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Cherry-Sauce-art



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Cherry-Sauce-art - 4/5/18

 

"Cherry Sauce for Roasted Meats" by Mistress Leoba of Lecelade.

 

NOTE: See also the files: Onion-Relish-art, sauces-msg, Medvl-Sauces-art, garlic-sauces-msg, camelne-sauce-msg, Sauce-HB-Eggs-art, The-Saucebook-art.

 

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NOTICE -

 

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Copyright to the contents of this file remains with the author or translator.

 

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Thank you,

Mark S. Harris...AKA:..Stefan li Rous

stefan at florilegium.org

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You can find more from this author in her blog at:

https://leobalecelad.wordpress.com

 

Cherry Sauce for Roasted Meats

by Mistress Leoba of Lecelade

 

Zum ein salsenn von weichselnn zu machen.

Item wiltu machen ein gutte salsenn von weichselnn, so thue die weichsell in einen hafen vnd secz die auff ein glut vnd laß sie siedenn vnd laß dann wider erkaltenn vnd streich sie durch ein tuch vnd thue sie dann wider in den hafenn vnd secz sie auff ein glut vnd laß sie wol sieden vnd rurr sie, piß sie dick wirt, vnd thue dann honig dar an vnd geribens prot vnd negellein vnd gut gestu:ep vnd thue sie in ein feßlein. Sie pleibt dir gut drew oder vier iar.

Das Kochbuch des Meisters Eberhard, mid C15

 

To make a sauce of tart cherries.

If you wish to make a good sauce of tart cherries, put the cherries into a pot and place it on the embers and let them boil. Then cool down again and pass them through a cloth, put it back into the pot, place it on the embers and let it boil well until it thickens. Then add honey and grated bread and cloves and good spice powder and put it into a small cask. It will stay good three or four years.

 

The translation was done by Master Giano Balestriere (Volker Bach).

 

Sauces were an essential part of medieval and early modern cooking. As well as enhancing flavour, they were an essential part of healthy cooking. The practice of medicine was dominated by the theory of the four humours – fire, earth, water and air. Every food was dominated by one of these humours, some to a level that was considered dangerous. Using the right sauce with a particular dish could reign in this danger and make the food more healthful (Scully, 1995, 13). However, too much of a particular sauce could be harmful in itself! (Klemettilä, 2012, 87).

 

Sauces were typical accompaniments for boiled or roasted meat. Cherry sauce was a popular condiment in early modern Germany; most recipe collections contain at least one recipe (Bach, 2016, 151). Sabina Welserin’s cookbook doesn’t contain a general recipe, but specifies to serve boar’s head with sour cherry sauce (recipe 5) and roast venison with a sauce that contains cherry syrup (recipe 7). This cherry sauce is quite robust, and I feel is best with strongly flavoured meats. The recipe below makes enough to be a generous accompaniment for 1kg of roast lamb.

 

Ingredients

 

100g morello cherries, drained (see notes)     

1/4 tsp ground cloves

50mL honey   

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 tbs bread crumbs     

1/4 tsp nutmeg

 

Method

 

1.     Drain the cherries and reserve the liquid.

2.     Put the cherries into a pan with a small amount of water, and over a low heat, cook the cherries until they have softened. Top up the cooking water as required. You could also use the liquid you drained from the cherries.

3.     When the cherries have softened, push them through a coarse strainer, or use a food processor or blender to process to a puree.

4.     Return the cherry puree to the heat, and add the honey and spices.

5.     When the mixture is boiling again, add the breadcrumbs, and stir until it thickens.

6.     Remove from the heat, allow to cool slightly, then pour into a storage container or serving dish.

7.     The sauce can be made ahead of time and reheated. It works well served with strong flavoured meats.

 

Notes

 

·      Morello cherries have a much higher acid content than regular cherries, and thus have a much more sour taste. In fact, they are so sour they are virtually impossible to eat fresh, so they are usually preserved in syrup. If you want to use fresh Morello cherries, you will probably have to grow them yourself.

·      As with many period recipes, the spice mix is left to the cook. Cinnamon and nutmeg is a favourite combination of mine. Other spices that could work are galingale, ginger or pepper.

·      It is far better to make your own breadcrumbs rather than use bought ones – the texture of freshly made crumbs is superior. You can either use a fine grater or a food processor to produce breadcrumbs.

 

 

Further Reading

 

Bach, Volker (2016). The Kitchen, Food and Cooking in Reformation Germany.

Klemettilä, Hannele (2012). The Medieval Kitchen.

Scully, Terence, 1995. The Art of Cookery in the Middle Ages

 

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Copyright 2017 by Christine Lawrie. <clawrie1 at bigpond.net.au>. Permission is granted for republication in SCA-related publications, provided the author is credited. Addresses change, but a reasonable attempt should be made to ensure that the author is notified of the publication and if possible receives a copy.

 

If this article is reprinted in a publication, please place a notice in the publication that you found this article in the Florilegium. I would also appreciate an email to myself, so that I can track which articles are being reprinted. Thanks. -Stefan.

 

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Formatting copyright © Mark S. Harris (THLord Stefan li Rous).
All other copyrights are property of the original article and message authors.

Comments to the Editor: stefan at florilegium.org