A Boke of Kokery - Feasting for Easter Day

Introduction

If you gave up anything for Lent this year you may be looking forward to this weekend, a sentiment that probably would have been shared by medieval Christians. Lent in the medieval period meant giving up meat, eggs, butter and milk, mirroring the fasting of Jesus in the wilderness, so come Easter Day there was only one thing on the people’s minds once the church service was over – the Easter Day feast!

Three Middle English Cookery Books

Like all manuscripts produced in England before the invention of William Caxton’s printing press, these manuscripts are handwritten. This means that they were likely to be of high value and made at immense cost. Because of this the manuscripts containing recipes all seem to be for the courts of kings or high-ranking members of the aristocracy, reflected in the decadent dishes they describe.
The earliest of the known middle English cookery book, The Forme of Cury, dates from AD1390 and was made in the court of King Richard II (Brears et al 1993). The title meaning “the method of cooking” with the middle English word “cury” coming from the middle French word “cuire” or “to cook.” The original is now lost, but 9 manuscripts carry a copy of the text, including a scroll version held in the British Library (Add MS 5016) and a copy held by the University of Manchester (English Rylands MS. 7). The recipes cover all types of food from pottage, sauces, and tarts to how to cook large pieces of meat.

Written between AD1430 and AD1440 the second manuscript, known as BL Harley MS 279, contains many recipes of middle English cooking. These are heavily inspired by French court cooking with middle English version of French words such as “let” being used for “lait” (milk). The instructions in the manuscript are not informative and the instructions are more like hints on how to add known ingredients together. This manuscript does have a particular recipe that links to an Easter custom which still happens today, that of Easter eggs! Although in this case they are called Eyroun in lentyn, or Eggs for Lent (BL Harley MS 279). During Lent, eggs and dairy could not be eaten but this recipe imitates the eggs and replaces them with something else. It's practically a vegan alternative!

Take Eyroun, & blow owt that ys with-ynne atte other ende; than waysshe the schulle clene in warme Water; than take gode mylke of Almaundys, & sette it on the fyre; than take a fayre canvas, & pore the mylke ther-on, & lat renne owt the water; then take it owt on the clothe, & gader it to-gedere with a platere; then putte sugre y-now ther-to; than take the halvyndele, & colour it with Safroun, a lytil, & do ther-to pouder Canelle; than take & do of the whyte in the nether ende of the schulle, & in the myddel the yolk, & fylle it vppe with the whyte; but noght to fulle, for goyng ouer; than sette it in the fyre & roste it, & serue f[orth].

“Take eggs, and blow out that is within at the other end. Then wash the shell clean in warm water; then take good milk of almonds and set it on the fire. Pour the milk thereon and let run out the water; then take it out on the cloth and gather it together with a platter; then put sugar enough thereto. Take half of it and colour it with saffron, and a little powdered cinnamon. Then repeat with the white in the nether end of the shell and in the middle the yolk. Fill it up with the white; but not too full, for going over; then set it in the fire and roast it. Serve forth.”

Our final manuscript, A Boke of Kokery, also known as BL Harley MS 4016, was written about AD1440. It is the most haphazard of the three manuscripts outlined here without a content page or a standard grouping of items. Lots of the recipes are a copy of those found in BL Harley MS 279 and the manuscript contains recipes for pottages, stews and fritters, as well as roasting meats, fish dishes and vegetable and sauce recipes. Because of the handwritten nature of the manuscript, it is reasonable to note this book must have been produced in a household with aristocratic links, possibly that to royalty.

A Middle English Easter Menu

Here is a three course Easter Day menu, which by feasting terms from the fourteenth century would look austere, which uses recipes written from the three manuscripts outlined above. Everything in the recipes is perfectly edible, however, the recipes do not give quality or cooking time – so good luck, if you’re cooking along! Instead, they are more like notes a cook would make when they know a recipe instead of an instruction book (and I must note have a severe lack of roast potatoes, but they won’t be gracing the tables of Britain until AD1600).

