Peach pits (was Re: SC - Baked apples)

[margali]

Source: Diego Granado, _Libro del Arte de Cozina_ (Spanish, 1599)
Translation: Lady Brighid ni Chiarain (Robin Carroll-Mann)

Huessos de duraznos -- Peach pits

Take half a pound of almonds, and blanch them, and grind them, and
take a pound of sugar, ground and sifted, knead it with the almond until

it is well kneaded, and if it does not stay very firm, cast in a little
more
almond, and take an ounce of very fine cinnamon, and two adarmes of
red sanders, all very well ground and sifted, cast it in the paste, and
knead everything very well, until it takes on a good color, and the
dough
being well-tempered, which is not soft, sprinkle it on top with sifted
sugar, so that it doesn't stick, and make pieces, and in each one put an

almond, or a half, and sprinkle them with sugar, and put them in your
molds and remove them, and set them to dry.

Notes:

2 parts sugar to 1 part almond made a mixture to crumbly to work with.
I wasn't measuring carefully (and I was using almond meal mixed with a
little almond oil), but I think I wound up with 6 ounces almond to 8
ounces sugar.  1/2 ounce of cinnamon was about 7 teaspoons.  Since I
was using cassia, not Ceylon cinnamon, the taste was stronger than it
would be otherwise.  An adarme is 1/2 drachm or 1/16 oz.  I estimated
1 TBS.  My sanders was old and dark; the stuff I bought this Pennsic is
brighter red, and I think will give a more realistic color to the mix.
Sugar
did help with the sticking-to-the-mold problem, but even so, I had to
remove them very carefully and there were a few casualties.  When they
first came out of the molds, they were wonderfully detailed, with very
clear ridges and whorls.  Those of you who saw them after they'd
survived 400 miles driving and several days of Pennsic heat did not see
them at their best.  The half recipe I made was enough for about 60
pits.
 I look forward to getting my earthenware molds, so I can continue the
experiments.


Lady Brighid ni Chiarain
Settmour Swamp, East (NJ)
mka Robin Carroll-Mann
harper at idt.net

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