7 Links of Lostpastremembered and Peach Jasmine Crepes

I read that in 12^th century Spain, Nachmanides, Rabbi and interpreter of the Kabbala (The Zohar),  explained the relevance of the number 7 by saying 7 is the number of the natural world  –– 7 days in a week, 7 notes on a scale, 7 directions.  There are 7 attributes of physicality (height, width, depth, top and bottom, front and back, left and right, plus connecting the other 6) – nothing exists in the physical world without these attributes… even a rainbow has 7 colors!  Never occurred to me that 7 was a special number.

Why am I so interested in 7???? The 7 LINKS MEME that’s going around is the reason.  My blog-pals, Trix and Lazaro tagged me for this so I thought I would give it a whirl.  The trick is to choose 7 "mosts" from your own blog: the most beautiful, the most overlooked, the most helpful, the most controversial, the most successful, the most popular, and the one you are most proud of –– 7 defining posts.  While I'm at it, I'd love to get David Solmonson at 12 Bottle Bar to have a go at his 7 mosts because I love his drinks, and Laura Kelly at Silk Road Gourmet because she's written about so many cool things!

This really put me into a spin.  I told Trix it was like picking your favorite child. The first thing I did was put myself on my favorites list so I could more easily look at 114 posts that I have done in the last 21 months (is there a better way to do this?).  114, can there be so many??

First Post

It has become a real personal voyage as I chart where I’ve been.  I see the evolution of the blog and the way it has moved from place to place, century to century.

Pumpion Pie 1st Picture that got on Tastespotting

I see how my photography has developed from pretty bad to a personal style that I am no longer embarrassed about (but still need to work on).

Hippocras

I see that my writing has gotten a little tighter and my research more on point.  There are a few easy quick posts that turned out well and some huge efforts that were, well, a bit long and convoluted.  With each I learn.

All and all, I’m grateful for the exercise and thank Trix and Lazaro for giving me the opportunity.  Why does this sound like some award’s speech???

The most beautiful, well, here comes that “pick your prettiest child moment” –– it’s tough and I will cheat and put in 3 that I love for different reasons.  One would be sea urchin pasta, I just love that picture for the color, the soft focus that feels vaguely marine and using that shell at the last minutes really made the photograph. It is also one of my most popular posts and one of the most delicious things I’ve made –– top 5. When I found a great supplier of uni –– that was when the dish started singing.  I could eat it every day. 

The other just might be the curried chicken from Olana… again the dish I used for it had so much to do with the way it looked.

The last would be the incredible eggs with asparagus, smoked salmon and Dutch Sauce that was a real moment in food porn and also incredibly good.  Dutch sauce with cream and elderflower vinegar instead of butter and lemon was incredibly good and ate as decadently as it looked!

The most overlooked? That would be my first Ambergris post.  Although the 2^nd ambergris post was only 2 weeks later, the title for that 2^nd one had chocolate in it and that was hugely popular.  I thought the ambergris post was so interesting… I for one knew so very little about it until I started researching. When I actually found I could get some from Ambergris Co. NZ, I was over the moon.  It is magical.

Sadly, it didn’t get a lot of visitors, too weird, I guess. And that’s a pity since it also had hot chocolate that was so good! I am also fond of the post because it introduced me to Mandy Aftel of Aftelier and all her spectacular essences which have made everything I make with them so incredibly good ( including the recipe for today).

The most helpful?  I don’t really do “how-to recipes”, that’s not my style or my audience.  Although most of my recipes aren’t killer difficult, some are.  I think I have 2 choices for this.  The first is grouse, because I had always wanted to make it and was afraid since I didn’t have a clue about how to best cook grouse.  I really asked around and researched a lot and found some great techniques that I use all the time now (frozen hazelnut oil under the skin, who knew?).  The result was one of the best things I ever stuck in my mouth.  My friends who shared the run-through bird felt the same way… they sucked every bit of flesh off the tiny bones and nearly licked the plate…and these are very proper guys!  

The other would probably be making real marshmallow from scratch.  I knew they once were made with real marshmallow root and wanted to see how it would be.  It took scads of research and dead ends and the first effort, although tasty, was more like marshmallow fluff.  As it turned out, it wasn’t a lost cause–– it was fabulous in hot chocolate!  I had trouble with gum tragacanth… there were no real instructions about how to use it.  Well, suffice to say all of my trials are listed and you can now make them if you so desire.  They are, as you would imagine, much more complexly flavored and the fluff was fabulous in hot chocolate!

