Seventeenth-Century English Recipe Books: Cooking, Physic and Chirurgery in the Works of W.M. and Queen Henrietta Maria, and of Mary Tillinghast

Essential Works for the Study of Early Modern Women: Series III, Part Three, Volume 4

Elizabeth Spiller, Elizabeth Spiller

• Éditeur: Routledge
• Année: 2017
• ISBN:
  9781351900973
• Édition: 1
• Sujet: Literature
• Sous-sujet: Literary Criticism

Recipe books are a key part of food history; they register the ideals and practices of domestic work, physical health and sustenance and they are at the heart of material culture as it was experienced by early modern Englishwomen. In a world in which daily sustenance and physical health were primarily women's responsibilities, women were central to these texts that record what was both a traditional art and new science. The texts reprinted in these two volumes allow readers to reconstruct the history of recipes, both medical and culinary, from the mid-sixteenth to mid-seventeenth century, and situate that history within the larger scientific and intellectual practices of the period.

THE
QUEENS CLOSET
OPENED.

Incomparable Secrets in Physick, Chirugery, Preserving, Candying, and Cookery;

As they were presented to the

QUEEN

By the most Experienced Person our Times, many whereof were honoured with her own practice, when she pleased to descend to these more private Recreations.

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Never before republished.

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Transcribed from the true Copies of her MAJESTIES own recept Books, by W.M. one of her late servants.

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Vivit post funera Virtus.

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Printed for Nathaniel Brook at the Angel in Cornhill, 1655.

THE
Queens Closet opened,

To those Persons of
Honour and Quality that
presented many of these admirable
Receipts at the feet of
the Queens Majesly, the Publisher
resignes them which his
prostrate service whilest he
breaths and is

W.M.

Genorous Reader,

MY particular relation for many yeares to her Majesties service might easily, should I write my own history, rid thee of all scruples touching the truth of this collection, there being few or none of these receipts presented to her Majesty, which were not transcribed into her book by my self, the Original papers being most of them preserved in my own hands, which I kept as so many Reliques, and should sooner have parted with my dearest bloud, then to have suffered them to be publick. But since my Soveraign Mistresse her banishment, as also this continued change, being diffident of the alteration of these times, I could not deny the importunities of a person of Honour, to whom I was obliged, who got a transcript of one of the true copies from me, but by ill fortune either lent or lost it; which I had never known from himself, but that to my no small amazement, I found no lesse then two other copies abroad, the sad consideration whereof inforced mee to consu't with my friends, who all of them advised me to dispatch my Original copy to the Presse to prevent those false ones; for otherwise I should not have thought it lesse then Sacriledge, had not the lock been first pickt, to have opened the Closet of my distressed Soveraigne Mistresse without her Royall assent; but since that unfortunate miscarriage, I thought this publication to stand upon no ordinary tearms of honour, as it might continue my Soveraign Ladies remembrance in the brest and loves of those person of honour and quality, that presented most of these rare recepts to her; and Now that my age will not suffer me, as I fell with the Court, to remain much longer in this troublesome world, I thought it my duty, if I could not doe her Majesty further service, at least to use my best endeavours to prevent all disservices that might be done her. I make no question thought I have thus faithfully vindicated my self, that there are some person still left that will view this volume with a kinde of indignation, that these copies should be made publick by a servant, which were onely intrusted to so sacred a custody; I acknowledge if they finse any of them altered or corrupted by the failing of printing, I am exposed to their just angers, as some of their names are particularly affixed; but I hope my absence in their Country may in part plead for me against those familiar Errataes which are incident to all Editions, more especially finde my infirm age could not permit me with my constant endeavours to attend the Presse, insomuch that I must ingenously confesse some receipts are disordered in their placing, other false printed, which kinde of dealing I must impute to the more infortunate customes of Printers, whose trivial excuses cannot free me from the highest miffortune that may befall me on this Earth, should my Royal Mistresse be displeased, from the Bar of whose resentments I can make no appeal, but as I hope shee may smile at the happy recovery of those papers, which perhaps these troubles and her travels might utterly have deprived of, had not my diligent care preserved them for her Majesties review, as also for a more general good. Reader, I am sorrowfull that I have detained thee so long from thy more beneficial use of this Book; thank the times, not mee, for otherwise these pretious leaves had never been in common, I have no more to write, but that I am

Your truely loving friend

W.M.

THE
Queens Cabinet
OPENED:
OR,
The Pearl of Practise;
Accurate, Physical, and Chirurgical Recepts.

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Doctor Butler Preservative against the Plague.

TAke Wood Sorrel, and pick it from the stalk, and pound it very well in a stone Mortar, then take to every pound of beaten Sorre, a pound of Sugar finely beaten, and two ownces of Mithridate, beat them very well together, and put them in pots for your use, take every morning before and after the infection for some time together of this Conserve, as much as a Walnut.

Dr. Butler Cordial Water.

Take Pimpernel, Carduus, Angelica, Scordium, Scabious, Dragon, and Still these serverally in a Rose Still, and when you have a point of the water of every of these sorts of hearbs; then mighly allthese together very well, and dissolve in it half a pound of Venice Treacle, then still all these together, and mingle the stronger water with the small, fix spoonfuls of this water, made bloudwarm, given to one sick of the plague driveth all venome from the heart. It is excellent, so used, for the Small pox, or for any pestilent Feaver.

Dr Butlers Purging Ale.

Take of Sarsaparilla two ounces, of Polypody of the Oak and Sena of each four ounces, Caro way seed, and Aniseed, of each half an ounce, Liquorish two ounces, Maydenhair and Agrimony, of each one little handful, Scurvey half a bufhel, beat all thefe groffely, and put them into a course Canvas bag, and hang it into three gallons of strong Ale; when it is three days old drink it.

Dr.Giffs Amber Pils for a Consumption.

Take of Venice Turpentine one ounce washed, and fix grains of the powder of white Amber, mix them, together, and let them in a clean pot upon embers, and let it not stand too hot; to try whether it be enough, take a drop and let it cool; if after it is cold it be stiffe, and will not cleave to the finger, it is enough: then take of the powders of Pearl, white Amber, and Coral, of each a quantity, as a quarter of an ounce, of the inner bark of an Oak a quarter of an ounce, of Cinnamon and Nutmegs of each as much, and three ounces of hard white sugar, make all these into a powder, … see the them, and ...