[Sca-cooks] First try at "Custarde" [TFCCB]

[Daniel Myers]

Made a first try at the Custarde recipe yesterday.  Here's how it went:


	1/2 cup Broiled lamb (recipe calls for veal, but this is what I had
on hand)
	1 cup Water
	1/2 cup Red wine
	4 Eggs
	4 Dates, pitted and chopped
	4 Prunes, chopped
	Sage
	Hyssop
	Pepper
	Cinnamon
	Cloves
	Saffron
	Salt
	Ginger (powdered)
	Lemon juice

	The recipe also called for parsley, savory, and mace, but due to
poor planning I had none and so I left these out.

	The lamb was cut into small pieces, placed into the water along
with the sage, hyssop, and pepper, and brought to a boil, then the wine,
cinnamon, cloves, saffron, and salt were added and it was allowed to
boil again.  The pot was then removed from heat and allowed to cool.
Meanwhile the dates and prunes were placed in a dish with the ginger and
a splash of lemon juice and allowed to sit.  I made a standard pie crust
recipe and used it to line four one-cup ramekins.  The lamb is removed
from the "broth" and is placed into the pie crusts and allowed to bake
(325 deg F) for just a little bit of time - maybe 15 minutes.  Then I
put some dates and prunes in with the lamb pieces.  I beat the eggs and
added them to the broth, and then poured it over the lamb and fruit.
The pies were returned to the oven and baked until they set - about an
eternity.

The resulting custards (quiches?) had a somewhat disturbing color - sort
of a gray-khaki - but it smelled quite good.  They popped right out of
the ramekins and were solid enough to eat with your fingers.  Very
tasty, thought I'll use more meat and such next time.

I'm thinking of using eel instead of lamb or veal, so that this dish
would be suitable for a fish day.  I also think I'll try using a
substantial amount more of saffron to improve the color.



Source recipe:

Custarde. Take Vele, and smyte hit in litull peces, and wass it clene;
put hit into a faire potte with faire water, and lete hit boyle togidre;
then take parcelly, Sauge, Isoppe, Sauerey, wass hem, hewe hem, And cast
hem into fless whan hit boileth; then take powder of peper, canel,
Clowes, Maces, Saffron, salt, and lete hem boyle togidre, and a goode
dele of wyne wit all, And whan the fless is boyled, take it vppe fro the
brot, And lete the broth kele. Whan hit is colde, streyne yolkes and
white of egges thorgh a streynour, and put hem to the brot, so many that
the broth be styff ynowe, And make faire cofyns, and couche iij. or
iiij. peces of the fless in the Coffyns; then take Dates, prunes, and
kutte hem; cast thereto powder of Gynger and a litull Vergeous, and put
to the brot, and salt; then lete the coffyn and the fless bake a litull;
And then put the brot in the coffyns, And lete hem bake till they be
ynog.



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  Edouard Halidai  (Daniel Myers)
  http://www.bookofrefreshments.com/doc/
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