15^th century

Strawberry Blancmange

This dish was simply referred to as ‘Strawberry’ in the fifteenth century cookery manuscript where I found it. It was listed along with the same dishes all using different flavourings, such as violets, primroses and red roses. However, when making this pudding it becomes clear that this is the ancestor of the modern blancmange, made without meat and using cornflour (cornstarch) as a thickener along with all kinds of flavourings.

Strawberye

Take Strawberys & waysshe hem in tyme of yere in gode red wyne; than strayne thorwe a clothe, & do hem in a potte with gode Almaunde mylke, a-lay it with Amyndoun other with the flowre of Rys, & make it chargeaunt, and lat it boyle, and do ther in Roysonys of coraunce, Safroun, Pepir, Sugre grete plente, pouder Gyngere, Canel, Galyngale; poynte it with Vynegre, & a lytil whyte grece put therto; coloure it with Alkenade, & droppe it a-bowte, plante it with the graynes of Pome-garnad, & than serve it forth

Thomas Austin ed., Two Fifteenth-century Cookery-books, 1888

This delicate pudding is one that I enjoy making the most of all the later medieval puddings. It has the power to intrigue people with its look and flavour. In the fifteenth century and earlier, the strawberries were of a different variety which can mostly be compared to European native wild strawberries. If you have a large quantity of these delightful little berries in your garden, you can re-create this dish with them. Otherwise, I suggest you use the smallest strawberries you can find.

The spices used in this recipe are typically those of medieval times. These days, some – such as galingale – might be difficult to find, but you can easily leave it out. By stewing this pudding, the colour gets quite bland; so, as the original recipe also suggests, you can colour it more brightly. I use beetroot powder, which is completely natural.