Two Fifteenth-Century Cookery-Books

The Ancient Cookeries edited in this volume have been copied from Harleian MSS. 279 & 4016, in the British Museum, dating from about 1430 or 1440 & 1450 A.D. respectively. The volume also contains recipes from Asmole MS. 1439, Laud MS. 553 (Bodleian Library), & Douce MS. 55. Many of the recipes given would astonish a modern cook, as they are strongly seasoned. The Foreward suggests stronger stomachs may have been fortified by outdoor life. Spices used include pepper, ginger, cloves, garlic, galingale & vinegar. Wine is used in the recipes for Roast Partridge, Partridge Stews & Brawn in Poivrade. Some of the meats used were whale, porpoise, seal, swan, crane, heron & peacock.