[Sca-cooks] Liver pate from Clifford Wright.

[Louise Smithson]

it was written: 
Greetings All, I was plundering through my copy of "A Mediterranean Feast" by Clifford Wright, looking for some things to take to a local "12th" night event being held here in Bryn Madoc on the 16th. (So I guess it is a 22nd night feast.) I stumbled upon a few things, and was interested in comment and corrections from y'all. -------------------------

First, is a recipe for Pate di Fegato. The book claims it to be a favorite of Doge Nicolo Tron (d. 1473). There is no reference for this. The recipe is: Pate di Fegato (Venice) (original snipped)

Closest I can come to this is liver sausages. This recipe is taken from the Anonymous Venetian cookbook written towards the end of the 15th century. 

Mortadelle bone e perfette etc. XLVI

Se tu voy fare mortadelle toy lo figato del porcho e lo suo reta over raixella, toy lo figato e falo alessare e quando e cocto trialo fora e toy herbe bone e pever e ove e caxo e sale tanto che basta, e toy lo figato e queste cosse e bati ben insieme in mortaro e fay pastume e distempera cum ova e con un pocho de la lesaura del figato, e poi toy la reta e fay le mortadelle, e quando sono fatte, frizili in bono onto colator; quando sono fricte dali caldi a tavola. 

To make good and perfect mortadelle etc. XLVI

If you want to make mortadelle, take pork liver and it’s caul or net, take the liver and put it to boil, and when it is cooked take it out. Take good herbs and pepper and eggs and cheese and salt, as much as is enough, and take the liver and these things and beat them well in a mortar and paste them well together and temper with eggs and a little of the water in which the liver cooked. Then take the caul and make the mortadelle (small or large sausages), and when they are made fry them in good strained lard, when they are fried send them hot to the table. 

This recipe kind of looks like the second one referenced.  It is like many other recipes, in my sources from 15th to 16th century, in many other books which are for "Fegatelli" or little livers. Honestly the first recipe which is given looks a lot like the chicken liver pate that you find in "Mastering the art of french cooking" by Julia child.  I honestly don't recall a dish that looks like that amongst my sources.  Cream is an odd binder to use it just doesn't fit with the recipes I have read. 

As to the other two recipes you asked about I'm not familiar with the arabic recipe collections or cooking to make comment on whether raw cabbage is served.  Although cabbage salad is referred to at least once in Scappi but I would have to hunt up a source for that.  I can look for cassata but I believe that this issue has arisen before without conclusion, but I can look around.  The problem for the most part is that cakes as we know them are more of a modern item.  

Helewyse


		
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