Comments on: Ensaimadas and Lardy Cake http://www.rachellaudan.com/2008/03/ensaimadas-and-lardy-cake.html A Historian's Take on Food and Food Politics Wed, 20 Aug 2008 18:13:26 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.5.1 By: Rachel Laudan http://www.rachellaudan.com/2008/03/ensaimadas-and-lardy-cake.html#comment-680 Rachel Laudan Wed, 14 May 2008 16:07:04 +0000 http://www.rachellaudan.com/2008/03/ensaimadas-and-lardy-cake.html#comment-680 My goodness, Julia. I grew up outside Salisbury. What was the name of your grandfather's bakery? But we never toasted our lardy cake. My goodness, Julia. I grew up outside Salisbury. What was the name of your grandfather’s bakery?

But we never toasted our lardy cake.

]]> By: julia collins http://www.rachellaudan.com/2008/03/ensaimadas-and-lardy-cake.html#comment-674 julia collins Wed, 14 May 2008 11:33:27 +0000 http://www.rachellaudan.com/2008/03/ensaimadas-and-lardy-cake.html#comment-674 my grandfathers shop in salisbury used to sell doughcake which was made from pigs lard. my uncle has the recipe.As a girl i used to visit the shop and can remember it had mixed peel in it. we used to have this toasted with thick butter. not for the faint hearted. my grandfathers shop in salisbury used to sell doughcake which was made from pigs lard.
my uncle has the recipe.As a girl i used to visit the shop and can remember it had mixed peel in it. we used to have this toasted with thick butter. not for the faint hearted.

]]> By: The Ensaimada Trail | Rachel Laudan http://www.rachellaudan.com/2008/03/ensaimadas-and-lardy-cake.html#comment-466 The Ensaimada Trail | Rachel Laudan Tue, 25 Mar 2008 23:50:02 +0000 http://www.rachellaudan.com/2008/03/ensaimadas-and-lardy-cake.html#comment-466 [...] a couple of years, I’ve been interested in the ensaimada (the en-larded), a sweet bread associated with Mallorca and Minorca in Spain that also crops up in the [...] [...] a couple of years, I’ve been interested in the ensaimada (the en-larded), a sweet bread associated with Mallorca and Minorca in Spain that also crops up in the [...]

]]> By: Bob Mrotek http://www.rachellaudan.com/2008/03/ensaimadas-and-lardy-cake.html#comment-455 Bob Mrotek Sat, 22 Mar 2008 16:41:58 +0000 http://www.rachellaudan.com/2008/03/ensaimadas-and-lardy-cake.html#comment-455 Rachel, I have a suggestion as to why ensaimadas may be indigenous to one locale in particular. I think it has to do with the flour. I think that the properties of the flour are very important in making "pan hojaldrada" (puff pastry) of any kind and they type of puff pastry that is used for ensaimadas requires strong flour with a high percentage of protein and a high capacity to absorb water. This allows the layers to be stretched very thin. I think that the high quality of ingredients may have been a limiting factor in the spread of the Mallorcan style pan hojaldrada. I also think Adam may have a clue in that ensaimadas need butter and so here in Mexico where you and I live the empanada was traditionally probably cheaper and easier to make and also very forgiving regarding the type of flour used. Rachel,

I have a suggestion as to why ensaimadas may be indigenous to one locale in particular. I think it has to do with the flour. I think that the properties of the flour are very important in making “pan hojaldrada” (puff pastry) of any kind and they type of puff pastry that is used for ensaimadas requires strong flour with a high percentage of protein and a high capacity to absorb water. This allows the layers to be stretched very thin. I think that the high quality of ingredients may have been a limiting factor in the spread of the Mallorcan style pan hojaldrada. I also think Adam may have a clue in that ensaimadas need butter and so here in Mexico where you and I live the empanada was traditionally probably cheaper and easier to make and also very forgiving regarding the type of flour used.

]]> By: Rachel Laudan http://www.rachellaudan.com/2008/03/ensaimadas-and-lardy-cake.html#comment-441 Rachel Laudan Thu, 20 Mar 2008 00:06:19 +0000 http://www.rachellaudan.com/2008/03/ensaimadas-and-lardy-cake.html#comment-441 Hmm, I had no idea about Aberdeen butteries. And I never encountered a flead cake in Wiltshire though they sound lovely. I suspect your conjecture about lard being widely used for breads and pastries is correct. And it is difficult to get information about historic baking. I will see if William Rubel has any ideas because he knows the French and English baking literature, such as it is, like the back of his hand. Hmm, I had no idea about Aberdeen butteries. And I never encountered a flead cake in Wiltshire though they sound lovely. I suspect your conjecture about lard being widely used for breads and pastries is correct. And it is difficult to get information about historic baking. I will see if William Rubel has any ideas because he knows the French and English baking literature, such as it is, like the back of his hand.

]]> By: Adam Balic http://www.rachellaudan.com/2008/03/ensaimadas-and-lardy-cake.html#comment-436 Adam Balic Sat, 15 Mar 2008 10:14:14 +0000 http://www.rachellaudan.com/2008/03/ensaimadas-and-lardy-cake.html#comment-436 I think that the Wikipedia article has lumped together a number of rather different items, simply on the basis that they are pastries with lard. I imagine that there is a wide range of these types of recipe where lard is found (Aberdeen Butteries, which despite their name are made with lard, being another example). Flead cakes are another lard item from Wiltshire, in this case the flead (interenal pig fat) is chopped into small pieces and incorporated into a dough to produce something like a rough puff pastry (there is a similar thing made in Croatia from the little crunchy lumps left over from rendering lard). There are also sharley cakes, banbury cakes, eccles cakes, Coventry Godcakes ....which are similar, if usually made with butter now. Infact I wonder if this is the origin of some of these recipes. There isn't that much information availible for historic pastries as they usually were not included in cookbooks for the simile reason that they were made by bakers not cooks. Bakers didn't publish their trade secrets in general. A lot of the mordern recipes use butter, but butter was a pretty expensive item histroically (more expensive then meat in the 18th century). I wonder if a lot of these country recipes originally used lard and only recently swapped to butter. Seems to be the case for Aberdeen butteries. I think that the Wikipedia article has lumped together a number of rather different items, simply on the basis that they are pastries with lard.

I imagine that there is a wide range of these types of recipe where lard is found (Aberdeen Butteries, which despite their name are made with lard, being another example).

Flead cakes are another lard item from Wiltshire, in this case the flead (interenal pig fat) is chopped into small pieces and incorporated into a dough to produce something like a rough puff pastry (there is a similar thing made in Croatia from the little crunchy lumps left over from rendering lard). There are also sharley cakes, banbury cakes, eccles cakes, Coventry Godcakes ….which are similar, if usually made with butter now.

Infact I wonder if this is the origin of some of these recipes. There isn’t that much information availible for historic pastries as they usually were not included in cookbooks for the simile reason that they were made by bakers not cooks. Bakers didn’t publish their trade secrets in general.

A lot of the mordern recipes use butter, but butter was a pretty expensive item histroically (more expensive then meat in the 18th century). I wonder if a lot of these country recipes originally used lard and only recently swapped to butter. Seems to be the case for Aberdeen butteries.

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