[Sca-cooks] Cofyns

[Daniel Myers]

On Mar 4, 2007, at 10:01 PM, Kerri Martinsen wrote:

> Here's a question that came up while I was helping to judge the  
> Royal Baker
> competition in Atlantia:
>
> When a recipe refers to a "Cofyn", does it ALWAYS mean an inedible  
> pie crust
> or is there room to assume/prove that it was an edible crust?


There is some clear proof that raised coffins weren't always inedible  
- note the marked text.

 From "The Good Huswifes Handmaide for the Kitchen", Stuart Peachey  
(ed.)  -  England, c. 1588
To make Paste, and to raise Coffins. Take fine flower, and lay it on  
a boord, and take a certaine of yolkes of Egges as your quantitie of  
flower is, then take a certaine of Butter and water, and boil them  
together, but ye must take heed ye put not too many yolks of Egges,  
for if you doe, ***it will make it drie and not pleasant in  
eating***: and yee must take heed ye put not in too much Butter for  
if you doe, it will make it so fine and short that you cannot raise.  
And this paste is good to raise all manner of Coffins: Likewise if ye  
bake Venison, bake it in the paste above named.

I've got some notes collected about pie crusts online, but not too  
many conclusions yet.

	http://www.medievalcookery.com/notes/piecrust.shtm

- Doc


-- 
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
"This is no brekefast: but a morsell to drynke with."
   - William Horman, Vulgaria (1519)
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-