Historic Cookery

I thought I’d share a few more tidbits, and maybe even another Tudor-era receipt, from the book The Taste of the Fire, The Story of the Tudor Kitchens at Hampton Court Palace. Then I’m heading back “home,” back to the time period I know best, namely the early 19th century. If you’re interested in anything [...]

Read Full Post »

Let’s pretend it was true: no one during previous centuries drank water because it was polluted; if they did, they’d get sick and/or die, and so everyone drank beer instead. Okay. Well…what about the animals? If all water was polluted and unsafe, what did the livestock drink? What about domestics such as chickens, goats, sheep, [...]

Read Full Post »

The other day, I heard a supposed “expert” proclaim that people in earlier centuries never drank any water because it was polluted, that if they did they’d get sick and/or die, and so they drank beer instead. Well, I was miffed, to say the least. I squirmed in my seat, struggling not to leap up [...]

Read Full Post »

As I mentioned previously, I’ve been reading up on the role of food during Hampton Court’s Tudor years in The Taste of the Fire. I’ve discovered a treasure trove of fascinating information. For instance, Hampton Court’s multi-room kitchen complex was built in 1530. Its staff, numbering at more than two hundred, worked tirelessly to prepare [...]

Read Full Post »

A neat little booklet that I recently ordered just arrived the other day. It wasn’t too expensive, but since it came all the way from jolly ol’ England, the shipping was, gulp, high. Extremely so! In any event, I received my copy of The Taste of the Fire, The Story of the Tudor Kitchens at [...]

Read Full Post »

In Eliza Leslie’s The House Book (1843), she writes that it is “the usual custom in America” to thoroughly clean one’s house, “top to bottom,” in late spring and early autumn. Yes, just twice each year! In addition, she offers this advice: It is a good rule not to commence house-cleaning in the spring until [...]

Read Full Post »

Several weeks ago, the Wyckoff Farmhouse Museum was featured on an episode of “Sunday Arts,” a weekly program produced by New York City’s PBS station, WNET-Thirteen. Click here for your own up close and personal look at a true treasure, namely Wyckoff, the City’s oldest house and its first designated Historic Landmark. HUZZAH to the [...]

Read Full Post »

Was sorting through some photos when I came across these of another nutmeg grater I purchased awhile back. I’d forgotten all about them. At about three inches long, this acorn is a bit larger than the barrel- shaped grater I showed last summer. In fact, I think it’s the largest of all my “portable” non-metal [...]

Read Full Post »