Perhaps the most interesting aspect of this recipe is Mary Randolph’s direction to boil the potatoes with skin on to keep the starch in for frying. In many historic recipes, the technique is not spelled out as one would require in modern recipes. However, 18th century cookbook authors assumed that the reader was already a cook and familiar with a variety of processes.
Pabst-ett was a cheese prodused by Pabst brewery during Prohibition. After Prohibition ended in 1933, Pabst sold the cheese business off to Kraft who continued to produce Pabst-ett cheese until at least the late 1940’s. If you want to try your hand at this recipe, use any cheese to your taste you think might go well the rest of the recipe ingredients.
In every issue of BBC History Magazine, picture editor Sam Nott brings you a recipe from the past. In this article, a vegetable pie from the Tudor era.
Sam writes: This 1596 recipe for a “pie of bald meats [greens] for fish days” was handy for times such as Lent or Fridays when the church forbade the eating of meat (another similar recipe is called simply Friday Pie). Medieval pastry was a disposable cooking vessel, but in the 1580s there were great advancements in pastry work. Pies became popular, with many pastry types, shapes and patterns filled with everything from lobster to strawberries. This pie’s sweet/savoury combo is typical of Tudor cookery. I enjoyed it, but was glad I’d reduced the sugar content.
Dumpling is a broad classification for a dish that consists of small pieces of dough (made from a variety of starch sources), often wrapped around a filling (as in ravioli or wontons). The dough can be based on bread, flour, or potatoes, and may be filled with fish, meat, sweets, or vegetables. They may be cooked by boiling, frying, simmering, or steaming.
Kinafa is a traditional Lebanese sweet that’s popular for breakfast, mainly on Sundays. Usually the whole family gathers to enjoy this warm dish for a lazy and rich breakfast.
There is a delightful simplicity to the recipes in this book, completely free of all the show off vanity one finds in particularly cook books from the late eithties and early nineties.
These lightly curry spiced fish cakes are inspired by a classic Indian breakfast dish and can be made a day you have plenty of time and wait ready in the freezer when time is short and dinner needs to made in a hurry.