely grate the skin from the lemons. Cut the lemons, thoroughly squeezing the juice and removing most of the pulp. Reserve the skin, juice and soft pulp but discarding the pips and membranes. In a large pot, bring to boil the water, rice, salt, cinnamon, butter and lemon. Reduce the heat to simmer until most of the fluid is absorbed (about 10 minutes). Stir once or twice while simmering: otherwise keep the pot tightly covered. Remove the pot from the heat. Slowly simmer the currants in white wine for 7 minutes. Fluff rice gently with a fork. Add wine and currants. Very slowly simmer for 5 to 7 mins. If the rice begins to stick to the bottom of the pot, add small amounts of boiling water. Garnish with a teaspoon of honey on each portion as it is served. Serves 30 - 36.
From Fabulous Feasts; Medieval Cookery and Ceremony p.184
20 lbs frozen peas
16 C chicken broth
1 bunch parsley, chopped
A few leaves of mint
Sage leaves and a bit of savory
Bread with crust removed
Boil peas in broth until almost done. Blend herbs and bread with some of the broth. Add 2 C cooked peas and blend until smooth. Drain peas and reheat in this sauce.
From Pleyn Delit, medieval cookery for modern cooks, #42
14 whole chickens
Fresh Rosemary
Chicken broth
Set the chickens in broth, so that the broth completely covers the chickens. Let them cook about halfway and take rosemary, about the length of the finger bone, from the bush. For a meal put a good handful on the chickens, but not too much, so that it does not become bitter. Let it cook together well, before you serve it.
From Das Kuchbuch der Sabrina Welserin. German, 16th Century
50 lbs beef roast
Black peppercorns
Salt
Trim the meat and fix it to the spit of a rotisserie, making sure it is well balanced on the spit. Cook to an internal temperature of 140 degrees.
Crush the peppercorns coarsely. Add them to water, bring to a boil and simmer for several minutes. Add salt to taste.
When beef is done, let it rest in a warm place. Carve into slices, sprinkle with salt and serve with pepper sauce.
Taken from The Medieval Kitchen, recipes from France and Italy #54
60 eggs
1 lb finely grated swiss cheese
1C vinegar mixed with 1 C water
4 t dried marjoram
Saffron
½ t ground cloves
Salt
Mayonnaise (recipe calls for raw eggs)
Hard boil the eggs. Peel, cut in half and remove yolks. Mash the yolks, add the cheese, marjoram, spices, and salt to taste. (Here I veer from the recipe and use mayonnaise rather than raw eggs to bind together). Blend to a smooth mixture.
Stuff the cavities of the egg whites. Sprinkle with vinegar mixture before serving.
*note: recipe also called for frying stuffed eggs, which I did not do.
From The Medieval Kitchen; Recipes from France and Italy, p. 181.
Boil water and sugar 10 minutes. Cool. Add vanilla and anise. Cut butter into flour and soda. Add anise syrup. Mix to consistency of bread dough. Roll into ropes the size of your little finger and chill in freezer. Cut with sharp knife about 1/8 inch thick. Spread on greased cookie sheet and bake until golden brown -- 375 for 6-7 minutes.
From Peppernuts Plain and Fancy
Another recipe without clear documentation to pre 16th century sources; however, anise was used by the Romans to aid digestion. Peppernut recipes originally come from Germany and Russia, and so it would not be impossible to find these little cookies at a German feast.
24 C flour
18 sticks butter
24 C currants or elderberries
3 t cloves
3 t mace
2 T cinnamon
3 t nutmeg
6 T sugar
¾ C sherry
4 T yeast dissolved in 2 ½ C water
¾ C rosewater
Icing:
3 egg whites
3 t rose water
1 1/3 C sugar
Mix flour, spices, and sugar. Melt butter, mix up yeast mixture, and mix with rosewater. When the butter is melted, stir it into the flour mixture, then add sherry, yeast mixture and rosewater. Stir until smooth and add elderberries. Bake at 350 deg. In greased pan for 40 minutes. Remove from pan and spread with a thin layer of icing.
Digby p. 219/175