The most controversial?  Dinner on Horseback.  

Why? It had nothing to do with the dish, which was simple trout and quite good.  It was about the event… I write about history too so food isn’t the only topic.  It was one of the only times I actually dumped a few comments (there are always one or 2 nutters once in a while that I ditch).  These were rather unpleasant comments about Billings being a pig,  asking why was I writing about such a disgusting display, etc.  Problem was, I’d contacted a grandson and just felt creepy about him reading that stuff so I took it out. 

Me personally, I had wanted to know more about The Dinner on Horseback since I first saw the picture as a teenager.  Thanks to the brilliance of fellow blogger, David Solmonson at 12 Bottle Bar and his awesome detective work, I finely found out what they ate… it had never been publicised, only hinted at.  David found it in a book on horses, of course!   And the reason that you never saw a copy of the menu was because it was on a silver horseshoe that was given to the guests… the menu David found was a copy of the original order for the dinner that was in the now defunct Sherry’s archives.  This trumped all issues I may have about celebrating conspicuous consumption.  And honestly, I write about food history… believe me when I say, the dinner on horseback is tame compared to monarchy breaking, treasury busting parties!!!

The most successful? Babette’s Feast.  I loved that movie, I really did.  And it took me a very long time to work up the courage to make the quail in puff pastry. I had no idea how to make quail and my last attempt at puff pastry had been a disaster.  For some reason the cooking gods were smiling on me when I made it and it all turned out perfectly and perfectly delicious.

The most popular? Kentucky Derby and Secretariat , hands down.  Of all the visitors to the blog, 1/3 have been there.  It had nothing to do with the food although Jenny Benedict's little cucumber sandwiches are awesome and so was her mayonnaise.  It had everything to do with Secretariat and the film coming out at just the right moment.

I was very proud of what I wrote since it came from the heart.  Watching Secretariat win Belmont was one of the greatest things I ever saw.  I never get tired of watching it.  I got 12,000 hits in one day as the movie came out which, well seems appropriate to Secretariat don’t you think?  No other post touches the record by a mile.  There was another spike when the DVD came out… love that horse.

The one you are most proud of?  There are 3, Hampton Court is the first.  I loved touring the palace with the cool kitchen historian, Marc Meltonville.  He shared incredible insights into the way the kitchen worked and what it took to feed a palace.

Picture of Chewetts at Hampton Court

It was thrilling and making little chewetts like the ones I saw at the palace was great fun.  I lost my fear of suet after I got some from my favorite beef guy.  Suet makes a very, very strong crust that really can stand on its own.  It was flaky and tasty, who knew?

The visit to Olana  was a fortunate one because I took a chance and wrote to the historian of the house and got a treasure of the recipes that were eaten there… even what cookbooks were on the shelves.  It was terribly exciting and I think the post gave you a good feeling of who Church was and how he ate, and the chicken was delicious and beautiful!

I was proud of Twain  because I did so many dishes to celebrate my 1^st year blogversary… it was a lot of work, research and too many pictures.  That said, I was proud of the result and the dishes were delicious.  It also gave me a real sense of the meal that was eaten.  I used old dishes, silver and my 1870 lace tablecloth that is one of my favorite things.

After reading through my walk down memory lane, I can't leave without sharing a recipe, can I? It's a dessert I made the other day from the spectacular peaches I had.  It takes no time at all to do and the result is... sensational. You can make them low calorie or go for the buttery creamy version.  Great peaches need only be warmed for a minute.  You will love them without the jasmine, but with it... well, they are sinful.  It would also be great with pears or berries, although for the berries I would use Aftelier Rose Essence.

