Summary
At the time, society decreed that members of the upper classes eat at long tables in a great hall. Three or four meals a day were customary, ending with a late dinner after 8 o'clock, with entertainment afterward. At the high table three or four courses were served separately ("à la Française"), beginning with soups and light foods, proceeding through roasted meats, "sallets" made of cooked vegetables, and side dishes, finishing with a dessert that was almost always fruit, preserved or cooked in compotes and marmalades. At frequent feasts with dozens of courses staged by the wealthy, the centerpieces of the meal were most often large birds (herons, swans, peacocks), roasted whole and reconstructed with all their glorious feathers as decoration. Turkey, called "Indian chicken," was new and much appreciated for its dramatic appearance. One account described "a jury of woodcocks": 12 birds laid "feet to feet" within a piecrust (hard and inedible, used for presentation only).
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Extract
Food of Love, Play On!
Come all you lords and gaffers, you mistresses and goodwives, and let us discover what you would have experienced had you dined in the 15th century!
I had always...See the full content of this document
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