Confection from Pine-Nut Kernels*

Categories:	16th century   Dessert   French
Original Source:	The Elixirs of Nostradamus
Secondary Source:
Cook:	Aurelia Rufinia
Meeting Date:	2005-11-13

HOW TO MAKE A CONFECTION FROM PINE-NUT KERNELS
Take as many well-cleaned and carefully shelled pine-nut kernels as you will, dry them or toast them a little. Or take them whole with their skins and shells and put them in a basket. Hang this over the hearth near the fire and leave, it there for three days. Thus the heat from the fire will slowly penetrate them and dry them. Then take them out and clean them thoroughly. Next take two and a half pounds of nuts, being careful to keep them close at hand. Then take some of the most beautiful and best Madeira sugar, dissolve sufficient of it in rose-water and boil it until it attains the consistency of a jelly. If it is winter or a time when there is a lot of moisture in the air, boil it a bit longer, but if it is summer, then let it just simmer. This is when it does not boil over or bubble when it boils, which is a sign that the moisture had been evaporated; but to be brief, when it has boiled to the consistency of a jelly, as I have said, take the preserving pan off the fire and put it somewhere where the liquid can dry off and become firm. Then give it a good stir with a piece of wood and beat it continuously until it turns white. When it begins to cool down a little, add the white of a whole or half an egg and beat it well again. Next place it over the coals, in order to allow the moisture from the egg-white to stiffen, and when you see that it is properly white and like the first lot you boiled, take the dried, well-cleaned pine-nut kernels and put them into the sugar. Stir them with the wood so that they are thoroughly mixed with the sugar - this should still be done over the coal fire, so that the mixture does not cool too quickly. Then take a wide wooden knife, like the ones used by shoemakers, and cut the mixture into pieces, each weighing about an ounce and a half, but not more than two, which would not be good, and spread them carefully on to some paper until they have properly cooled, at which stage put a little gold leaf on to them and your confection is ready. If, however, it is not possible to obtain pine-nut kernels anywhere, use peeled almonds instead, dividing them either into two parts or three and mixing them with the sugar to make this confection. And if there are too few pine-nut kernels, you can replace them with pieces of almonds, for the latter are not dissimilar to the former in taste and potency. You can also use fennel which is flowering or in seed, which is kept in houses and used during the wine harvest. When your sugar has almost completely boiled and is hot and white with everything mixed in it or scattered over it, it looks like manna or snow and is so beautiful and lovely.

Steps

1. Boil water, add sugar. Boil till clear(ish), put lid on, and boil for a bit more.
2. Beat egg until stiff. When sugar syrup reaches firm ball (250°) add syrup to the egg white. Stir furiously, and add pine nuts and stir until it feels thick and goopy.
3. Pour goop out on parchment paper, and spread thin, Let cool.

Note

Nostradamus says to cut squares out while still warm.

Redaction based off of Cariadoc's Hulwa recipe.