Maslin Bread

Maslin bread was the common bread of the medieval period.  It consists of wheat mixed with rye, barley, or whatever has happened to grow in your field, lightly bolted to remove some of the bran and risen with sourdough.  While there was a clear preference for wheat-only bread, the reality is that many regions in England are not great for growing it, and farmers planted mixtures of grains as insurance that one of them would produce well in any particular year.*

I have tried, and tried, and tried to make a 100% whole wheat sourdough risen bread.  It doesn't work.   My duck flock has enjoyed the results, but no one else.  But by carefully adapting directions from Breadtopia, I finally got this!

The key is some white flour.  Sourdough works a lot better on white flour, so the bolting step is not because they preferred white bread (although they did), it's vital to getting it to rise.  I used all-purpose flour rather than bread flour, as English medieval wheat was low in gluten.


Maslin Bread [Adapted from Breadtopia]

Evening of Day 1:
200 grams (7 oz. or 7/8 cup) water
120g (4 oz. or 1/2 cup) sourdough starter
236 grams (8 1/3 oz or 2 cups) whole wheat flour

Morning of Day 2:
274 grams (9 2/3 oz. or ~1 1/4 cup) water
85 grams (3 oz. or 7/8 cup) rye flour
250 grams (8 3/4 oz or 2 cups) white all-purpose
170 grams (6 oz. or a tad over 1 3/4 cups) barley flour
13 grams (scant tbs.) salt

Instructions

Evening of Day 1:
Mix all ingredients together.  Ferment (let sit out at room temperature covered loosely with plastic) at 69F for 12 hours.

Morning of Day 2:
Add day 2 to day 1 ingredients.  Knead, place in plastic covered bowl and refrigerate for 24 hours.

Morning of Day 3:
Form a boule (round loaf) and ferment (let sit out on counter) 5 hours at 69F.

Bake at 485F for 40-45 minutes.

...

Verdict: Fabulous.  Look at the inside!

Mmmm.  It is pretty darn dense, but not brick-like.  It had a beautiful, crispy crust and a chewy inside.  I scoffed the heels before anyone else could get them... for quality control.  It was enjoyed by all who hadn't recently had dental surgery.


*How To Be a Tudor, by Ruth Goodman

Manus Christi

The treasury of commodious conceits, and hidden secrets: commonly called the good huswiues closet of prouision for the health of hir housholde.  Meete and necessarye for the profitable vse of al estates.  Gathered out of sundrye experyments, lately practised by men of greate knowledge: and now amplified and inlarged with diuers necessary and newe additions. by John Partridge, transcribed by Joanna Holloway[1573] PDF

"Manus Christ" means "hands of Christ," and this confection is called that because... uh... they are healing?  They are the shape of communion wafers?  They are sparkly?  They are supposed to prevent the plague and cure everything in the world.  Since I have made these, no one at my house has gotten bubonic plague, so they are 100% proven.  SCIENCE.  From transcribed letters I've seen, these seem to have been a popular gift from and to nobility during the reign of Henry VIII.

To Make MANVS CHRISTI
Take halfe a pownde of white Suger, put therto .iiii. ounces of Rosewater, seethe them vpon a softe fier of Coales, tyll the water be consumed, and the Sugre is become hard, then put therin a quarter of an ounce of the powder of Pearles, stirre them well togither, put for euery spoonfull a peece of a leafe of Golde cut of purpose: caste them vpon a leafe of white Paper, announted fyrste, with the Oyle of sweete Almonds, or sweete butter, for cleauing too.

OR

Manus Christi Simple and Pearled.
Take of the best Sugar a pound, Damask-rose-water half a pint, boil them together according to art, to that thicknesse that it may be made into Lozenges, and if toward the latter end of the decoctiom, you ad half an ounce of Pearls prepared in pouder, together with eight or ten leaves of gold, it will be Manus Christi with pearls.

