[Sca-cooks] Mirrauste

[Craig Daniel]

>From De Nola:

"Sauce for mirrauste is made in this manner.  Take a pound of almonds,
and four ounces just for five dishes and then toast the almonds, and
grind them; and then take a crustless piece of bread which should be
soaked in good broth; and then grind it with the almonds, and strain
it, that it shall be quite thick; and then let it go to the fire with
an ounce of cinnamon, but the cinnamon must be put in when you strain
the almonds; and then take the squabs (16) and roast them; and when
they are almost half-roasted, remove them from the fire, and cut them
into pieces; and then cook the sauce with half a pound of sugar in the
sauce; however, stir it constantly with a stick of wood or a large
wooden spoon, and when it is cooked put the squabs in this sauce with
the other birds or pullets or hens; let it all be done in this manner,
and then take the pot-grease and put it into the sauce with the
squabs; and then you may prepare dishes; and of the slices of the
birds you may put four in each dish; and on top put sugar and cinnamon
moderately; and in this way you make perfect mirrauste."

I have a little bit of trouble believing the proportions in this
recipe. In particular, I don't believe I've ever seen even well-done
redactions of period recipes that call for quite that much cinnamon.
But it might just be my own prejudice, since the only version of it
I've ever tried making before was Cariadoc's redaction of Platina's
"Mirause of Catelonia" recipe (the original of which leaves out
quantities, so it's hard to be sure it doesn't actually mean half a
pound of sugar and a full ounce of cinnamon like the De Nola recipe).
Do more experienced cooks than myself have opinions on this one?

Also, how many squabs and how many pullets or hens can one really have
in a dish that serves five? (And does this odd discrepancy explain
some of the other quantities?)

 - Jaume de Monçó