A Sack Posset
From The closet of Sir Kenelm Digby Knight opened, 1910
Presented as published in 1910. Historical recipes may not meet modern food-safety standards. Cook from the modern interpretation below, not the original instructions.
A modern interpretation · AI-generated from the original record
Ingredients
Method
As published
This recipe was extracted from The closet of Sir Kenelm Digby Knight opened (1910) by Sir Kenelm Digby, page 77. The excerpt below is the record exactly as published.
A SACK POSSET Take three pintsof Cream ; boil in it a little Cinna- mon, a Nutmeg quartered, and two spoonfuls of grated bread ; then beat the yolks of twelve Eggs very well with a little cold Cream, and a spoonful of Sack. When your Cream hath boiled about a quar- ter of an hour, thicken it up with the Eggs, and sweeten it with Sugar ; and take half a pint of Sack and six spoonfuls of Ale, and put into the basin or THS CLOSET OPEDjED 113 dish, you intend to make it in, with a little Amber- greece, if you please. Then pour your Cream and Eggs into it, holding your hand as high as conveni- ently you can, gently stirring in the basin with the spoon as you pour it ; so serve it up. If you please you may strew Sugar upon it. You may strew Ambred sugar upon it, as you eat it ; or Sugar-beaten with Cinnamon, if you like it. A BARLEY SACK POSSET Take half a pound or more of French barley, (not Perle-barley) and pour scalding water upon it, and wash it well therein, and strain it from the water, & put it into the Corner of a Linnen-cloth and tie it up fast there, and strike it a dozen or twenty blowsagainst afirm table or block, to make it tender by such bruising it, as in the Countrey is used with wheat to make frumenty. Then put it into a large skillet with three pints of good milk. Boil this till atleasthalf be consumed,and thatitbecome as thick as hasty pudding, which will require at least two hours ; and it must be carefully stirred all the while, least it burn too : which if by some little inadvert- ence it should do, and that some black burned sub- stance sticketh to the bottom of the skillet, pour all the good matter from it into a fresh skillet (or into a basin whiles you scoure this) and renew boiling till it be very thick ; All which is to make the barley very tender and pulpy, and will at least require two or near three hours. Then pour to it three pints of good Cream, and boil them together a little while, stirring them always. It will be sometime before 114 SIR KENELMS DIGBIS the cold Cream boil, which when it doth, a little will suffice. Then take it from the fire, and season it well with Sugar. Then take a quarter of a pint of Sack, and as much Rhenish-wine (or more of each) and a little Verjuyce, or sharp Cider, or juyce of Orange, and season it well with Sugar (at least half a pound to both) and set it over Coals to boil. Which when it doth, and the Sugar is well melted, pour the Cream into it ; in which Cream the barley will be settled to the bottom by standing still un- moved, after the Sugar is well stirred and melted in it, or pour it through a hair-sieve ; and you may boil it again, that it be very hot, when you mingle them together ; else it may chance not curdle. Some of the barley (but little) will go over with it, and will do no hurt. After you have thus made your Posset, let it stand warm a while that the curd may thicken : but take heed it boil not, for that would dissolve it again into the consistence of Cream. When you serve it up, strew it over with Powder of Cinnamon and Sugar. It will be much the better, if you strew upon it some Ambergreece ground with Sugar. You may boil bruised sticks of Cinna- mon in the Cream, and in the Sack, before you min- gle them. You must use clear Char-coal-fire under your vessels. The remaining barley will make good barley Cream, being boiled with fresh Cream and a little Cinnamon
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Cook this with the app: pantry check, scaling, and the assistant.