SC - Palladius #9
Ian van Tets
IVANTETS at botzoo.uct.ac.za
Thu Jul 16 16:47:04 PDT 1998
This should be the last instalment (huzzah!):
October: Book the Eleventh
De defruto, careno, & sapa (defrutum, carenum and sapa)
70 Defrut, carene, & sape in oon manere
Of must is made. Defrut of defervyng
Til thicke; carene is boyled nere
From three til two; but sape unto oon lette brynge
Fro three; and all this crafte mys but boylinge.
But sape is best if quynces therwith be
Decocte, and all the fier made of figtree.
notes: Three sorts of wine (as above) are made in the same manner.
In the first the must is boiled till it thicken. In the second, 1/3
is boiled away, and in the other 1/3 remains. Mix quinces with sapa,
and make the fire of figtree.
De passo (passum)
71 Now passe is made, that Affrike useth make,
Afor vyndage; and thus this crafte thai trete.
A multitude of reysons puld thay take
And into risshy frayels rare hem get,
And mightely with yerdes first hem bete
Until this with the grapes so desolve,
And thenne hem to the presses thay devolve.
Ther presses oute is all that oute wol passe,
And under kept into sum vessel clene,
And this licoure Affikes calleth passe.
As hony me may kepe it in a stene,
In stede of whome in metes it demene.
This condyment is esy and jocounde,
Wherof inflacioun shal noon redounde.
notes:
71: Raisin wine is thus made in Africa before vintage: they put a
large quantity of raisins into fine rush baskets, beat them with
sticks until they blend with the grapes, and then press them.
72: When pressed keep it in a jar like honey, to use as a sauce. It
will keep you from flatulence.
De cidonite
73 Take quynces ripe, and pare hem, hewe hem smal
And al for smal; but kest away the core,
For it is nought to this effect atte al.
In hony thenne up boile hem lesse & more
Til it be halvendel that was before.
Do pepur with in boilyng smallest grounde,
This is the first maner;- and this seconde:
74 Another wise is this: take sestres two
Of quince, and oon sester (of) aisel
And half, eke two sester hony therto;
This mynge, and boile it alle togeder wel
Til it be hony fatte & thicke iche dele;
Of pepur and ginger tweyne unces grounde
To pouder smal is therto forto infounde.
notes:
73: Cut quinces very small, discard core, boil in honey until
reduced by half and mix ground pepper with it.
74: Or take 2 pts of quince and 1.5 of honey, mix till all as thick
as the honey. Add 2 oz ground pepper and 1 oz ground ginger.
De fermento mustorum servando
75 A galon muste from under feet do to
A strike floure of newe wheete, and let it drie
In sonne, and weete it oft & drie it do
Yit efte; the same in smallest loues plie
And drie it harde in sonne; in pottes trie
Now gipse it fast; and use this ferment
For musty brede, whom this wol condyment.
notes: Add to a gallon of trodden must a strike of new wheat flour,
dry it in the sun, wet it and dry again. Roll into small lumps and
dry in the sun, and plaster up in pots to make new bread whenever you
require it.
[Hey, is this dried yeast cakes? No need for sourdough? Wow! CJvT]
De uva passa Graeca condienda
76 The reison greek in this maner thai make:
Thai se where he hongeth grapes goode & swete
The stortes softe in handes wol thais take
And writhe hem, and so writhen wol thai lete
Hem honge and drie awhile in sonnes hete,
And after hem in shadowe thais suspende
Her vessel while in dightyng thai contende.
77 The leaf of vyne all drie and chillyng colde
Under thai do, and therin grapes presse,
And with thaire handes fast addon hem folde,
So fille it uppe, and therto leves dresse,
In drie and colde, ther smoke is noon expresse,
Hem kepeth thai.
***
notes:
76: To make Greek raisins, where the grapes hang good and sweet,
they twist the stalks and let them dry in the sun, and afterwards
suspend them in the shade, whilst they prepare vessels for them.
77: Underneath they place vine leaves and press down, and keep them
in a dry cold place where there is no smoke.
November: Book the Twelfth
To keep peaches
25 The bones oute, as figges summen drie
Hem and suspende; eke I have seen, the bonys
Detract of Duracyne, in hony trie
So kept that gladder tasting never noon is,
Hoote pitche a droppe if into iche (n)avel goone is;
That so thai be coart (coact?) to swymme in sape,
Enclude hem, and alle harme thai shal escape.
notes: The stone being removed, some dry peaches like figs. I have
seen Cling-stone peaches, sfter the stones were removed, kept in
honey, so that none were of a better taste, if a drop of pitch be
poured in the navel.
To keep chestnuts
43 ***
Chasteynes in flakes me may kepe,
Or under sande asonder leyde to slepe.
44 And other hem in erthen pottes doo,
And delveth hem in places that beth drie.
In beechen baskettes men save also
This fruite, so thai with cley be stanche ywrie.
Or smallest barly chaf about hem plie,
Or baskettes of segges me may use,
So thai be thicke, and save hem ther recluse.
notes:
43: keep them in wicker baskets or in sand laid asunder.
44: Others keep them in earthen pots or dry holes, or beech baskets,
or barley chaff, or basket of thick sedge and cover them up.
Here the manuscript is evidently damaged, in at least 2 places. I
have listed the last 4 stanzas provided by the EETS as Ia and b, and
IIa and b.
Ia For browsty oil white wex is to resolve
In fynest oil, and therin throwe it so:
Hoot salt ygrounde is on it to dissolve
And in a vessel wried alle be do.
So wol it mende odoure and taste also.
In erthe ich oil to kepe is his nature,
Whom salt, or fire, or water hoote may pure.
notes: To cure rancid oil, melt white wax in fine oil, and hot
ground salt, and cover up. Oil should be kept in earthenware, as its
nature is to be purified by salt, or fire, or hot water.
Ib This moone is made olyve in condyment;
That is dyvers: oon olyve columbare
Ther flaketh first olyve as fundament;
And after that the pulioles are;
A flake on that hony and saltes rare,
Or flake olyve and fennel graffes be
Theron or birche, or dile, or olif tree.
This month olives are made into preserves. There are several kinds
[evidently the others are missing]. The light olive is preserved by
sprinkling on alternate flakes of olives, pennyroyal, honey and a
little salt. Or put thereon a layer of olive and fennel cuttings, or
birch, or dill.
***
IIa Olyve unhurt in barme of oil is do,
That after XL dayes up is pured.
And swetter for to have it, do therto
Two parties sape and aisel oon also.
To have it sharpe, of aysel tweyne infounde
And oon of sape, as may the sharpe abounde.
notes: Unbruised olives are placed in brine, which is fined for 40
days. If you want it sweet add 2 parts syrup, one of vinegar. If
sour, then 2 of vinegar and 1 of syrup.
IIb A sester passe, a yespon also grounde
Of cyner, of olde vyne a quantitee
Foil of cupresse a parte in it contounde.
Let mynge all this; olyves nowe let se,
Suche as unhurt beth taken from the tree,
Doon in ands dreynt, a cruste upon it make,
And fille it to the brinke until it take.
notes: A pint of raisin wine, a double handful of cinder-ashes, a
quantity of old wine, bruised cypress-leaves: mix all this and steep
it, make a crust upon it, and fill up to the brim.
Here ends the details on food from Palladius on Husbandrie, an
anonymous MS from 1420
Cairistiona
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