The humble chickpea was quite the thing in Richard II’s court! In this post, you’ll find a potted history of this legume in medieval England, as well as links to two of my recipes.
Category Archives: Food history
Turnips for a King: Excoriating the soul with a dash of elegance
Did Richard II of England really eat turnip pottage?
In this post, I provide: a potted history of the turnip in medieval England; several reasons why Richard II would have eaten turnip pottage; a translation of the first English recipe of turnip pottage; and my own, new recipe based on this.
Shining a light on… great raisins
Who would have thought that the subject of medieval raisins would be so complex? In this post, I explore the use of ‘great raisins’ in Richard II’s cookery book, and ask if we can identify them.
When is a goose not a goose?
Find out what happened when a goose met a peacock at a medieval feast.
Happy New Year! Top posts of 2024
Find out what the top five posts of 2024 were. And here’s to an even better 2025!
On the Twelfth Day of [Medieval] Christmas…
Here’s my re-imagining of the famous carol The Twelve Days of Christmas.
Mortrews for comfort
I’m always on the lookout for good, very-tasty-indeed, comfort food. And so were medieval folk. Here’s a brief history of Mortrews, the ultimate in meaty, starchy goodness. And it is followed by the brand new recipe for my Modern/Medieval version of Mortress.
Beet it!
Seven things you never knew you needed to know about beetroot in medieval England. Glorious!
Oh, and there’s a modern-though-medieval-spiced, pickled beetroot recipe from Ray. Delicious!
Cassia buds, the ‘flower’ of medieval spices
Flour or flower? That is the question. In this post, I address the spice known as ‘flour of canel’ and explain how it should be understood as ‘cassia buds’. There are Middle English recipe readings to be had too!
The poky palace kitchen of Portchester Castle
The palace lodgings of Portchester Castle, built by Richard II, have a rather poky kitchen. But for whom were the palace lodgings built, and what might the cooks have made for their lord and his guests?
MONK'S MODERN MEDIEVAL CUISINE 