Recipes from John Crophill's Commonplace Book - 44 Blaunch Desorre

Recipes from John Crophill's Commonplace Book (Harley MS 1735)

This manuscript is dated before 1485.

The 68 recipes in John Crophill's Commonplace Book are on pages 16v through 28v.

Images of the original manuscript are freely available on the British 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 © 2015 by Daniel Myers, MedievalCookery.com

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[44.] Blaunch Desorre
Mak [f.25r] gode melk of swete almaundes & skerve the rys & do hem in a morter & grynd hem & tempre hem up with almaunde melk & draw it thorow a cloth & do it in a pot & set it on the fyer & stire it wel tak braun of capouns & do awey the skyn & the bonys & hewe it & grynd it & tempre it up with wyn & wan thi pot hayth wel boylled do ther inne of wyth ginger & tak it fro the fyer & lye it with grounde fleysch & do ther inne qwyth salt & sugre & tast it & loke that it be owerte of savour & poynaunt of the wyth ginger & loke that the thre savours a cor den ilk with othyr & dresse it & plante it with poumgarnett & gelofres.

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Blanc de Syre is one of the more common recipes in medieval English cookbooks, so it's no surprise that there is a corresponding version in both Liber and Noble.

Blonk desore. Take ryse and wasshe hom in a cup, Grynd hom smalle and temper up With almonde mylke, so have þou cele. Do hit over þo fyre and boyle hit wele. Take braune of capons or hennes alle, Hew hit þat hit be riȝt smalle. And grynd hit wele, as myud brede, And do þer to, as I þe rede. Seson hit with sugur grete plente, With fryid almondes florysshe so fre.  [Liber cure cocorum (England, 1430)]

To mak bland sorre tak the mylk of almondes blanched mad with capon brothe then tak the braun of a capon and bet it in a mortair and mele the fishe and the mylk to gedur in the mortair with the pestelle and thik it with flour of rise and boile it put ther to sugur or hony and mak it stondinge then lesk it in dyshes and diaper it with turnsole and serue it.  [A Noble Boke off Cookry (England, 1468)]

As is evident from the above recipes combined with the ones below from other sources, there is a wide range of variation for this dish.

Blank Dessorre. XXXVII. Take Almandes blaunched, grynde hem and temper hem up with whyte wyne, on fleissh day with broth. and cast þerinne flour of Rys. oþer amydoun, and lye it þerwith. take brawn of Capouns yground. take sugur and salt and cast þerto and florissh it with aneys whyte. take a vessel yholes and put in safroun. and serue it forth.  [Forme of Cury (England, 1390)]

Blanc desirree. Almond milk, rice flour, capon meat, sifted ginger, white sugar, white wine; each one in part to be boiled in a clean pot, and then put in the vessel in which it will be done, a little light powder; pomegranates planted thereon.  [MS Royal 12.C.xii (England/France)]

Blanke desire. Take yolkes of eyron sodyn hard & safron & bred growndyn with cow milke boyl do ther to white of eyron cut smal & spyndez of porke corven ther to aley hit a lytyll with raw yolkes of eyron. [Recipes from the Wagstaff Miscellany (England, 1460)]

Blandissorye. Take almaundys, an blawnche hem, an grynde hem in a morter, an tempere hem with freysshe brothe of capoun or of beef, an swete wyne; an ȝif it be lente or fyssday, take brothe of the freysshe fysshe, an swete wyne, an boyle hem to-gederys a goode whyle; thenne take it up, an caste it on a fayre lynen clothe that is clene an drye, an draw under the clothe, wyth a ladel, alle the water that thow may fynde, ryth as thow makyst cold creme; thanne take owt of the potte, an caste it in-to a fayre potte, an let it boyle; an thanne take brawn of Capoun, an tese it smal an bray it ina morter: or ellys on a fyssday take Pyke or Elys, Codlyng or Haddok, an temper it with almaun mylke, an caste Sugre y-now ther-to; An than caste hem in-to the potte and lete hem boyle to-gederys a goode whyle: thenne take it owt of the potte alle hote, an dresse it in a dysshe, as meni don cold creme, an sette ther-on Red Anys in comfyte, or ellys Allemaundys blaunchid, an thanne serue it forth for a goode potage.  [Two Fifteenth-Century Cookery-Books (England, 1430)]