Tea at Trianon: A History of the Mince Pie

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Wednesday, December 6, 2023

A History of the Mince Pie

Medieval recipe

From English Heritage:

Today there’s nothing remotely savoury about the mince pie. But this wasn’t always the case. Like so many dishes, the mince pie has evolved over the centuries. We recognise them as the quintessential Christmas confection, packed with citrussy dried fruit plumped with brandy, spiked with spices and wrapped in crumbly pastry. However, long before Nigella introduced salted caramel to the nation, the English had a fascination for combining the sweet with the savoury.

Our mince pies undoubtedly have medieval origins, although we would not immediately recognise them. Pie crusts were known as coffins, and used as a vessel to cook delicate foods or house pre-boiled meat fillings. Pastry was little more than flour mixed with water to form a mouldable dough. It was designed to be discarded once the contents of the pie had been eaten, although perhaps the poor may have eaten the cast offs.

Pies were generally large as they needed to serve several people. However, smaller pies known as chewets (possibly so called because the pinched tops resembled small cabbages or chouettes) were also available. Many medieval recipes combine sweet and savoury ingredients, and pies were no exception. Desserts as we know them didn’t really exist, so it was perfectly acceptable to use sweet ingredients in meat dishes.

Sweetness came courtesy of honey or dried fruits as sugar was not widely available. Along with spices such as saffron and ginger, dried fruits such as figs and dates were the preserve of the wealthy as they had to be imported into the country. Liberally using spices in your food was one way to show your peers just how much money you had. (Read more.)