Peach Salad from the Transylvanian cookbook -- Historical Upgrade

In the previous post I tried the peach salad from this cookbook:

The Prince of Transylvania’s court cookbook 
From the 16th century 
THE SCIENCE OF COOKING

You can read about it here.

Afterwards I felt strongly that this would make a great dessert, so I gave it a try!

I followed the recipe closely and then made these changes:

     I added an Irish cheddar that had been aged two years.

     The peach slices were cut in advance, so I dipped each slice in the wine.  The idea was to resist
     browning.

     I drizzled the wine/jam mixture over the peach slices.

     I put in more almonds.

     I left out the peach pit.

The quantities were about the same as when I made it the first time, except there were more bread slices.  I used one peach, which weighed about 1/2 pound.  That is what fit well on the platter.

This was dessert for four people, so I pulled out my white platter and arranged the salad as decoratively as I could.  Each person had a plate and a fork, so they could take what they wanted from the platter.  We used our fingers for the bread and cheese, and the fork for the peach slices.

The Verdict

The colors were beautiful!



Cheddar cheese was the right pairing with the fruit, jam, and wine flavors.  I was particularly happy the aged cheddar had that crystalline crunch I love so much.

It was easy to put together, the dipping-in-wine technique worked well for the peach slices, the presentation was dramatic, and the flavors were excellent.



I felt it was the right amount for a dessert for four people after a comfortable and not heavy meal, especially because it was a spicy meal.

It was well-received by all who tried it.  Success!!!!!

A Peach Salad -- from the Transylvanian cookbook

My friend G offers an English translation of a 16th century cookbook from Transylvania, found here:

The Prince of Transylvania’s court cookbook 
From the 16th century 
THE SCIENCE OF COOKING

I am enjoying exploring this book and, considering lovely peaches are in season, today I decided to make recipe number 806 on page 155: 

(806) Salad from peach. 

Peel some peaches, slice the seeds into one so they will get stuck together next to each other, there should be one seed next to each peach, they sometimes add peeled almonds or walnuts instead; put these into one plate, add some raisins and bread roll pieces dipped into wine and jam. 

This took some thinking:  How should the sliced peach look on the plate along with the seed or nuts?  What kind of raisins?  What kind of bread rolls?  What flavor jam?  And what exactly do they mean by "dipped into wine and jam"? 

My longest thinking time went into the idea of the bread dipped into wine and jam.  Should the bread be toasted or slightly dried?  Do I dip it into the wine first and then dip it into the jam?  Or are some pieces dipped in wine and others in jam? 

My decisions culminated in this redaction:

2 medium or one large peach (mine was about 1/2 pound)
2 tablespoons golden raisins
2 tablespoons raspberry jam or fruit spread
1-2 tablespoons quality white wine (to taste)
6 - 1/2 inch wide slices of a baguette that is about 1 to 2 inches in diameter
Optional:  several almonds or walnuts, shelled

Preparation for two: 

Mix the jam and the wine together in a small bowl.  The result should be thinner than the jam that came out of the jar, but not too thin.  

Slice the peach into wedges.  I didn't peel the peach because I like the peel.  Thin wedges are better than thick ones as they lie better on the plate.  

Arrange the slices decoratively on the plates.  I used 1/2 peach per person.  For one half I left a slice attached to the pit, and on the other I placed several almonds to play the part of the pit.

Sprinkle the raisins over the peach slices, half per plate.  

Dip the bread slices into the jam-wine mixture.  I didn't cover them because I wanted the red-white contrast on the plate.  Place the bread on the plates neatly by the peach slices, three slices per plate.

Serve immediately.

My Notes

The listed quantities are estimations, so change it around as you like.

I stirred the wine and jam well, so that the jam chunks broke down.





The Verdict

I served it with grilled chicken and grilled corn, as a salad course before the rest of the food.

This one has the pit.

The slices were spread in an arc on the plate and the bread tucked into the plate to finish the arc. 

I liked the visual effect of the orange peach flesh with red edges against the white bread with the red wine/jam mixture.  I wondered if the raisins were going to make it too sweet. 

As it turned out, the raisins were a wonderful complement to the peach:  I ate a piece of peach with a raisin or two with it, and the flavor was of peach with a surprising, almost spicy flavor from the raisins.  The bread with the wine/jam mixture was excellent by itself, but when I took a bite of it and followed it with a bite of peach, I got a complex flavor burst of sweet and tart, with floral hints.  The bread was chewy enough to make eating the whole salad more interesting than just eating a piece of peach.

So different combinations of the offered flavors gave different sensations, making eating an adventure of sorts. 

This is the one with nuts instead of the pit.

The very large peach, even divided up between two people, was a lot of food.  I probably could have made it a salad for three or four people.  It was tasty and it was filling.

After we ate the salad, we cut more bread and finished off the wine/jam mixture that was still in the bowl.  Mmmmmm!

So success!  But in all honesty, I would really rather serve this as a dessert.  I image the same layout with the peaches, raisins, and bread.  But I would take the rest of the wine/jam mixture and drizzle a line over the peaches, then sprinkle on a few chopped almonds.  I might even serve a little bit of mild cheese along with it.

If I had to make this in advance, I would save cutting and dipping the bread until just before serving.  I would also briefly dip the peach slices into some white wine to keep them from turning brown. 

I am still not sure why we were advised to serve the slices with the pit or with nuts to look like the pit.  It didn't seem to stand out as a garnish and I couldn't figure out a more interesting way to display the peach slices with the pit.  Perhaps someone will come up with a good idea for it.

Rotkohl mit Ӓpfeln -- Red Cabbage with Apples (Germany)

I was in a Germany mood today and decided to cook up the red cabbage sitting in my refrigerator.  I think it would go well with some grilled bratwurst and quality mustard, don't you?  I turned to my 1969 edition of Recipes:  The Cooking of Germany, published by Time-Life in their "Foods of the World" series.

No ISBN listed

On page 63, I found what I was looking for:

Rotkohl mit Ӓpfeln -- Red Cabbage with Apples

To serve 4 to 6

A 2- to 2 1/2- pound red cabbage
2/3 cup red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons lard or bacon fat
2 medium-sized cooking apples, peeled, cored and cut into 1/8-inch thick wedges
1/2 cup finely chopped onions
1 whole onion, peeled and pierced with 2 whole cloves
1 small bay leaf
5 cups boiling water
3 tablespoons dry red wine
3 tablespoons red currant jelly (optional)

I like the color variety.

Wash the head of cabbage under cold running water, remove the tough outer leaves, and cut the cabbage into quarters.  To shred the cabbage, cut out the core and slice the quarters crosswise into 1/8-inch-wide strips.

Drop the cabbage into a large mixing bowl, sprinkle it with the vinegar, sugar, and salt, then toss the shreds about with a spoon to coat them evenly with the mixture.  In a heavy 4- to 5-quart casserole, melt the lard or bacon fat over moderate heat.  Add the apples and chopped onions and cook, stirring frequently, for 5 minutes or until the apples are lightly browned.  Add the cabbage, the whole onion with cloves, and the bay leaf; stir thoroughly and pour in the boiling water.  Bring to a boil over high heat, stirring occasionally, and reduce the heat to its lowest possible point.  Cover and simmer for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, or until the cabbage is tender.  Check from time to time to make sure that the cabbage is moist.  If it seems dry, add a tablespoon of boiling water.  When the cabbage is done, there should be almost no liquid left in the casserole.  Just before serving remove the onion and bay leaf, and stir in the wine and the currant jelly.  Taste for seasoning, then transfer the entire contents of the casserole to a heated platter or bowl and serve.

My Notes

I had everything but the lard/bacon fat, so I used olive oil.  The optional jelly was out, too.

Shredding the cabbage by following their directions worked well.

Cabbage with vinegar, salt, and sugar.  Tossed.

The whole onion was bigger than what I thought would be needed, but it was what I could get.  It seemed to be okay at the end.

Everything in the pot, ready to be simmered.

After two hours of simmering, 30 minutes of that with the lid off, there was still a lot of liquid left in the pan.  So I scooped out the cabbage and reduced the liquid to almost nothing.  This way I think I would still capture the flavors in the liquid without overcooking the cabbage.

After simmering.  Still very wet.

The Verdict

I reduced the liquid to about 1 cup and poured it over the cabbage in a bowl.  It was still too wet, at least according to the recipe's description.  But I didn't want to strain it out, so I added the red wine and proceeded from there.

Strained a bit before placed in this serving bowl

I served it with grilled sausages.  The taste was excellent:  slightly sweet with an acid bite.  I couldn't taste the apples or onions directly but I think it benefited from them being there.  The cabbage was very tender but not falling apart or slimy.  I liked it hot and later, cold.  Each time I served it, I used a slotted spoon to reduce the amount of liquid, and I placed it in individual bowls.

It made a lot and I have had it for several meals.  It was a nice accompaniment with roasted chicken and also roast beef.  What I think I like most is that it is sweet but not cloyingly so.  A good side dish to perk up the meat!

Success!