[Sca-cooks] egg whites

[Stefan li Rous]

Ursula Georges asked:
<<< Does anyone have a medieval recipe that uses large quantities of egg whites? >>>

Lol. This same question was asked on this list back in February 2009.  I had planned on saving the various answers for yet another Florilegium file. However, there weren't that many suggestions at that time. There seem to be more this time. Here is the one I saved from Ranvaig.

Stefan

==========
Date: Sat, 7 Feb 2009 07:30:47 -0500
From: ranvaig at columbus.rr.com
Subject: Re: [Sca-cooks] What to do with 55 egg whites?
To: ahrenshav at yahoo.com, Cooks within the SCA
	<sca-cooks at lists.ansteorra.org>

A couple of recipes from Rumpolt for egg whites.

Ranvaig

Gebackens 2. Take the white from eggs/ and make a dough of white flour/ make it sweet with white sugar/ take a clean foam spoon/ and push it quickly into hot butter/ not thickly/ that you can turn it over with a wooden spatula/ let it get cold on the Sch?ufflein/ like this it will nicely bend/ lay on a dish/ so they will not be broken/ and when you wish to give on a table/ then sprinkle it with white sugar. If it however did not hold together/ and breaks/ then do it in simmered milk and let simmer/ until it becomes thick/ like this it will be a good puree/ Thus one can use two different things/ one if it comes together/ the other if it does not.

Gebackens 52. Take white of eggs/ and take a fair new pot to it/ and fair white flour/ make a batter in the pot/ and beat it well with a wooden spoon/ take anise and coriander with it/ make it well sweet with white sugar/ baste with a little rose water/ and a little salt/ you can also take under it an egg yolk or two, that is fresh. Take a wafer/ that is wide and long/ do the batter on it with a wooden spoon/ shove quickly in an oven/ that the the batter does not bubble/ like this they will nicely rise in the height/ when it is baked/ then take it out/ and turn it over after a while?/ cut it from the length about half a finger thick/ lay then on a clean paper/ or on an oblat/ and shove again in the oven/ on the other side/ turn over on both sides/ when it is nicely dry/ like this it will be good and crumbly.  And one calls it biscuit of Eggwhite.

Gebackens 56. Take sugar/ that is finely cleaned with rose water/ set with the Rundel on coals/ and let it therefore simmer/ and when it is well thick/ then stir almonds into it/ and stir well together/ that it not burn. Take it from the fire away/ take ground sugar/ and stir it in/ and check that it is well tasting. And from this almond dough you like to make a marzipan/ dry in the oven or a pie pan/ let it cool again/ and take the white from eggs/ and rose water/ stir in clean sugar and ever longer you stir it/ ever whiter it becomes/ let it stand a while/ so it gains a beautiful white foam/ take it down/ and spread the marzipan with it/ take then the cover of the tart pan/ and put coals on it/ like this the foam will be nicely risen/ and white. And so one makes the good marzipan/ with the egg whites. You can also well take white from eggs with the marzipan/ and rose water/ when you have nearly dried the almonds/ then take first the white from eggs with it/ and stir well to gether/ like this it will be good and well tasting.

Gebackens 59.  Take sugar/ that is ground and nicely white/ also the white from a fresh egg/ grind in a mortar/ take a drop or four of rose water in it/ and coriander/ and when you have stirred it together/ then take a wafer/ and lay on a clean paper/ do the dough on it with a wooden spoon on the wafer/ and make a finger long/ shove it quickly in a warm oven/ so that it nicely rises/ and when it is cold/  then it is crispy/ that it melts in the mouth.  And one calls it sugar biscuit.  And if you will have it brown/ then take ground cinnamon with it. You can also make such a biscuit from clean egg yolks/ so it is soft as the white of eggs/ particularly if you grind the finest white sugar.

Gebackens 76. Take cleaned sugar/ that is nicely white/ and let it then again simmer well that it becomes thick/ stir it with a grater leg??/ until it is white/ take white from eggs/ and rosewater/ beat through each other/ so it will develop a foam/ stir it into the sugar/ so it becomes still whiter/ do in the pine nut kernels whole into it/ do it with a wood spatula together/ take a clean board/ and moisten a little/ do it by pieces on it/ and let become cold/ set in a warm room/ like this it becomes dry and white.  And one calls it Pinucade/ it is delicate and lovely to give on a table with the confections or marzipan.

--------
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 ****