Hazelnut Crepes with Jasmine Peaches for 2-3

1/3 c milk

1 egg

1/4 c  flour (3 T white and 1 T whole wheat is best)

1 T ground hazelnuts (or pecans or almonds)

1/8 t salt

1 t hazelnut oil

butter or hazelnut oil for pan

2 peaches, skinned and sliced

1 T butter or hazelnut oil

2-4 T maple syrup

2-3 drops of Aftelier Jasmine essence(it's best to taste

1/2 cup yogurt or lightly whipped cream if you'd like
mint or pennyroyal for garnish

Throw the milk, eggs, flour, hazelnuts and salt into the blender and let ‘er rip for a minute or 2.  Strain the mixture through a fine sieve, rubbing on the solids then dump the residue into the mix–– this really helps to blend it.  Stir it all together again and make sure you get a good mix with each crepe (ie, don't just spoon from the top... you'll miss the nutty goodness!).  This can be made in advance.

Coat your pan with butter or oil…be especially generous.

Use 1/4 to 1/3 cup of batter per crepe, pour in the pan, swirl and let set for a minute then flip and remove,
Keep warm.


Melt the butter in the pan,  toss the peaches in the pan and warm for a moment... if they are really good you shouldn't cook them.  Add the syrup and jasmine.


Fold each crepe into quarters and fling back the topmost flap.  Put your peaches in and pour the sauce over all.


Garnish with pennyroyal (again a reminder, do not eat too much pennyroyal, especially if you are pregnant) or mint.  Serve with cream or yogurt.

Thanks to Gollum for hosting Foodie Friday

Last, I want to send you over to my friend Deborah Chud from A Doctor's Kitchen.  She has a bang up new app for your Iphone or Ipad called Trufflehead.  Here you can get wonderful, healthful recipes and even shopping lists to send out when you've assigned a shopper for a meal (is that a great idea or what?).


The app is HERE on ITUNES or you can visit the Trufflehead Website HERE.  You can get a preview of how it all works on YouTube HERE.  You will be ever so happy you did.  There are even some Lostpastremembered recipes on it.  Since I do a lot of rich food for the blog... I love Deborah's recipes for the rest of my week.  They are smart and delicious!  


To promote it, she will giveaway 20 apps here... first come first serve... you need an Iphone or Ipad to make it work!  Just say you would like one in the comments, email me with your email address and I'll send you the info.  Good Luck!



Thanks for featuring my crepes on the kitchn

Elinor Fettiplace, Walter Raleigh’s Rose Sweet Potatoes and an Excellent Negus

Elizabeth I  (1533-1603), by Nicolas Hilliard, 1592

Elinor Fettiplace née Poole (1570-1647) was born 12 years into the reign of Elizabeth the 1^st. What the Poole family did well was arrange advantageous marriages that increased their land and fortunes, took positions that had hefty benefits and endeared themselves to important members of the nobility who responded generously to their ministrations.  These talents took them very far very fast.

So far that Elinor’s grandfather, Sir Giles Poole (the Patriarch at the time) had his heart set on creating a mansion to rival his Thynne relations at Longleat (where he had been a retainer 30 years before) as befitting his station in the world but died before it could be finished. Sir Giles did well by his granddaughter, Elinor, leaving a lusty dowry for her marriage to Richard Fettiplace in 1589.  The Fettiplaces had probably been selected for their ancient pedigree (at least back to William the Conquerer in the 11^th century) and large land holdings but they had fallen onto hard times in the current generation.  The Pooles made life a little easier for them as part of the marriage agreement in exchange for some acreage.

Appleton Manor, Oxfordshire 

Appleton Manor Interior

 Elinor and her husband moved to one of his family holdings, a Norman Manor house at Appleton where she raised 5 children and lived with an extended family.  Her husband Richard was knighted through her family connections in 1601 (possibly as a result of a meeting with Queen Elizabeth at an enormous wedding celebration for Henry Somerset, Lord Herbert in 1600). 

Fettiplace Family Wall Tomb at Swinbrook’s 800 year-old Church of Saint Mary

In 1604, Elinor Fettiplace put together a small leather-bound book of recipes, cures and advice that was discovered nearly 400 years later by a descendant, playwright John Spurling and was brought to life in a book by his wife Hilary -- herself a theatre critic, editor and author. Spurling’s book was aptly named Elinor Fettiplace's Recipe Book .

 

Spurling found Elinor’s work inspirational and full of great recipes.  She did a lot of legwork to remake the old recipes while still providing the originals so reinterpretation was possible (which I am thankful for.)  In the intervening 20-odd years since the book was published, many ingredients that were impossible to find then are now available so the recipes can be made as written (still no musk though!).

