Monthly Archives: November 2012

A Puff Paste Recipe (with a secret confession)

Our third video series, “18th Century Cooking with Jas. Townsend & Son,” is embarking on a closer look at the three more common types of pastry crusts used in 18th century cookery: the standing crust, the puff paste, and the … Continue reading

Posted in Baking, Ingredients, Pies, Recipe, Video | Tagged , , , , , | 15 Comments

Read Twice, Bake Once.

When it comes to interpreting 18th century cookbooks, sometimes it pays to go with your instinct when it tells you a recipe may be inaccurate. Take for instance this recipe from the book “The Universal Cook” by Francis Collingwood and … Continue reading

Posted in Baking, Ingredients, Pies, Recipe, Spices | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

A Standing Crust Recipe

The standing crust was probably the oldest form of pastry in English cooking. While it really wasn’t intended to be consumed, it was an ingenious culinary invention designed to serve as a baking dish, a storage dish, and a serving … Continue reading

Posted in Pies, Recipe | 7 Comments

Spices in the 18th Century English Kitchen

Proper seasoning can make all the difference between a bland chunk of meat and a course fit for royalty. We decided to dig through a collection of 18th and early 19th century cookbooks to see which spices were mentioned. We … Continue reading

Posted in Baking | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments