Recipes from A Duke's Guide to Seducing His Bride

For your convenience, each recipe has been printed on a separate page.

Scotch Collops

(Which Trick enjoys on his visit to Scotland)
To Make Scotch Collops: R. a legge of Mutton, cutt itt in round pieces as broad as you can, & the thickness of a think halfe-crowne, fry them in sweet butter very browne, but not too hard, then take four or five spoonfull of Clarett-wine, two spoonfull of vinegar, an onion slit, halfe a nuttmegge grated, Lemon-pill, an Anchovee, a little horseradish, & oysters if you have them, putt all into the Frying-pan together with the meat, & a quarter of a pound of butter beaten thick, tosse them in the Pan a while over the fire, but do not let them boyle, then heat your dish, rubb it with a Shallot or garlick, & send them upp quick.
—The Savile Recipe Book, 1683

Thinly slice the meat, and stir fry gently with half the butter for 5–10 minutes until browned. Remove from the heat, and add all the remaining ingredients, except for the garlic. Heat gently for a few minutes, stirring the pan continuously, until almost at boiling point. Slice the garlic, and rub it around the inside of the serving dish before pouring in the collops. Serve immediately.

Lauren's notes: If you can't find wine labeled claret (which I couldn't), any full-bodied red will do. I leave out the anchovies since my family won't stand for them, and the recipe comes out fine. May I suggest serving with mashed potatoes? Not because they're authentic Seventeenth Century—because they are certainly not!—but because you'll need something to use up the incredible amount of butter sauce this dish produces. The butter tastes wonderful poured over asparagus as well. And you'll still have some left over!

Chicken Cullis

(Which is served at an Amberley House dinner party)
To make a cullis as white as snowe and in the nature of gelly: Take a cocke, scalde, wash and draw him clene, seeth it in white or rhenish wine, skum it cleane, clarifie the broth after it is strained, then take a pinte of thicke & sweet creame, straine that to your clarified broth, and your broth will become exceeding faire and white; then take powdred ginger, fine white sugar and Rosewater, seething your cullis when you season it, to make it take the colour the better.
—Delightes for Ladies by Sir Hugh Platt

Brown chicken pieces, then add wine and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer about 45–50 minutes until tender. Remove the chicken from the pan and keep warm. Beat the egg white into the stock and continue to whisk over medium heat until it comes to a boil. Remove from heat and wait a few minutes, then pour the liquid through a fine cloth into a clean pan. Over low heat, stir slowly while pouring in the cream. Heat the cullis almost to boiling point, and add the ginger, sugar and rose water right before serving.

In a deep dish, place the chicken on a bed of crustless white bread cubes. Pour the cullis over it and serve.

Lauren's notes: This recipe makes a lot of sauce—you may want to halve the sauce ingredients or double the chicken. The cullis is interesting—rich and creamy, although thin and a bit sweet compared to what our modern tastes consider an ideal accompaniment for chicken. The cullis can also be served separately as a soup—a very rich one, though!

Sack Posset

(Which Kendra and Trick drink at Duncraven Castle)
My Lord of Carlile's Sack-possett: Take a Pottle of Cream, and boil it in a little whole Cinnamon, and three or four flakes of Mace. To this proportion of cream put in eighteen yolkes of Eggs, and eight of the whites; a pint of Sack. Beat your Eggs very well and mingle them with your Sack, Put in three quarters of a pound of Sugar into the Wine and Eggs with a Nutmeg grated, and a little beaten Cinnamon; set the basin on the fire with the wine and Eggs, and let it be hot. Then put in the Cream boyling from the fire, pour it on high, but stir it not; cover it with a dish, and when it is settled, strew on the top a little fine Sugar and serve it up.
—The Closet of Sir Kenelm Digby Opened by Sir Kenelm Digby

Beat together the egg yolks, egg whites, sherry, and spices. Gently heat in a saucepan, stirring constantly until warm but not thickened. Remove from heat and divide into six mugs. In another pot, mix the cream and sugar and heat until it comes to a full boil. Pour hot cream mixture from a height into the warm egg and sherry mixture in the mugs. Allow the posset to stand in a warm place for a few minutes, then sprinkle a little sugar on the surface and serve.

Lauren's notes: A sweet and creamy hot treat for a cold winter night! Be careful warming the eggs and sherry, because the eggs cook and thicken very easily. Take it off the heat as soon as it is warm (can you tell I ruined my first batch? <g>).

Dressed Artichokes

(Which are served at Kendra's wedding supper)
To dres artichocks: Take thick creame, & sugar & nutmeg sliced & mace, & boile it together, when it is almost boiled, put in the bottoms of Artichocks, boyle them in it a little, then put in some butter, & so serve it: Boile the bottoms first till they bee tender in water.
—Eleanor Fettiplace's Receipt Book, 1604

Heat the cream and spices over low heat, stirring until mixed. Add the artichoke hearts and heat until warmed through. Add several tablespoons of butter to taste, and salt and pepper if desired.

Lauren's notes: Frozen artichoke hearts work great for this. Like most of the old recipes, it makes a lot of sauce, so you may want to cut down a bit on those ingredients.

Tarte of Spinage

(Which Kendra eats at Duncraven Castle)
Take Spynage and perboyle it tender, then take it up and wrynge oute the water cleane, and chop it very small, and set it uppon the fyre with swete butter in a frying panne and season it, and set it in a platter to coole then fyll your tart and so bake it.
—A Proper Newe Booke of Cokerye, 16th Century

Preheat oven to 350° F (180° C). Follow the directions on the pie crust package to pre-bake the bottom crust. Parboil spinach 3 minutes, rinse in cold water, and squeeze dry. Chop spinach, then sauté 2–3 minutes in butter and spices. Allow to cool. Fill shell and bake for 40 minutes.

Lauren's notes: Frozen spinach works well and saves a lot of work washing and chopping. This pie is delicious!

Orange Butter

(which Kendra eats the morning after her wedding)
R. a quarter of a Pint of cleared juice of Oranges, a quarter of a Pint of white wine, pare the Peel of your Oranges thinne, steep itt in the juice & white-wine halfe an hour, then put in when you have taken out the pill a little fine Sugar, to take away the sharpnesse. Then beat the yolks of six eggs very well, & put them into the liquor, & sett them over the fire, & keep itt continually stirring till you find it almost as thick as Butter then throw itt about the dish or bason & let itt stand all night, in the morning take itt off lightlie with a spoon, & serve itt as other Butter.
—The Savile Recipe Book, 1683

Soak the zest in the orange juice and white wine for 30 minutes, to enrich the flavor, and then remove. Beat the egg yolks and sugar and add to the orange juice/wine. Pour the mixture into a saucepan and stir continuously over low heat until thick and creamy, but do not allow to boil. Allow the butter to cool and serve with wafers as a rich full-flavored fruit dip.

Lauren's notes: Yum! Be sure to store this in the refrigerator.

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