Fettiplace’s work was one of the first books of its kind that we know of, handwritten by a very literate, well-to-do woman (well actually for her… a secretary most likely did the writing).  She outlived 2 husbands and lived to be nearly 80… a fine old age for the time.

           Sir Walter Raleigh 1554-1618

Many of the recipes came from powerful friends and famous neighbors like Sir Walter Raleigh (she was related to his brother, Carew Raleigh) who contributed some unusual recipes from wondrous new produce obtained on his forays to the New World in 1595 and again in 1616.  Aside from tobacco water and syrup, he also shared recipes for sweet potatoes that were brand new imports.

The sweet potato member of the Convolvulaceae family (related to morning glory, not the potato) was domesticated in South America at least 5000 years ago.

Sweet Potato

 John Hawkins 1532-95

John Hawkins (ship builder and architect of the Elizabethan navy that triumphed over the much larger Spanish Armada in 1588) may have brought the sweet potato to England in 1565, but Elinor’s neighbor, Walter Raleigh, grew them after his visit to the new world in 1595.  I would imagine that the sweet potato was as rare as a white Italian truffle when Elinor wrote her recipe book in 1604.  Her recipe for the prized vegetable with rose and ambergris doesn’t seem so extravagant given the newness and scarcity of the New World vegetable.  The combination is inspirational with the voluptuous texture of the sweet potato -- the rose perfumed syrup transforms the lowly potato completely by treating it like a fine preserved fruit.

Sweet Potatoes with Rose Syrup and Ambergris

1 pound sweet potatoes

1 pound sugar

1 c water (1/2 cup if using rose water)

2 drops Aftelier rose essence or ½ c rosewater

juice of 3 oranges

a pea sized piece of  ambergris, grated or 1 t vanilla

Dried Rose Buds for garnish (optional)

Boil or bake the potatoes till cooked but not mushy.  Remove the skin and then slice.

Heat the sugar with the water and rose until liquefied over a low heat, add the orange juice and simmer for 10 minutes.  Skim and add the sweet potatoes and heat over a low flame for 20 min.  Remove the potatoes.  Put the hot liquid into the dish you are using to store/serve them in and add the rose essence or rose water.  It is best done the day before so the flavors meld.  Serve by warming the mixture (especially the syrup) and grate the ambergris over them (or add the vanilla).

“Boile your roots in faire water until they bee somewhat tender then pill of the skinne, then make your syrupe, weying to every pound of roots a pound of sugar and a quarter of a pint of faire water, & as much of rose water, & the juice of three or fowre oranges, then boile the syrupe, & boile them till they bee throughlie soaked in the syrupe, before you take it from the fire, put in a little musk and amber greece.”

I love ambergris and wanted to also use it for a special holiday celebration drink after being inspired by Meriton Latroon’s Punch by historical mixologist, David Wondrich in the NYT’s  and in his new book, Punch: The Delights (and Dangers) of the Flowing Bowl.

Chest of Books  says “Punch is of course from the Hindustani [character] signifying 5, from its five original ingredients, to wit, aqua vitae, rose water, sugar, arrack, and citron juice”, but the definition has widened a good deal in the passing years.  I was noodling around in one of my favorite 19^th century drink books, Cooling Cups and Dainty Drinks by William Terrington and found a recipe for special version of Negus… a warm port drink with ambergris that fit the bill perfectly and isn’t far from the spirit of the spiced wine Hippocras  popular in England for hundreds of years. I think it would have pleased Elinor. 

My ambergris is from Ambergris Co. NZ , a fine reputable source of found ambergris ( I wrote about it HERE).  It is such a haunting scent.  I had wished I could wear it as a perfume as well as using it for cooking and drinking and EUREKA—now they are making the real deal in an ambergris perfume   … a dream come true for Christmas (hint hint)!  Added to the glorious scent of an old port… well, this is a special occasion drink and if you don’t know about great vintage port… you are missing something wondrous. 

My favorite port quote came from a 1932 book by H. Warner Allen called The Romance of Wine that I’ve had since college.  He reflected on the space left at the top of a port bottle by saying “ I have liked to fancy that the extra air space is given to vintage port rather as a small supply of food was provided for the guilty Vestal Virgin when she was being buried alive.  Condemned to grow up in the most difficult of conditions with no external aid, the wine is given a little extra air to encourage it in its desperate strivings towards perfection…” on its journey to become what wine connoisseur Prof. Saintsbury called “our noblest legacy”.  Come on, you have to admit, that is quite an image.  He also says that an old port tastes of “molten gold and soft purples of antique tapestry”… with that reflection’s purple prose , I concur.

