Recipes from the Wagstaff Miscellany - 107 Bastons

Recipes from the Wagstaff Miscellany (Beinecke MS 163)

This manuscript is dated about 1460.

The 200 (approx.) recipes in the Wagstaff miscellany are on pages 56r through 76v.

Images of the original manuscript are freely available on the Yale University Library website.

I have done my best to provide an accurate, but readable transcription. Common abbreviations have been expanded, the letters thorn and yogh have been replaced with their modern equivalents, and some minor punctuation has been added.

Copyright © 2014 by Daniel Myers, MedievalCookery.com

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107. Bastons
Make a stif bature of yolkes of eyron & paryd floure & sigure a grete dele & a lytyll yest of new ale set hit by the fyre or els in a pot boylyng that hit may take a lytyl hete when hit ys rysyd sweng hit well to gedyr that hit a ghene loke thy oven be hote & clene swepyd poure hit on the floure of the oven & bake hit as french bred than make hit out cut a wey the crustys abovyn the bred of a nobyll & make an hole & reys hit al abovyn under the crust endlyng ovyrtugharte[over thwart?] as thike as thu may with a knyf & so do enyure to the boyfound[bottom?] but safe the boyfound[bottom?] hole & the crust al a boute & fil hit full of claryfyde hony & set on the crust a ghen & set hym on the oven when they be somdell drydd & serve hit forth.

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This recipe is a close match for recipe 45 from A Noble Boke off Cookry.

To mak votose tak gobettes of mary and dates cutt gret sugur and poudur of guinger saffron and salt and mak afoile as ye did be for and do it out of the pot and mak another then tak the for said stuf and couche ther in almost as brod as the foile and wet the bredes of the foille aboue and closse it and bak it essely and when it is bak cutt it in peces eury pece ij enche square.  [A Noble Boke off Cookry (England, 1468)]

There are also two versions of the same recipe in Two Fifteenth-Century Cookery-Books which describe the process much more clearly.

xxv - Rastons. Take fayre Flowre, and the whyte of Eyroun, and the 3olke, a lytel; than take Warme Berme, and putte al thes to-gederys, and bete hem to-gederys with thin hond tyl it be schort and thikke y-now, and caste Sugre y-now ther-to, and thenne lat reste a whyle; than kaste in a fayre place in the oven, and late bake y-now; and then with a knyf cutte yt round a-boue in maner of a crowne, and kepe the cruste that thou kyttyst; and than pyke al the cromys withynne to-gederys, an pike hem smal with thin knyf, and saue the sydys and al the cruste hole with-owte; and than caste ther-in clarifiyd Boter, and Mille the crome3 and the botere to-gedere3, and keuere it a-3en with the cruste, that thou kyttest a-way; than putte it in the ovyn a3en a lytil tyme; and than take it out, and serue it forth.  [Two Fifteenth-Century Cookery-Books (England, 1430)]

Rastons. Take fyne floure, and white of eyren, and a litul of the yolkes; And then take warme berm, and put al thes togidre, and bete hem togidre with thi honde so longe til hit be short and thik ynogh. And caste sugur ynowe thereto; And then lete rest a while; And then cast hit in a faire place in an oven, and lete bake ynogh; And then kut hit with a knyfe rownde aboue in maner of a crowne, and kepe the crust that thou kuttest, and pile all the cremes within togidre; and pike hem small with thi knyfe, and saue the sides and al the cruste hole withoute; And then cast thi clarefied butter, and medle the creme and the buttur togidre, And couer hit ayen with the cruste that thou kuttest awey; and then put hit in the oven ayen a litull tyme, and take it oute, and serue hit forthe all hote.  [Two Fifteenth-Century Cookery-Books (England, 1430)]