Strawberries was ([Sca-cooks] Researching....

[Decker, Terry D.]

> I have a memory of a tart of strawberries, it's a custard and
> the berries
> are forced through a 'straynour'- it tastes rather like the Flan of
> Alemayn. I made it for a potluck 5 or 6 years ago. I think it was from
> _COI_ or _Two Fifteenth Century_. I'm not home, but I'll see
> if I can find
> it when I get home.
>
> 'Lainie

I did a little more digging.  And pulled the fololowing strawberry recipes
out of my notes.  I think the first one is the recipe you mentioned,
'Lainie.

As I recall the Harleian manuscripts are early 15th Century, so all of these
recipes date from after the time when strawberries began to be transplanted
in manor gardens.

Bear

HARLIEAN MS 279., Recipe .Cxxij. Strawberye.

Take Strawberys, & waysshe hem in tyme of yere in gode red wyne; [th]an
strayne [th]orwe a clo[th]e, & do hem in a potte with gode Almaunde mylke,
a-lay it with Amyndoun o[th]er with [th]y flowre of Rys, & make it
chargeaunt and lat it boyle, and do [th]er in Roysonys of coraunce, Safroun,
Pepir, Sugre grete plente, pouder Gyngere, Canel, Galyngale; poynte it with
Vynegre, & a lytil whyte grece put [th]er-to; coloure it with Alkenade, &
droppe it a-bowte, plante it with [th]e graynys of
Pome-garnad, & [th]an serue it forth.


Also from the Harleian MSS. is a recipe for Daryoles.

Daryoles
Take Wyne & Fre[e]ssche bro(th)e, Clowes, Maces, & Marow, & pouder of
Gyngere, & Safroun, & let al boyle to-gederys, & put (th)er-to creme, (&
(y)if it be clowtys, draw it (th)orwe a straynoure,) & (y)olkys of Eyroun, &
melle hem to-gederys, & pore (th)e licoure (th)at (th)e Marow was so(th)yn
yn (th)er-to; (th)an make fayre cofyns of fayre past, & put (th)e Marow
(th)er-yn, & mynce datys, & strawberys in tyme of (y)ere, & put (th)e cofyns
in (th)e ovyn, & late hem harde a lytel; (th)an take hem owt, & put (th)e
licoure (th)er-to, & late hem bake, & serue f[orth].


The recipe I mentioned from Das Kochbuch von Sabina Welserin, 1553.

To make a strawberry tart

Make a pastry shell and let it become firm in the tart pan. Afterwards take
strawberries and lay them around on top as close together as possible, after
that sweeten them especially well. Next let it bake a short while, pour
Malavosia over it and let it bake a while, then it is ready.


Here's one from "A Book of Cookyre," 1591.

Tarte of Strawberies. Season your Strawberyes with sugar, a very little
Sinamon, a little ginger, and so cover them with a cover, and you must lay
upon the cover a morsell of sweet Butter, Rosewater and Sugar, you may Ice
the cover if you will, you must make your Ice with the white of an egge
beaten, and Rosewater and Sugar.