mediumaevum:Marzipan most likely originates from the Orient, probably from present-day Iran and date
mediumaevum:Marzipan most likely originates from the Orient, probably from present-day Iran and dates from at least the 6th or 7th century AD, but it is possibly much older. Marzipan was introduced to Europe during the crusades, or, earlier, through Arab traders especially in present-day Spain and Sicily.In Middle Ages marzipan was known in large areas of Europe, but it was considered an expensive luxury, due to the high sugar content. Sugar was not yet widely available. Marzipan was also considered a medicine and was thus mainly produced by pharmacists. [x]And this is the earliest original recipe I could find:To make Marzipan. Take almonds appointed as above, & flatten the paste as for making a tart, then form the marzipan as fancy as you want, then take sifted sugar & mix with rose water, & beat it together that it is like a thick batter, cast there a little on the marzipan, & flatten with a well held knife until the marzipan is all covered, then put it into the oven on paper: when you see that it boils thereon & that it does like ice, tear apart from the oven, when it doesn’t boil, & sprinkle on nutmeg: if you want it golden, make it so.-Ouverture de Cuisine, 1604 [x]Gotta love how bossy it is.Image [x]The thing about mediaeval marzipan was that if it was eaten as a food rather than a medicine, its purpose was to display the wealth of the person holding the feast.“Look, I can afford to import almonds and sugar, and have enough spare to mash them together and serve it as a sweet. I’m so fancy.”Of course, so didn’t stop there. The ‘if you want it golden’ actually refers to real gold. That’s right, they’d cover their marzipan in gold leaf to show just how excessively rich they were. If they were feeling a bit cheap they’d use saffron instead. Sometimes both. Bling-food was the way to go. -- source link
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