17th Century Cookbooks

17th Century Cookbooks
Transcriptions taken from Manuscripts held at the Wellcome Library for the History of Medicine
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To Make Green Geneva Pies

marzipan

"Take two good handfuls of spinach a handful of mint, & chop well all together, & press the water out, then take three ounces of grated parmesan, mix it with the chopped herbs, put on the paste the thickness of a finger, then take half a pound of cheese of new cream, & temper it well with three raw eggs, half a sopine of olive oil, a little pepper, & ginger, & do it well all together, & take a spoon, & take white cheese, cast upon the herbs by spoon, three fingers the one behind[?] the other, & make the cover very delicate, that the cover will find little holes with a finger, cast again a little olive oil thereon, & put it to cook like the others"
Ouverture de Cuisine, Lancelot de Casteau, Liege, 1604 (English Translation)

spacer notes

The cheese used was a fresh cheese made from yoghurt which was good but a cheese such as marscapone would probably be more correct as it is made from fresh cream.

The pies are equally good without the mint.

The pies in the picture were test pies (to test the above variation of the filling) so care was not taken to create the delicate pricked crust as mentioned in the recipe. To note: this did not seem to effect the contents.

spacer Instruction

  • Take 2 cups of steamed spinach (if not cooked to a mush, it should only take about 4 cups raw) and add to this about 1/2 to 1 cup (according to taste) of fresh mint, then chop it up very well and drain, pressing all the water out.
  • Add 3 ounces of grated parmesan cheese and mix.
  • In a seperate bowl, combine 1/2 pound of fresh soft cheese, 3 eggs and a quarter measure of olive oil (wasn't sure what a sopine was but this measurement worked well). Mix into this, pepper and ginger to taste (a teaspoon is enough to season but some may want more).
  • Fill a pastry lined pan with the spinach mixture so that it is at least 3/4 inch thick on the bottom. Then take the cheese mixture and cover over it is about 1 1/2 inches higher.
  • Roll out a thin paste and cover the pie, then prick it over to make small holes in the cover. Cast a little bit of olive oil over the top and bake in a hot over (375-400F) until it is done (lightly golden).


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