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“Tudor Dining,”http://www.tastesofhistory.co.uk/Demonstrations/The-Tudors/mobile/. Last visited 9 April 2020
“Recipes from the Tudor Kitchen,” https://www.historyextra.com/period/tudor/recipes-from-the-tudor-kitchen/. Last visited 9 April 2020
The Early Modern Period brought great changes to food throughout Europe. During this period, an increase in trade led to more spices and foods being introduced to the continent. Although these new ingredients were mainly used by the rich, they offered more flavor to dishes during this time. In addition, since storing fresh produce was difficult, people often made syrups using different types of fruit. This allowed for food to be preserved, especially through the winter months (Barrow).
The dish we chose is from Elinor Fettiplace’s Receipt Book in 1605, and incorporates the newly introduced sweet potato. In the beginning of the early modern period, sweet potatoes were considered the same as Irish potatoes, which were not often used for cooking (History Extra). Our meal also incorporates rose water and orange syrup. This meal would have likely been eaten by the rich and noble, such as King Henry VIII. We know this because sweet potatoes were commonly eaten among the rich, whereas normal Irish potatoes were reserved for peasants, animals, and prisoners (History Extra). In addition, sugar and vanilla was rare in Europe, as it was very expensive (British Library). Therefore, the rich were the only ones lucky enough to use it in their dishes; many others relied on honey to sweeten their meals (Barrow).
During the early modern period, this meal would have been cooked over fire (History Extra). For our purposes we would cook this dish over a modern gas/electric stove. Utensils were also made with wood during this time period whereas now we would use modern cookware.
Ingredients:
5 lbs sweet potatoes
1 ⅕ cups of sugar
¾ cups of water
⅓ cup of orange juice
⅓ cup of rosewater
⅙ cup of fresh rose petals
⅓ tsp of vanilla
Steps:
Bake sweet potatoes until tender
Peel slice
Mix sugar and water over low heat until liquefied
Add orange juice, rosewater, and rose petals
Stir until heated, then pour over the sliced sweet potatoes
Serving Size: 10 people
Works cited
Mandy Borrow, “Tudor Food,” http://www.primaryhomeworkhelp.co.uk/tudors/food.html. Last visited 9 April 2020
“1500s Food,” https://www.bl.uk/learning/langlit/texts/cook/1500s2/1550s2.html. Last visited 9 April 2020
“Recipes from the Tudor Kitchen,” https://www.historyextra.com/period/tudor/recipes-from-the-tudor-kitchen/. Last visited 9 April 2020
Kiana F, Adrian C, Ellie K, & Brandon F
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