SC - Pine-nut Confection

[Elise Fleming]

Greetings.  Here is the recipe from the Nostradamus book.  I will be 
sojourning in the snowy climes of Minnesota until next Sunday.  While I 
may be able to access my e-mail I probably won't be able to respond.

Alys Katharine - Recipe follows

"How to Make a Confection from Pine-Nut Kernels".

"Take as many well-cleaned and carefully shelled pine-nut kernels as 
you will, dry them or toast them a little.  Or take them whole with 
their skins and shells and put them in a basket.  Hang this over the 
hearth near the fire and leave it there for three days.  Tus the heat 
from the fire will slowly penetrate them and dry them.  Then take them 
out and clean them thoroughly.  Next take two and a half pounds of 
nuts, being careful to keep them close at hand.  Then take some of the 
most beautiful and best Madeira sugar, dissolve sufficient of it in 
rose-water and boil it until it attains the consistency of a jelly.  If 
it is winter or a time when there is a lot of moisture in the air, boil 
it a bit longer, but if it is summer, then let it just simmer.  this is 
when it does not boil over or bubble when it boils, which is a sign 
that the moisture had been evaporated; but to be brief, when it has 
boiled to the consistency of a jelly, as I have said, thake the 
preserving pan off th efire and put it somewhere where th eliquid can 
dry off and become firm.  Then give it a good stir with a piece of wood 
and beat it continuously until it turns white.  When it begins to cool 
down a little, add the white of a whole or half an egg and beat it well 
again.  Next place it over the coals, in order to allow the moisture 
from the egg-white to stiffen, and when you see that it is properly 
white and like the first lot you boiled, take the dried, well-cleaned 
pine-nut kernels and put them into the sugar.  Stir them with the wood 
so that they are thoroughly mixed with the sugar - this should still be 
done over the coal fire, so that the mixture does not cool too quickly. 

 Then take a wide wooden knife, like the ones used by the shoemakers, 
and cut the mixture into pieces, each weighing about ana ounce and a 
half, but not more than two, which would not be good, and spread them 
carefully on to some paper until they have properly cooked, at which 
stage put a little gold leaf on to them and your confection is ready.  
If, however, it is not possible to obtain pine-nut kernels anywhere, 
use peeled almonds instead, dividing them either into two parts or 
three and mixing them with the sugar to make this confection.  And if 
there are too few pine-nut kernels, you can replace them with pieces of 
almonds, for the latter are not dissimilar to the former in taste and 
potency.  You can also use fennel which is flowering or in seed, which 
is kept in houses and used during the wine harvest.  When your sugar 
has almost completely boiled and is hot and white with everything mixed 
in it or scattered over it, it looks like manna or or snow and is so 
beautiful and lovely."


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