It is naturally cooling, apropriated to the heart, it restores lost strength, takes away burning feavers, and false imaginations, (I mean that with pearls, for that without Pearls is ridiculous) it hath the same vertues Pearls have.  A physicall directory, or, A translation of the London dispensatory made by the Colledge of Physicians in London ... by Nich. Culpeper, Gent. [1649]

Redaction:

Manus Christi
2 C. sugar
4 t. vinegar
3/4 C. water
1/8 t. cream of tartar
1/4 C. white corn syrup
Rose absolute, about 1 t.
Gold leaves

Mix the first five ingredients together carefully.  Bring to a boil, then put the lid on the pot for 2 minutes to melt the sugar off the sides.  Bring up to hard crack, then stir in rose oil and gold.  Spoon onto a buttered marble slab (or jelly roll pan) in little puddles.

If it hardens up while you are doing this, warm it up gently over low heat, just to get it liquid again.

Again, just as with the penydes, the vinegar, cream of tartar, and corn syrup aren't going to affect the texture or taste.  They just make it easier to work with and keep it from getting gritty longer.

Here are some failed attempts, from when I tried to cheap out and use edible gold spray paint, pearl luster dust, and gold luster dust.

Here is the best of the lot.  The pearl luster dust works the best, I think, and a little goes a long way.  If I make this again, I will try mixing it in.  While the gold is stunning, pearl luster dust may be the easiest way to go.

Tarte of strawberyes

Another fantastic guest post! This time from Anje of Kitchen Historic.

***

I have a good friend who went on a summer trip to England a few years ago and she brought me back this wonderful book, A Recipe Book in the Tudor Fashion. In this book is a Tudor recipe for a strawberry tart, taken from the cookbook A Proper Newe Booke of Cokerye. Books dating this far back can be a little difficult to decipher, but luckily the book did all the work for me. I halved this recipe because it's just me and Mr. Man and I didn't want to make too much, however this recipe only makes enough for two 18-inch pans, so it's really not a lot to begin with.

To make short paest for tarte.

Take fyne floure and a cursey of
fayre water and a dysche of swete butter and
a lyttel saffron, and the yolckes of two egges
and make it thynne and as tender as ye
maye.

To make a tarte of strawberyes.

Take and strayne theym wyth the yolkes
of foure egges, and a lyttle whyte breade
grated, then season it up wyth suger and
swete butter and so bake it.

The Verdict:
The taste was not necessarily bad, however the texture of the strawberries inside was a little strange for me. I also think I should've baked my tart a bit longer, so that may be part of it. I much prefer my strawberries at least partially intact. This tart was not very sweet either, but I've come to find that a lot of historical recipes are not very sweet. Probably due to changing tastes, I imagine. Anyway, this is okay, but I would not make it again. I'd rather eat a strawberry pie.

Modernized Recipe:
(Adapted from A Proper Newe Booke of Cokerye)

Pastry Crust
250 grams PLAIN FLOUR
100 grams UNSALTED BUTTER, softened
pinch of SAFFRON (for color, omit if desired)
2 EGG YOLKS, beaten
4 tablespoons COLD WATER

1. Grind the saffron to powder (use the back of a spoon if you don't have a mortar and pestle) and add to the flour.
2. Add the flour to the soft butter and rub it between your fingers until it resembles breadcrumbs.
3. Add the egg yolks and some water if necessary to create a dough which sticks together.
4. Roll out thin and use to line a greased 18cm flan tin.

Strawberry Tart
250 grams STRAWBERRIES
3 EGG YOLKS, beaten
50 grams WHITE BREADCRUMBS
3 tablespoons SUGAR
25 grams UNSALTED BUTTER, softened

1. Preheat the oven to 350F. Puree the strawberries in a blender and pour into a mixing bowl. Add the remaining ingredients and mix well.
2. Pour strawberry mixture into the prepared (unbaked) tart crust and decorate the top with the trimmings.
3. Use milk or egg yolk as a glaze and bake until the pastry is golden.

***

That is a fine looking tart, is it not? Also a very attractive picture.