[Sca-cooks] Portugal cakes (was Mrs. Penn's Apple Beer)

[Christiane]

Hullo, the list!

Sorry if I presume, but since a couple of people very quickly asked 
for the recipe privately once I mentioned it on this list, I figured 
I'd post it here, even though it is more or less OOP.

 From "Penn Family Recipes," copyright Evelyn Abraham Benson 1966, 
pub. George Shumway, York, PA:

"[Apple beer]
[95]

stamp apels and strain them as usuly for Cyder,
then take the Liquor and warm it
and put it upon the malt,
then when it is Com throu boyle it,
and then worke it Like other bere,
when it is put into vesells put 3 pound of hard suger
in to the quantaty of an hogsheed,
a few hops should bee boyled in it --"

I'll have to see if I can find my working notes for this recipe, but 
as I say, between the fact that the recipe says to strain the cider 
and the modern obsession with clear beers (this was years ago and I 
still cared about stuff like that then), it worked quite well using 
the filtered stuff.

Adamantius

========================================================
After having volunteered at Pennsbury and looking at some of the recipes, I am wondering if there are any from the late 17th century that really were carryovers from the Elizabethan era. The recipe I have in mind is Portugal cakes, little muffin-like cakes flavored with sherry, nutmeg, and currants. Is there a similar recipe in Elizabethan cooking? Or were they not made before the 17th century?

Pennsbury Manor's gift shop does sell a booklet of selected recipes. A lot of the original written stuff is with the Pennsylvania Historical Society in Harrisburg, but Pennsbury's library does have copies and fascimiles. I think if you contact the curator, access can be arranged. 

Gianotta