[Sca-cooks] Follow up on Marzipan question

[rcmann4 at earthlink.net]

On Sun, 22 Dec 2002 22:09:40 -0800 (PST) Anne duBosc <anne_du_bosc at yahoo.com>
wrote:

> On Saturday, December 21, Brighid wrote:
> >The oldest recipe for marzipan (though it
> doesn't use that name) is
> >an Arabic one.  I *think* it's from the 13th
> century Anonymous
> >Andalusian Cookbook.  The oldest recipe which
> uses that name (or
> >a variant thereof) is in the 14th c. Catalan
> confectionary manual:
> >"Per Fer Mersepa".

> Brighid, is this the recipe from The Anonymous
> Andalusian?  And where could I get a copy of
> Per Fer Marsepa?

The one you posted was, as Master Adamantius said, closer to pralines.  The
one I mean is entitled "Fruit Made of Sugar", and the translator has added
[Marzipan] as a descriptor.

The recipe, from Charles Perry's translation of An Anonymous Andalusian
Cookbook of the 13th century, is:

Fruit Made of Sugar

Add one part of sieved sugar to one part of cleaned and pound almonds. Knead
it all with rose water and roll your hand in almond oil and make with it
whatever you want of all fruits and shapes, if God wishes.


The recipe, Per Fer Mersepa, is webbed on Thomas Gloning's site at:
http://staff-www.uni-marburg.de/~gloning/confits.htm

I won't copy the text here, since it's in Catalan.  I can paraphrase, but not
translate.

Take almonds and blanch them, and leave them to air-dry for 3 or 4 days.
Grind the almonds in a morter, gradually, sprinkling with rosewater to prevent
them from becoming oily.  When the almonds are well-ground add sugar (1 pound
sugar to 1 pound almonds).  Then the text gets harder to read, but it's
something about shaping them into flat pieces, sprinkling them with sugar, and
putting them in the oven.  Sounds like the standard recipe for marchpanes.

Vincente has been working with this text, and perhaps he can give you a more
coherent answer.  Or if Master Thomas Longshanks is still on the list, he is
The Man when it comes to period Catalan cuisine.

Brighid