sca-cooks Spanish recipes, custard

[Stephen Bloch]

Tegan Rhos wrote:
> I will be the auto-crat (or whatever term you prefer) for an event in
> October and my head cook (or whatever) wanted me to ask if anyone had
> any period spanish recipes or could guide us to a source for them. She
> also asked me to inquire about any soft custard recipes.

It may make a big difference whether you're talking about Spain pre- or
post-Reconquista.  For the former, there are numerous medieval Arabic
cookbooks available in translation (reprinted in David Friedman's
_Collection of Medieval and Renaissance Cookbooks_), including one from
13th-century Andalusia.  For the latter, I have a couple of Catalan
sources, and I believe there are also some surviving Castilian sources.
Some examples from our recent largely-Catalan feast are at
http://www.adelphi.edu/~sbloch/sca/cooking/st.val.feast.html.

As for custard, we served a dish of "flaons" (apparently related both to
the modern Spanish "flan" and the medieval English "flathonys") at the
aforementioned feast.  I haven't included it in st.val.feast.html, but
here goes....

136 De flaons

Take fresh cheese and curds that are well [drained?] and pound them well
in a mortar together with as much eggs.  And [fold?] a bit of fat
cheese which is grated and minced together with the curds with a bit of
[pols] of dried mint.  And then put in the mortar a little rosewater,
not too much but rather in [appropriate] measure.  And then make dough
from good farina and knead it with very fine oil, kneading it well so
that it becomes very firm.  And then make of the dough [coffins?] to
place the cheeses.  But before filling, heat the dough a little, but
[that?] it should [remain? become?] firm.  And then fill it with the
filling.  And before they are all done, take some forks or [pincers?]
and [crimp?] the edge.  And then take it to the fire to cook.  And when
it's cooked, and [the top is browned?] a bit, then [from edge to edge?]
put on honey or a syrup of sugar and rosewater.

Redaction (2/7/97):
7.5 oz. farmer cheese
1/2 cup ricotta cheese
5 eggs
4 dried mint leaves, ground finely
2 tsp. rosewater
1/6 cup honey
1 9-in. piecrust

Blind bake piecrust.  Meanwhile, mix cheeses, egg, mint and rosewater
until smooth.  Bake 40 min. at 350 degrees (at which point it has
inflated), then brush with honey and let cool.

					mar-Joshua ibn-Eleazar ha-Shalib
                                                 Stephen Bloch
                                           sbloch at panther.adelphi.edu
					 http://www.adelphi.edu/~sbloch/