Place of Origin

England

Date of Composition

ca. 1680-ca. 1700

Description

This volume of 84 leaves (168 pages) is in two parts. The first part, through leaf 47r, consists of various of writings, many involving the Stuart succession crisis of 1688, when the second wife of Catholic King James II unexpectedly gave birth to a male heir, prompting fears of the creation of a Catholic dynasty. The second part, from leaves 47v through 84v, is a recipe book written from the back of the notebook going toward the center. The person or persons who wrote the first part of the manuscript and the predominant writer of the recipe book were different individuals. 

The second part of the manuscript contains around 160 recipes, most of which are culinary. The recipes at the beginning of this section, from leaves 84v to 78v, are a hodgepodge, comprising perfumes, pickles, jellies, cheesecakes, souses, mince pies, fritters, and still other things. Subsequently, the book becomes somewhat more organized. Wines, mead, and metheglin are outlined on leaves 77r-76v; preserves, syrups, and fruit confectionary on leaves 76r-65v; cakes on leaves 65r-60v; puddings, dessert creams, and ancillary dishes on leaves 55r-52v; and remedies and cosmetics on leaves 51r-48r. The back cover contains notes on fishing, which may be in a hand other than that of the recipe book. All sections contain some recipes that are out of category.

Most of the recipes are typical of the late seventeenth century, such as carp in a sauce of claret and the fish's blood (81r), taffety tarts (80r), buttered cheese loaves (79v), and cabbage cream (52v), a conceit of clotted cream arranged in layers to resemble a cabbage. (In this particular recipe, the cream is tinted with spinach juice for added verisimilitude, an unusual touch.) However, there are also some uncommon recipes. Jelly for Breakfast (81v) is a sweetened hartshorn gelatin flavored with lemon, wine, and rosemary. The flavoring is typical for jellies, but the specification of the jelly as a breakfast dish in noteworthy, as breakfast dishes are rarely mentioned at all in cookbooks of this period. Also of interest is the recipe for Symnalls (simnels; 64v). The recipe outlines the cakes in something of their original medieval form, as enriched, sweetened, fruited, yeast-raised breads, perhaps shaped a bit like old-fashioned soda crackers, which are first boiled until firm and then pricked with a thick needle and baked, probably until crisp. The recipe for Pankakes (pancakes) is outlined twice, in exactly the same words, on leaves 79r and 55r. The batter is composed of a quart of cream, 3 eggs, 7 egg yolks, and, instead of the typical wheat flour, enough grated bread "as will make it thick."

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