[Sca-cooks] Re: Coffyns

[Johnna Holloway]

At least at Hampton Court there was no shortage of hands
in the pastry yard. It was comprised of 3 rooms, dedicated
just to pastry. They did various types and designs varied from
pastries shaped like fish, open tarts, large closed ones, etc.
Also pastries can be made and kept for a few days, so it was
possible to bake these ahead for later filling.
Peter Brears goes into all this in All the King's Cooks.
Johnnae

Micheal wrote:

> I working away in my kitchen one day when a thought hit me.  It hurt ( 
> before anyone else gets it)You know they had pots and pans made by 
> hand. Why wouldn`t they have used such for a shaping mold.  Flip the 
> pot  bottom side up. Take the pastry throw it on top of your cleanest 
> pot of appropiate size. Shape drop it on the counter fill it  cap it 
> oven it. Much faster operation for simple day to day . Much faster 
> then all the hands on methods I have been reading. May also explain 
> why there are no molds to be seen or to be questioned about. I realy 
> have a hard time believing they liked to work any harder then we do. 
> Another project to look at maybe.
> Da