Christopher Monk

Experiment: Pynnonade

Pynnonade. Tak almaundes yblaunched & drawe hem up sumdel thykke wiþ gode broth oþer with water & set on þe fyre & seeþ it, cast þerto ȝolkes of ayroun ydrawe, tak pynes fryed in oyle oþer in grece & do þerto white poudour douce, suger & salt, & colour it with alkenet a litull. PineContinue reading “Experiment: Pynnonade”

Health update: getting better!

Hello everyone! Just wanted to share an update on my health. It’s good news: I’m starting to feel significantly better, and I am working right now on a new recipe experiment which, all being well, will be posted about in the next few days. I was diagnosed with an autoimmune blood disorder known as perniciousContinue reading “Health update: getting better!”

Apology

Hello everyone. Just a short note to apologise for the lack of new material on my website in the last few weeks. Unfortunately, I have been unwell. I’ve just been diagnosed with vitamin B12 deficiency which has left me exhausted (and somewhat impaired cognitively!). I hope to be back to experimenting with medieval food asContinue reading “Apology”

What is powder fort?

Hello medievalists and food lovers! Back in March, I took the recipe sauge yfarced — literally, ‘stuffed sage’— from Forme of Cury (King Richard II’s 14th-century cookery book) and brought it to the development stage. The result was pretty scrumptious. In essence this is my version of a medieval snack: spicy pork balls coated in fresh sageContinue reading “What is powder fort?”

Sprinkle on a little spicy magic

Hello medieval-minded food lovers. Today, I’m talking about a lovely, light, poached chicken dish which I made recently, and particularly about the spicy magic that lifts the dish: powder douce. Powder douce (poudre douce, powdour douce) is a spice mix that was used in many of the recipes of King Richard II’s household. ‘Cast thereonContinue reading “Sprinkle on a little spicy magic”

Medieval pastry: experimentation

I’ve been putting theory into practice, experimenting with different recipes for making medieval ‘paste’, the stuff which medieval cooks used for making pastries, from baked tarts and pies to fried crispels and fritters. In this post, I report back on my experiments to make authentic medieval pastry, using both egg yolk paste and whole eggContinue reading “Medieval pastry: experimentation”

The problem with pastry

When I was a teenager studying cookery at high school, there was always one thing I could depend on: my short crust pastry! My meringues might have cracked and wept, and my ‘fatless’ sponges often were in need of a little elevation, but my pastry was to die for. Just the right melt-in-your-mouth, biscuity moreishness.Continue reading “The problem with pastry”