Starter: Sliced Mushroom Soup

Take Funges and pare hem clere and dyce hem. take leke and shred him smal and do him to seeþ in gode broth. color yt with safron and do þer inne pouder fort. Forme of Cury (English Rylands MS. 7 f15r)

“Take mushrooms and pick them clean and dice them. The take leek and shred it small. Then steep them in good broth. Colour it (the soup) with saffron and then add spices.”

Main Course: Stewed Mutton

Take faire Mutton that hath ben roste, or ells Capons, or such other flesh, and mynce if faire; put hit into a possenet, or ells bitwen ij siluer dishes; caste thereto faire parcel, And oynons small minced; then caste there-to wyn, and a litel vynegre or vergeous, pouder of peper, Canel, salt and saffron, and lete it stue on the faire coles, And then serue hit for the; if he have no wyne ne vynegre, take Ale, Mustarf, and A quantite of vergeous, and do this in the stede of vyne or vinegre. BL Harley MS 4016

“Take fair Mutton that has been roasted and mince well. Then put into a large bowl or between two silvers dishes. Cast into a parcel add small, minced onions and then put into wine. Add a little vinegar, a powder of pepper (and added spices), cinnamon, salt and saffron and let it stew until it colours. Then serve it. If you do not have any wine or vinegar, take Ale and mustard. Do this in stead of wine or vinegar.”

served with...Buttered Vegetables

Buttered wrotes: take all maner of good herbes that though may gete, and do bi ham as is forsaid; putte hem on the fire with faire water; put there to clarified buttur a grete quantite. Whan theiben boyled ynogh, salt hem; late none otemele come there in. Dise brede small in dishes, and power on the wortes, serue hem forth. BL Harley MS 4016

“Take all manner of good herbs (herb is used for both vegetables and culinary herbs such as parsley etc in the medieval period) and put them on the fire with fair water. Add clarified butter in a great quantity. When they are boiled enough, salt them. Dice bread into small cubes in the dish and season. Serve forth.”

Dessert: Bread Pudding

Payne foundewe. Tak brede & frye hit in grece other in oyle, tak it up & lay it in gode wyne, grynde it with raysouns, tak hony & do it in a pot & cast therinne gleyre of ayroun with a litul water & bete hit wel to gyder with a sklyse, set it over the fyre & boyle hit, & whan the hatte arysith to gone over take it a doun & kele it & whan it is thus claryfyed do hit to that other with suger and spyces, salt it & loke it be stondyng, florysch hit with white colyaundre in confyt and serve hit forth. Forme of Cury (English Rylands MS. 7)

“Take bread and fry it in a grease other than oil. Take it out and lay it in good wine, grind it with raisins, take honey and do it in a pot and cast there in the white of an egg with a little water and beat it well to mix with sugar. Set it over the fire and boil it. When it has boiled turn it down and reduce. Add more sugar and spices, salt it and pour over the bread. Add white coriander and serve it forth.”

Enjoy your Easter feasts!

Notes

All transcriptions are taken from Austin (1888) unless overwise stated. All translations to modern English are the authors own.

Further Reading

Itching to try some medieval cooking? This blog from the British Museum has 11 recipes written in modern format for any budding medieval chef: https://blog.britishmuseum.org/how-to-cook-a-medieval-feast/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIr6O_oeS37wIVlLPtCh0bMAiSEAAYASAAEgJqxvD_BwE

And another blog from the British Library: https://blogs.bl.uk/digitisedmanuscripts/2021/03/bake-off-lent.html

References

Austin, T 1888. ‘Two Fifteenth-Century Cookery-Books’, The Early English Text Society, London.
Brears P, Black M, Corbishley G, Renfrew J and Stead J., 1993. A Taste of History. 10,000 years of food in Britain. The British Museum Press. London.

Cover image: A medieval feast, France, 1290-1300: Add MS 28162, f. 10v