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Life in the Middle Ages...
Mealtime Manners
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Manners during Meal Times in the Middle Ages were lacking to say the least. Of
course not entirely non-existent, but manners we take for granted today mostly
didn't come into effect until the 18th Century. Through the 1400s, food was
served in a long trencher for people to literately dig into a meal with their
bare hands since there were no individual plates, or silverware for drink.
Wealthy households would have some type of metal trencher, perhaps silver or
pewter. Middle class homes would have a metal or wooden trencher. The very
poor may have substituted a hollowed out loaf of bread in place of wooden
trencher. People would eat from these trenchers, scooping out food with their
fingers, and using bits of bread to sop up juices and broth.
It was not until the mid 1500s that individual plates and forks were
introduced to diners. Henceforth, the common trencher, a staple at European
tables for nearly a thousand years, slowly disappeared. People still ate in
their kitchens mostly, although the wealthy took their meals in the main hall
of their estates.
The early Middle Ages weren't of course entirely without manners however,
there were a few rules of etiquette that were expected of diners including:
● No spitting across the table.
● No dipping meat directly into the salt
dish.
● No picking ones teeth with a finger or
knife. |
This Day in Medieval History
3rd August
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1492: Columbus sets sail from Spain Christopher Columbus and his small
fleet consisting of the Niña, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria,
his capital ship; left the port of Palos, Spain, where they had been fitted
out with several supplies and headed for the Canary Islands, where they would
pick up northeast trade winds.
Six weeks later they would leave the Canaries, and three months later they
would bump into the Americas. |
Quotations in History
"Bernard of Chartres used to say that we are like dwarfs on the
shoulders of giants, so that we can see more than they, and things at a greater
distance, not by virtue of any sharpness of sight on our part, or any physical
distinction, but because we are carried high and raised up by their giant size."
John of Salisbury, Circa 12th Centuary
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"Pommesmoille"
Apple Pudding
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Makes 1 bowl
● 1lb cooking apples
● ½ cup sugar
● ¼ cup rice flour
● 2 cups Almond Milk
● ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
● 1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
● Pinch of ground cloves
● Pinch salt
● Pinch ground nutmeg
Optional
6-10 saffron stems
Strawberries, or other Decorative Fruit. |
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Preparation & Cooking:
Carefully peel, and remove the core of each of the apples. Chop finely into
small pieces either with a knife, or in a food processor.
Pour Almond Milk, Sugar and Rice flour into a medium sized saucepan, stir
in chopped apple and bring the mixture to a boil over a medium heat for
approximately five minutes, stirring constantly as the mixture thickens.
Take a spoonful of the mixture from the saucepan and drop it into a cup.
Add all the cinnamon, ginger, cloves and salt to this cup and stir well.
Return the spiced mixture to the saucepan and stir until the spices colour
the whole mixture. Return the mixture to the heat and bring back to the boil,
stirring occasionally.
Optional: At this point you could take the saffron
stems, grind them in a pestle and mortar, add a tablespoon of boiling water to
the ground stems and then add to the mixture to colour it yellow.
When thoroughly blended, pour the mixture into a serving dish, sprinkle
ground nutmeg on the top to decorate and add a subtle flavour then leave to
cool.
Decorate with Strawberries or other seasonal berries if desired.
Strawberries were used in the example image.
Recipe & Image Source:
History.uk.com
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