Negus is a wine punch, named after Col. Francis Negus who invented it in the early part of the 18^th century during the reign of Queen Anne. The drink flows all around English literature from Jane Austen to the Bronte sisters to Dickens and in modern times with Patrick O’Brian and his Aubrey novels.  It was usually port wine with sugar rubbed on lemon peel, lemon juice and nutmeg -- warming and popular for 100 or so years on both sides of the Atlantic.  It often had a good deal more water in it than wine and by the mid-19^th century was considered a good drink for children.  In this version it’s a luxurious drink with a fine port made even more elegant with the sweet breath of ambergris tossed on its steaming wine-dark waters.

 

Excellent Negus for 4, based on a recipe from Cooling Cups

1 c port (I used a 1983 Warre Port from The Rare Wine Company but an LBV or good ruby will work, however, the better the port the better the drink )

1/3 to 1 c of water (your choice and it depends on the port used--I liked much less water)

juice  and the grated  peel of  a ¼ lemon

pinch of grated nutmeg

sugar to taste ( I used 4 t)

1 pea sized piece of ambergris (Ambergris Co. NZ) or 2 drops of vanilla

Heat the liquids and add all the lemon and peel, nutmeg and sugar and pour in a glass (I preferred it with no lemon juice... just the peel).

Grate the ambergris over each serving while still hot… this releases the oils in the ambergris, it is not as effective when it cools.  Then, inhale… the scent is magical. Ambergris is something you smell more than taste.  Breathe deeply of the warm scented steam before you taste.

PS.  Last weekend I went to a fabulous series of lectures and demonstrations at the Astor Center in NYC in a series called The Alchemy of Taste and Smell with such food luminaries as Harold McGee, Johnny Iuzzini, David Chang (Momofuku) Wylie DuFresne, David Patterson and master mixologist Audrey Saunders of Pegu Club.  It was a celebration of the art of Mandy Aftel of Aftelier who makes the divine chef essences I so love to use.  They have changed the way I think about food and are doing the same thing for chefs and drink masters all over the world. She has reestablished the connection between the perfumer’s art and cooking… a connection that existed for millennia (see Cosimo de Medici’s apothecary Francesco Redi who created Jasmine Chocolate HERE ) . Do try some of her amazing scents… they will rock your world and your cooking for the holidays!

Aftelier

Ambergris Co. NZ

AND, the beautiful Lorraine at Not Quite Nigella, was kind enough to mention this blog  in an Australian magazine, My Look Book … how cool is that… many thanks… and buy  her book when it comes out… it’s sure to be a gas.

Thanks to Gollum for hosting Foodie Friday!

Cosimo de Medici's Divine Jasmine Chocolate

Did you ever see a fairytale of a film called Chocolat ? In it, the luminous Juliette Binoche plays a mysterious woman who owns a chocolate shop.



Its confections have deliciously magical properties and can awaken desire, unlock hidden yearnings, or instill courage depending on the needs of the customer. I cannot promise such outcomes with this Jasmine Chocolate, nor can I promise Johnny Depp will come swaggering through your door but I can tell you:

this chocolate is as close to it as you can get to romance in a cup, and you have time to get all the goodies you need to make it for Valentine’s Day!



Jasmine chocolate did not spring from a romantic icon like Binoche. It started with a rather porcine Cosimo III de' Medici (1642-1723), who became Grand Duke of Tuscany in 1670. He was a weak ruler with at least one strength: an unwavering determination to put to an end to Spain's supremacy in making chocolate.


Portrait 1660 Justus Sustermans

Indeed, the Spaniards managed to turn the New World’s bitter potion into a delicious sweet drink. Not to be outdone, the Grand Duke told his court scientists to develop new and more exciting recipes in his food laboratories.

It was there that Francesco Redi, a scientist, poet, physician and apothecary to Cosimo created this renowned jasmine chocolate drink.

