My recent release, The Taming of the Stew, gave me the wonderful opportunity to merge two of my greatest passions: the works of William Shakespeare and the bizarre, wonderful world of historical English culinary traditions. Setting a mystery at a revived Shakespeare Festival meant that my characters weren’t baking their usual cakes and biscuits; instead, they were experimenting with authentic, slightly chaotic Elizabethan banquet recipes.
The Culinary World of the Elizabethans
Researching the food of the 16th century was an absolute revelation. The Elizabethans had a completely different approach to flavor pairings than we do today. They were obsessed with masking meat dishes with massive quantities of sugar, rosewater, and exotic spices like mace and saffron to display their wealth.
To bring the festival in the book to life, I spent weeks researching what would have been served at a high-status feast in Shakespeare’s day. We are talking about pies that contained hidden surprises, gilded marchpane (an early form of marzipan), and complex stews sweetened with dried prunes and dates.
Translating History for the Modern Palate
The real challenge as a culinary author is translating those bizarre historical concepts into recipes that modern readers would actually want to eat at home! For the back of The Taming of the Stew, I took inspiration from the era’s love of spiced fruits and botanical infusions, refining them into two foolproof, traditional English bakes that carry a nod to the Bard without requiring you to buy a pound of ambergris or a whole peacock.