The Forme of Cury | Page 8

[106],
is a warm cardiac and cephalic. It is used in powder, 30. 47. and was
the chief ingredient in _galentine_, which, I think, took its name from
it.
Pepper. It appears from Pliny that this pungent, warm seasoning, so
much in esteem at Rome [107], came from the East Indies [108], and,
as we may suppose, by way of Alexandria. We obtained it no doubt, in
the 14th century, from the same quarter, though not exactly by the same
route, but by Venice or Genoa. It is used both whole, No. 35, and in
powder, No. 83. And long-pepper occurs, if we read the place rightly,
in No. 191.
Ginger, gyngyn. 64. 136. alibi. Powder is used, 17. 20. alibi. and
Rabelais IV. c. 59. the white powder, 131. and it is the name of a mess,
139. quære whether gyngyn is not misread for _gyngyr_, for see Junii
Etym. The Romans had their ginger from Troglodytica [109].
Cubebs, 64. 121. are a warm spicy grain from the east.
Grains of Paradice, or _de parys_, 137. [110] are the greater
cardamoms.
Noix muscadez, 191. nutmegs.
The caraway is once mentioned, No. 53. and was an exotic from
_Caria_, whence, according to Mr. Lye, it took its name: 'sunt semina,
inquit, carri vel _carrei_, sic dicti a Caria, ubi copiosissimè nascitur
[111].'
Powder-douce, which occurs so often, has been thought by some, who
have just peeped into our Roll, to be the same as sugar, and only a
different name for it; but they are plainly mistaken, as is evident from

47. 51. 164. 165. where they are mentioned together as different things.
In short, I take powder-douce to be either powder of galyngal, for see
Editor's MS II. 20. 24, or a compound made of sundry aromatic spices
ground or beaten small, and kept always ready at hand in some proper
receptacle. It is otherwise termed _good powders_, 83. 130. and in
Editor's MS 17. 37. 38 [112]. or powder simply, No. 169, 170. _White
powder-douce_ occurs No. 51, which seems to be the same as
blanch-powder, 132. 193. called _blaynshe powder_, and bought ready
prepared, in Northumb. Book, p. 19. It is sometimes used with
powder-fort, 38. 156. for which see the next and last article.
Powder-fort, 10. 11. seems to be a mixture likewise of the warmer
spices, pepper, ginger, &c. pulverized: hence we have _powder-fort of
gynger, other of canel_, 14. It is called _strong powder_, 22. and
perhaps may sometimes be intended by good powders. If you will
suppose it to be kept ready prepared by the vender, it may be the
_powder-marchant_, 113. 118. found joined in two places with powder-
douce. This Speght says is what gingerbread is made of; but Skinner
disapproves this explanation, yet, says Mr. Urry, gives none of his own.
After thus travelling through the most material and most used
ingredients, the spykenard de spayn occurring only once, I shall beg
leave to offer a few words on the nature, and in favour of the present
publication, and the method employed in the prosecution of it.
[Illustration: Take þe chese and of flessh of capouns, or of hennes &
hakke smal and grynde hem smale inn a morter, take mylke of
almandes with þe broth of freysh beef. oþer freysh flessh, & put the
flessh in þe mylke oþer in the broth and set hem to þe fyre, & alye hem
with flour of ryse, or gastbon, or amydoun as chargeaunt as þe blank
desire, & with zolks of ayren and safroun for to make hit zelow, and
when it is dressit in dysshes with blank desires; styk aboue clowes de
gilofre, & strawe powdour of galyugale above, and serue it forth.]
The common language of the _formulæ_, though old and obsolete, as
naturally may be expected from the age of the MS, has no other
difficulty in it but what may easily be overcome by a small degree of
practice and application [113]: however, for the further illustration of

this matter, and the satisfaction of the curious, a fac simile of one of the
recipes is represented in the annexed plate. If here and there a hard and
uncouth term or expression may occur, so as to stop or embarrass the
less expert, pains have been taken to explain them, either in the
annotations under the text, or in the Index and Glossary, for we have
given it both titles, as intending it should answer the purpose of both
[114]. Now in forming this alphabet, as it would have been an endless
thing to have recourse to all our glossaries, now so numerous, we have
confined ourselves, except perhaps in some few instances, in which the
authorities are always mentioned, to certain contemporary writers, such
as the Editor's MS, of