[Sca-cooks] Dates stuffed with marzipan

[Gretchen Beck]

--On Wednesday, December 10, 2008 7:45 PM -0500 Johnna Holloway
<johnnae at mac.com> wrote:

> Thanks for the source. I suspect that it's not all that old. Did some
> looking. It's not in
> Meg Dod's which dates to 1829. Also checked Mrs. McLintock which is 1736.
> Didn't find them in Cleland which is 1755. Most of my Scots cookery books
> are boxed
> but I went through what I have available and didn't find them listed.
> 
> I had a bit more time tonight so I searched ECCO which is the 18th
> century database
> (Scotland's printed culinary texts start in the 18th century)-- nothing.
> 
> EEBO-TCP turned up some interesting material. Dates do appear in English
> texts
> of course. It was suggested that they wouldn't be found in recipes
> because they weren't being
> grown in Scotland. They were imported into England at least prior to
> 1600. They show up in
> The castel of helth gathered and made by Syr Thomas Elyot knyghte which
> dates to 1539.
> The Secrets of Alessio has them being used in various waters. That's 1558.
> Partridge also includes them also in a water.
> Dawson mentions dates in confects but doesn't include a recipe. They are
> listed at least twice in a list of dishes.
> Wooley includes dates and blanched almonds in a pudding in The Cooks
> Guide as did Dawson 75 years
> earlier.
> The title London in its splendor consisting of triumphant pageants in
> 1673 mentions a pageant that offers
> "betwixt two Silver Panyers that are fraught with several sorts of
> Fruits, as Raysons, Almonds, Figs, Dates, Prunes, and other variety of
> Grocery Wares..."
> but this isn't a mention of stuffed dates.
> 
> Johnnae

Dates are imported into Scotland as well -- s.v. Date from the Dictionary
of the Old Scots Tongue has:

Ane barell of daittis; 1490 Acta Conc. 158/1.  xij li. deytes; 1503 Halyb.
271.  iij li. daitis; 1504 Ib. 272. 

(Acta Conc is "The Acts of the Lords of Council in Civil Causes. (Acta
Dominorum Concilii.) ")
Halyb is "Halyb. [1492-] Ledger of Andrew Halyburton, Conservator of the
Privileges of the Scotch Nation in the Netherlands, 1492-1503; together
with the book of customs and valuation of merchandises in Scotland 1612"

toodles, margaret