[Sca-cooks] Re: mac & cheese

[Diamond Randall]

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>Also, I heard on a tv show the other night that mac and cheese went back to=
>b.c.  I doubt that, but does anyone have a clue if it is period.

Recipe from about 1390 for court feast of Richard II:
Macrows.  Take and make a thin foil of dough, and carve
it into pieces, and cast them on boiling water and seeth it
well. Take cheese and grate it and butter cast beneath and
above ... and serve forth.

Unfortunately, it does not mention what kind of dough or what
cheese to use.  I doubt very much that the dough was made of
classic pasta semolina flour, nor does it say anything about drying
the thin dough.  Would such a thin piece of regular (biscuit/ bread)
dough not result in a thin dumpling instead?  The instruction to
grate the cheese indicates it is a hard cheese (I doubt if it was anything
like Italian parmesian either).  What specific hard cheeses were
available during the reign of Richard II?  I don't see this coming
out in any fashion similar to fettucine Alfredo though.
Anyone got any ideas on the kind of cheese?

Akim


--- Diamond Randall
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