[Sca-cooks] Butter

[Johnna Holloway]

Other references to May butter include:

Here foloweth good medycynes for the colde & the coughe.

TAke ysop Rosemary Planten and the roote of Radysshe of yche a quatyte & 
seth the in wyne fro a potell to a quarte & than take them downe & powre 
out the lycour into the her|bes in a morter & medle them wel togyder & 
strayne them into the lycour agayne into y^e potte & than take a pynte 
of lyfe Hony & boyle it & scomme it and put therto a quartro of 
Maybutter that is claryfyed & than let it sethe by the space that one 
may say the psalme of Miserere mei deus than take the vessell downe & 
strayne it throughe a lynen clothe & take that lycour & put it into a 
fayre vessell of glasse & let the pacyent vse therof fyrst and laste at 
euery tyme .vi. spones full of stale ale warme tyll he be hole for this 
is a proued medycyne.

Here begynneth a newe boke of medecynes. 1526

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THis following is a notable tryed medicine for the gowte, and for the 
swelling of ioynts, & for knobs or knots comming of the French pocks. 
Take May butter a quarter of a pound, halfe a pound of coomyn seede, 
beaten in fyne powder, a quarter of a pound of blacke Sope, one handfull 
of Hearbe grace, halfe a handfull of clarifyed sheepe suet: stampe all 
these to|gether in a morter, then take the gall of an Oxe, and a 
spoonefull of bay Salt, and frye them all together, tyll it be thycke: 
then laye it on a woollen cloath, and so apply it to the ache, as hotte 
as it maye be suffred, and let it lye vnremoued a whole weeke: and then 
laye another plaster thereof to it, and let it lye vnre|moued as long: 
then lay the thyrd plaster therto, and let it lye therto as long, as the 
other, (which wyll be in the whole three weekes:) and without doubt it 
wyll helpe him. I haue seene it proued. This I had out of a verie olde 
booke. Page 96

A thousand notable things, of sundry sortes by Thomas Lupton, [1579]

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I checked Moffett, Thomas, 1553-1604. Healths improvement: or, Rules 
comprizing and discovering the nature, method, and manner of preparing 
all sorts of food used in this nation. from 1655 (written in the 
1590's-- the author died in 1605)

Butter is in Chapter 15 pages 128-131 but I found no mention of “may 
butter.”

Again I hope this helps.

Johnnae