Marmalades, Quodinacks and Jellies (Volume 73)

Historical rabbit holes, for those who are inclined.

These slender booklets from Historical Management Associates are the work of an organization dedicated to historical re-enactment in the UK. They are written with a stickler’s attention to historical precision and a conviction that nothing is too arcane to investigate. Some of the books are simple transcriptions of period manuscripts; others represent significant original research, as in Cattle Farming and Grazing Management, which is 52 pages long but cites 36 sources, many of them published in the 17th century.

The Food and Cookery in Elizabethan and Early Stuart England series presents a systematic survey of existing records of ingredients and equipment employed in the period. In addition to concise explanations of how such items might have been used and how they might have been significantly different from what is implied by current terminology, they include citations from various period and later records to demonstrate the geographic and class distribution of everything from hops to decorative tankards.

From the introduction: "At the period marmalades were stored in circular wooden boxes and were much firmer and dryer than the modern 'spread'. they were essentially a mixture of high pectin fruit pulp and sugar boiled until set...Quodinacks, quidonys and other bizarre variations of its spelling, were made by contrast from the juices from cooked high pectin fruits. These were again boiled with sugar until they set but were smoother surfaced than marmalade...Jellies came in two types. High pectin fruit based jellies were similar to quodinacks and the terms were sometimes used interchangeably. Jelly recipes however often had fruit pieces imbedded in them and were stored in jars. Citrus fruits in apple jelly stored in glasses are the nearest to a modern breakfast marmalade but there is no indication they were served on bread."

Staplebound pamphlet. 52 pages.