[Sca-cooks] New gadget

[phoenissa at netscape.net]

Stefan li Rous <stefan at texas.net> wrote:

>Do we have any evidence that these cookies might be
>period? There is nothing about them that stands out saying that they
>aren't period or couldn't be. However, I'd prefer to have better
>evidence than just my supposition.
>

I really have no idea.  The ingredients are all period, and as far as preparation, there are several (European, at least) recipes of dough filled with fruit, right?  It's even possible that those molds were being made before 1600.  Actually, there's one thing I didn't say about the cookies earlier - the molds are used pretty much only when you make them for Easter or special occasions.  The rest of the year, you can buy mamoul in sheets, kind of like we find browines or lemon bars...I think the dough is semolina-based, not flour-based, and the filling is spread between two layers of it; you cut it up in little squares and eat it.  (I'm not as certain about the preparation method for this one since we've never made it at home.)  But it may be that mamoul was made in sheets since long ago and the molds are a fairly modern invention?
One thing that made me suspect that a version of mamoul is period was a dessert that I made out of Bartolomeo Scappi's cookbook.  It's called "tortiglione ripieno" (stuffed pie), and it's an unsweetened dough flavored with rosewater, and filled with a mixture of dates & other dried fruits cooked in wine and spices.  The first time I tried it, the taste reminded me a lot of mamoul; and didn't Scappi have some exposure to Middle Eastern cooking?  That may have inspired some elements of this recipe, but that's a wild and mostly unfounded guess ;-)
I'll ask my parents if they know how long mamoul has been made...they're more likely to know than I am.  Next time I'm at their house I'll also look through some of our Middle Eastern cookbooks and see if there are any notes on the history this cookie.

Vittoria


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