"Cosimo turned his love for chocolate into a political tool". As Redi wrote in his letter, seen at an exhibition at the Civic Museum of Monsummano Terme in winter 2006 Its curator, Ida Fontana said "he counterposed to the Spanish perfection Florence's exquisite gentleness."


Portrait by Baldassare Franceschini

She continued, "Offered only to very important guests, the jasmine chocolate soon became the most sought-after drink at the European courts..." but the recipe remained a state secret until the Medici dynasty ended with the death of Cosimo's son Gian Gastone (a glutton who rarely left his filthy bed-a sad ending to a great family).


1764 Sevres Chocolate Cup

"At that time, chocolate was taken almost boiling and sipped very slowly from small [bowl-like] cups called "chicchere." Not one, but two napkins had to be used in the drinking ritual"said Fontana.

It took 12 days for the Grand Duke to make jasmine chocolate. "It wasn't an infusion, neither was it water flavored with jasmine. Making jasmine chocolate wasn't a simple preparation of food, it was an operation of botanical-gastronomical engineering," said Danielo Vestri, a chocolate maker who has reproduced the Medici recipe.


1725 Meissen Chocolate cup

"Layers of fresh jasmine flowers and chocolate were put one over the other. The process had to be repeated every 24 hours for 12 days. In this way, the jasmine petals provided the cocoa dough with a flavor never tasted before" Fontana revealed - not unlike the classic enfleurage method of capturing scent with odorless fat, straining and replacing the flowers in the fat till the perfect strength of enfleurage pomade is attained.

"It is simply delicious. And it is easy to digest: the cocoa dough was melted in water, not in milk. The Medici did not only influence the arts, but also chocolate. People at my shop go crazy for jasmine chocolate," Vestri said.

My version of the Medici chocolate formula uses fabled ambergris from Ambergris Co., NZ(which I wrote about here) and Jasmine Absolute (absolute being a highly concentrated plant extract) from Mandy Aftel at Aftelier Perfumes. She uses organic and wild-crafted sources and what she comes up with captures the heart and soul of jasmine in a bottle… the tiniest drop of which perfumes the cup. If you want to be adventurous you could also try her amazing Rose Absolute (which puts rosewater to shame) in your chocolate. It took her years to find the perfect rose and she did… from a small grower around Istanbul. Although she makes perfumes she also has an incredible selection of Chef Absolutes and Essential oils that can add clear new notes to your food and has written about using them in food in a book called Aroma: The Magic of Essential Oils in Foods and Fragrance.

Jasmine chocolate

6 ounces water, boiling

1 oz 100% chocolate, shaved (around a ¼ c)

1 ½ t sugar or honey

¼ tsp vanilla

1 slight drop of jasmine absolute

Green pea size piece of ambergris

To the boiling water add the shaved chocolate and stir till incorporated. Mash the ambergris into the sugar/honey and add to the chocolate. Stir to blend. If you have a cappuccino maker give it a minute with the steamer, then store, covered on the counter overnight. It will have developed a velvet texture that you may want to drink room temperature. If not, give it another go with the steamer or heat in a double boiler gently and whisk into a foam. Add one tiny drop of jasmine to the chocolate. Take care to gather up the ambergris that can deposit waxy specks that can cling to cups and pan as you pour the chocolate into two small espresso cups or one large. FYI: 1 small cup is only 82 calories, the whole recipe is 164 calories!

Or you could….

Make the above recipe. Add 4T heavy cream and 4T Armagnac or Cognac plus an extra 1 t of sugar or honey. Serve in cups or stemmed glasses.



For those of you with jasmine curling around your veranda and a supply of cocoa beans, here’s the original recipe:

Cosimo de Medici Chocolate

10 librae of roasted cocoa, cleaned and coarsely minced (1 libra = 12 oz.)


fresh jasmine petals 


8 librae white sugar

3 ounces vanilla flowers 


6 ounces cinnamon 


2 scruples (7.76 grams) ambergris

Put layers of cocoa and jasmine flowers in a box, one layer over the other. Let it rest for 24 hours, then change the jasmine flowers with fresh ones. Repeat 12 times. Add the other ingredients and combine them on a warmed marble surface until the chocolate dough forms.


18th c Mexican Cocoa Cup

If you would like to see how the “dough” was formed with the cocoa beans and a rolling pin, watch this video from Colonial Williamsburg:








Chocolate “Dough” from Art & Mystery of Food