was a Postdoctoral Research Fellow with the Before ‘Farm to Table’: Early Modern Foodways and Culture project, a Mellon-funded research initiative at the Folger Shakespeare Library. He holds a PhD from the University of Pittsburgh and is a historian of the sixteenth century north Atlantic fisheries.
An anonymous early modern cookbook in the Folger collection has two turkey and stuffing recipes: one made with oysters, and one without, reflecting the foods available at the original Thanksgiving meals. We adapt the oyster-less recipe for modern kitchens.
Want to add variety to your Thanksgiving? Try this modernized 17th-century recipe from the Folger collection for savory biscuits, fluffy and sweet and savory and firm and spiced all at the same time, recorded around 1672 in Constance Hall’s recipe book.
In the spirit of Oktoberfest: Food, drink, and changing times in early modern Europe
Posted
Author
Jack Bouchard
As October comes to an end, we celebrate food, drink, and culture in the German cities of Shakespeare’s day, including the creation of beer and wine and the harvest festivals each fall, marked by our modern-day tradition of Oktoberfest.
Stay connected
Find out what’s on, read our latest stories, and learn how you can get involved.
