[Sca-cooks] Found Seville Oranges!

[Stefan li Rous]

Ilsebet asked:

<<< I was absolutely gobsmacked last night to discover Seville oranges  
at
my local Zehr's last night. So I bought just under a kilo (5 or 6
oranges, I think). So, with that quantity, what could/should I make? I
don't really know anyone who is into marmalade, so I'd like to avoid
that. Would it be decent to zest them in big strips to candy the zest,
and then freeze the juice to use for something else? >>>

I'm not sure how much taste difference there would be between candied  
peel made with Seville Oranges compared to sweet oranges. It might be  
interesting to find out, particularly if you could make them in  
parallel so you got a true comparison.

Here's a file in the FOOD-SWEETS section of the Florilegium on making  
this, just in case it is new to you.
candied-peels-art (16K)  3/21/06    "Candied Fruit Peel" by Dame Alys  
Katharine.
http://www.florilegium.org/files/FOOD-SWEETS/candied-peels-art.html
candied-peels-msg (58K)  2/ 2/07    Candied fruit peels. A late period  
treat.
http://www.florilegium.org/files/FOOD-SWEETS/candied-peels-msg.html

Candying the fruit itself might show up a greater difference between  
the different types of oranges.
candied-fruit-msg (34K)  2/ 2/07    Period candied fruit. Recipes.
http://www.florilegium.org/files/FOOD-SWEETS/candied-fruit-msg.html

Using the search engine on the top page of the Florilegium with the  
phrase "Seville Orange" turns up a number of recipes that specify  
Seville Oranges.

For instance, in the sauces-msg file "There's a 16th c. recipe for  
Seville Orange Juice Sauce, in Marx
Rumpolt's Ein New Kochbuch, that calls for the fresh juice of  
Sauerpomeranzen (Seville oranges), sugar, and cinnamon, uncooked."

Also, in the same file:
========
Date: Thu, 7 Oct 1999 05:42:14 +1000
From: "Craig Jones & Melissa Hicks" <meliora at macquarie.matra.com.au>

A new variation that Drake & I have been using is as follows from  
Redon's
Medieval Kitchen.  The recipe is for Chicken but the sauce is really  
yummy
with lamb!!!

Roast Chicken.  To prepare roast chicken, you must roast it; and when  
it is
cooked, take orange juice or verjuice with rosewater, sugar and  
cinnamon and
place the chicken on a platter; and pour this mixture over it and send  
it to
table.  (Maestro Martino, Libro de Atre Coquinaria, no 127)

Redon's redaction of the sauce is:

juice of 3 bitter oranges (sevilles) OR 10 tablespoons verjuice plus 1
tablespoon rose water
1/2 tea sugar
1 pinch ground cinnamon
salt to taste

Drake's Variation:  Instead of pouring this over the meat, we heat it
separately and thicken with cornflour.  Presto - Gravy for Coeliac  
(allergic
to gluten) people.

Meliora - from Polit.
========

 From the fd-Germany-msg file:
"Bitter Seville Orange Sauce with cinnamon, sugar, rosewater - Marx  
Rumpolt"

Stefan
--------
THLord Stefan li Rous    Barony of Bryn Gwlad    Kingdom of Ansteorra
    Mark S. Harris           Austin, Texas          StefanliRous at austin.rr.com
**** See Stefan's Florilegium files at:  http://www.florilegium.org ****