Almond-Clams
I belive they used clam shell copper cake moulds like these in the 18th century. Tin moulds of today does not resemble a clam in any other way than the scalloped edge. Instead of this kind of cake moulds you should be able to use …
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Apple Soup
The hair sieve used in this recipe is a strainer with a haircloth bottom, completely made out of horsehair. I bought it at a local thrift store / antique dealer. 12 apples 200 ml wine 2 tbsp cane sugar 30 g butter 2 tbsp flour …
Rice-Pudding
Not knowing what kinds of rice were available in Sweden in the 18th century,
I have made this with pudding rice as well as long-grain rice, both works.
210 g rice
250 ml water
330 ml milk
6 eggs
330 ml clarified butter
3 tbsp sugar
pinch of salt
1 g saffron
100 ml raisins
50 ml currants
Scald the rice, boil in water on a very low heat, and when that has been absorbed ad milk. Meanwhile combine eggs beaten to a foam, clarified butter, sugar and salt in a bowl. Depending on how heaped your tablespoons are the amount of sugar can be up to 100 ml. They whom it pleases can add raisins, currants and saffron. To parboil raisins and currants; bring to the boil and quickly drain them. This cleanses the dried fruit and removes toughness of the skin. Use some of the sugar to help grind saffron in a pestle and mortar before adding it. When the grains are once again hard, incorporate well with the egg mixture while they are still warm, and leave to cool. This lets the rice absorb all the goodness of the other ingredients. I left it in the refrigerator over night. Then in a water wrung, tightly tied napkin boil in salted water for 2 hours. The 18th century napkin is a tightly woven 80 – 90 cm squared linen cloth. An old but clean kitchen towel will do. I have seen an illustration of a pudding hanging from a string into a cauldron over an open fire. Another way of hindering the pudding from coming in contact with the bottom of the pot is to place a turned over plate on the pot bottom. Boiling water is added trough out the two hours, making sure the bundle is submerged at all times. When it is taken out of the pot, let it cool for a while before you loose it from the napkin onto the serving plate. Serve with the wine sauce.
Wine-sauce
330 ml of wine and 170 ml of water are brought to a boil with a piece of sugar and some ground (using a mortar and pestle) mace blades, 3 well beaten egg yolks are whisked in so that it does not curdle. This sauce is best served with puddings and cakes and can be made with any kind of berry cordial you please, instead of vine.
Source: Rückersköld 1796, p. 204, 144
Lemon-Cake
The tartness of lemon and vine beautifully balances the sweetness of this delightful pie. 4 lemons 100 g breadcrumbs 170 ml cream 10 eggs; 5 whole, 5 yolks 170 ml white wine 300 g cane sugar 60 ml clarified butter 150 g almonds 6 …
Stewed White Cabbage
Cabbage was a staple in the 18th century. It stores well over winter and is full of nutrients, among them vitamin C; witch would have been useful. To boot it is tasty and very affordable. a small head of cabbage (1 kg or so) 50 …
Egg Tempera
A friend and I found this cake stand like serving plate called a sovelfat at a second hand shop. It very much resembles period ones found at auction houses or in museum collections. Sovel is the relatively luxurious proteins served to complement the more basic carbohydrates in bread and vegetables. Some of the extant objects were painted while some were not. I decided to paint this one to mask that it is not made out of whole pieces of wood like the old ones. Egg Tempera gives you a hardwearing surface with a wonderful sheen to it. It can be used on furniture and in interior design.
1-2 eggs
100 ml linseed oil
100 ml water
100-170 g pigment
Combine lightly beaten egg with oil, then ad water a little at a time to make an emulsion, strain through a fine cloth. The texture your aiming for is like gruel or fermented milk (filmjölk). Dilute the emulsion with water if it is too thick. Make a paste of pigment and some of the liquid before mixing it all together. Use the paint within a week or two and keep it refrigerated between coats.
Apply thinly tree times, 2 – 3 days apart. If you would like a more opaque effect ad Zinc White or even Titanium White to the emulsion in order to make a primer for the first coating, then ad coloured pigments of your choice for the following two. I did not use a primer on account the original serving dishes did not seem to have it. Once completely dry, after additional 10 days or so, I polished the surface with a soft rag and some beeswax (with plant-based oil). I probably went overboard with the pigments, the surface was dusty with them even when dry, but a simple wash took care of the excess. Take care not to leave any droplets or smudges behind; this paint is difficult to get rid of. As I was cleaning up everything got blue, even the bristles of my dishwashing brush.
Sources: Ölands Byggnadsvård; an architectural conservation business, Skansen; an open air museum & Lantliv; an interior design magazine.
Half Moons of Apples
This is probably the first historical recipe I ever tried and continue to do due to its huge success among my fellow reenactors. The recipe tells you to take butter and make a good dough… I lean towards puff pastry, especially after a trip to …
Lavender Pomatum
Inspired by a post from Two Nerdy History Girls on big 18th century hair and the book 18th Century Hair & Wig Styling by Kendra Van Cleave I decided to make my own pomatum and fashion a period hairstyle for an event. The recipe …
Wild Strawberry Cream
This made me giggle with happiness when I tasted it. It is so simple and so ridiculously delicious. The tricky part would be to get your hands on enough wild strawberries.
The recipe calls for equal measures of wild strawberries and cream, 650ml of it. I got 300 ml. The wild strawberries rinsed, mashed with a spoonful of sugar in a bowl and passed trough a fine sieve. With the cream whipped to foam, the purée is placed in a deep dish and the cream added with a small spoon to your liking, possibly to a marble effect. – I used two thirds of my cream. This can be done with raspberries as well. Note that this will not keep for long, but is best the same day it is made.
Source: Rückersköld 1796, p. 216