For those of you who don't know, I'm working on a project focused on the history of English food. And I'm going all out: cooking my way through two thousand years of history just to get a taste (literally) of how far English cuisine has come.
My first project was a concoction which might well have been eaten by our prehistoric ancestors, the Celts. We know that thousands of years ago they would have had access to raspberries (as well as small wild strawberries, blackberries, dewberries, sloes, and a whole passel of others), as well as hazelnuts, and mankind has been baking bread just about since the beginning of time.
What we know about the prehistoric Britons is more likely to come from archaeological discoveries than ancient cookbooks, so recipes are sketchy at best, but it's very possible that the Celts would have made bread cups quite like I did—minus the hot oven and nonstick skillet.
The recipes I used were adapted from Jacqui Wood's book Tasting the Past. The bread cups themselves were made from a mixture of coarsely-ground rye flour (no, I did not use a hand quern) and oats, mixed with a little butter, salt, and milk, patted out into thin cakes and laid on top of overturned bowls, then baked in the oven. The bread molded around the bowls and became cups—rather brittle cups, but cups nonetheless—just right for holding some delicious filling.
The filling was a combination of hazelnuts, butter, honey, and raspberries, all cooked up into a chunky, jam-like mixture. The berries gave the filling a definite tang, the honey mellowed and sweetened it, and the toasted nuts made it crunchy/chewy, resulting in something quite unique and rather tasty.
Here are the recipes so that you can try this quick and easy dish for yourself! If you don't want the full prehistoric flavor of dark and chewy rye bread, you might try making the cups with refined wheat flour.
Oat and Rye Bread Cups
Makes 2-3
Ingredients:
- 1 cup rye flour
- 1 cup medium-cut oats
- 1/3 tsp. salt
- 5 tbsp. butter
- Milk to mix
Method:
- Turn a few small, round, oven-safe bowls upside down on top of a cookie sheet and place in a 400°F oven while you mix up the dough.
- Mix your flours and salt together in a medium bowl, then rub the butter in with your fingers.
- Add milk (slowly and in small increments) to form a soft dough. I used too little milk and the dough turned brittle, so be sure that your dough is soft and pliable, but not soupy.
- Shape the dough into two to three round cakes and press onto the overturned bowls. Be careful to shape the dough in such a way that it does not crack. Cook for fifteen to twenty minutes.
- Alternatively, you could cook these flat on a griddle for five minutes on each side, but then they would not hold your filling very well.
Hazelnut and Raspberry Bread Cup Filling
Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup hazelnuts, chopped
- 1 tbsp butter
- 1 1/2 cups fresh raspberries (or any other prehistoric berries you happen to have on hand)
- 1/4 cup honey
Method:
- Toast the hazelnuts in a skillet with the butter over low hear for a couple of minutes, then add the honey. Be careful not to burn it! Keep stirring.
- Add the raspberries and cook for about a minute more, until they start to break apart.
- Spoon the filling into your bread cups and enjoy!
What began as a college project has become my second eBook, Cooks and Queens. Get it now to discover more about the ancient Britons and how English food evolved from its deepest roots!
For more information on prehistoric cookery, check out my post on prehistoric bread and organic barbecues.
Sources:
Wilson, Constance Anne. Food and Drink in Britain: From the Stone Age to the 19th Century. Chicago: Academy Chicago, 1991.
Wood, Jacqui. Tasting the Past: Recipes from the Stone Age to the Present. Stroud: History, 2009.
Wood, Jacqui. Tasting the Past: Recipes from the Stone Age to the Present. Stroud: History, 2009.
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