By Royal Command (24 page)

Mistress Midge’s Favourite Recipes

Clotted Cream

Take a gallon of new milk from the cow, two quarts of cream, and twelve spoonfuls of rose water, put these together in a large milk pan, and set it upon a fire of charcoal well kindled (be sure the fire be not too hot) and let it stand a day and a night; then take it off and remove cream with a slice or scummer (let no milk be in it). Lay it in a cream-dish, with sugar scraped there-on, and so serve it up.

Flowers of All Sorts, Pickled

Put them into a preserving jar with as much sugar as they weigh, fill this up with wine vinegar. To a pint of vinegar put a pound of sugar and a pound of flowers. Keep them to decorate salads and boiled meats.

Apple Puffs

Take a large pippin (cooking apple) and mince it small with a dozen or so raisins. Beat in two eggs, season with nutmeg, rose water, sugar and ginger. Drop them into a frying pan with a spoon, fry them like eggs, squeeze on the juice of an orange or lemon and serve them up.

Apple Cream

Take a dozen pippins, pare, slice or quarter them, put them into a skillet with some some claret wine, a piece of ginger sliced thin, a little lemon peel cut small and some sugar. Let all these stew together till they be soft, then take them off the fire and put them into a dish, and when they be cold, take a quarter of boiled cream with a little nutmeg and put in of the apple as much as will thicken it, and so serve it up.

Glossary

booby
– a foolish person

brazier
– a small container for hot coals, used for cooking/heating

ceruse
– a white lead pigment used as make-up

coffer
– a box or chest for keeping valuables

coster
– someone who sells fruit or vegetables from a barrow or stall

equerry
– an officer in the royal household

ewer
– a pitcher with a wide spout and handle for pouring

farthingale
– a hoop or framework worn under skirts to shape and spread them

gallendine
– a dark-coloured sauce made with vinegar, breadcrumbs, cinnamon, etc.

gee-gaw
– decorative trinket; a bauble

Groat
– English silver coin worth four old pence, used from the 14th century to the 17th century

kirtle
– the skirt part of a woman’s outfit. During this time everything (skirt, bodice, sleeves, ruff) came separately and were pinned together during dressing

link-boy
– a boy who carried a torch for pedestrians in dark streets

litter
– a man-powered form of transport, consisting of a chair or couch enclosed by curtains and carried on a frame or poles

malmsey
– a sweet wine

marchpane
– the old word for marzipan

mayweed
– a flowering plant with a daisy-like head, also called dog fennel

necromancer
– sorcerer, black magician. One who tries to conjure up the dead

posset
– a drink of hot milk curdled with ale or beer, flavoured with spices; a common recipe for treating colds