SC - medieval menu

[david friedman]

At 6:29 PM -0500 2/5/00, Marian.Deborah.Rosenberg at washcoll.edu 
(Marian Deborah Rosenber wrote:

>A very sucessful recipe from a dinner my camp did the first week of 
>Pennsic this
>year was a cheese thing.  I think I'm reproducing it accurately but 
>since I was
>cooking on the other stove while this was cooking I can't say for certain.
>
>Also, while it is period, I don't know what source Seanain pulled it from.


That  sounds like something derived from Kenelm Digby's Savory 
Toasted Cheese. The original, and our version, are:

- ---
Savoury Tosted or Melted Cheese
Digby p. 228/177

Cut pieces of quick, fat, rich, well tasted cheese, (as the best of 
Brye, Cheshire, &c. or sharp thick Cream-Cheese) into a dish of thick 
beaten melted Butter, that hath served for Sparages or the like, or 
pease, or other boiled Sallet, or ragout of meat, or gravy of Mutton: 
and, if you will, Chop some of the Asparages among it, or slices of 
Gambon of Bacon, or fresh-collops, or Onions, or Sibboulets [green 
onions], or Anchovis, and set all this to melt upon a Chafing-dish of 
Coals, and stir all well together, to Incorporate them; and when all 
is of an equal consistence, strew some gross White-Pepper on it, and 
eat it with tosts or crusts of White-bread. You may scorch it at the 
top with a hot Fire-Shovel.

- ---
Our version

1/2 lb butter	1/8 lb Brie or other strongly flavored cheese
1/2 lb cream cheese	1/4 t white pepper

Melt the butter. Cut up the cheese and stir it into the butter over 
low heat. You will probably want to use a whisk to blend the two 
together and keep the sauce from separating (which it is very much 
inclined to do). When you have a uniform, creamy sauce you are done. 
You may serve it over asparagus or other vegetables, or over toast; 
if you want to brown the top, put it under the broiling unit in your 
stove for a minute or so. Experiment with some of the variations 
suggested in the original.
- ---

Note, by the way, that if that is it, it is not period--Digby's book 
was published in the mid-seventeenth century. Of course, it is 
possible that the recipe was being made in period, but I don't know 
of any period recipes for it.

David/Cariadoc
http://www.best.com/~ddfr/