flipAlmond blancmange
Almond blancmange
Why this dish? Of delicate constitution and often ailing, Madame de La Fayette willingly had these mild and nourishing dishes prepared for her. Blancmange, almond milk set into a jelly, was in the 17th century the preferred dish of doctors to restore the sick and convalescent.
A delicate white jelly of almond milk, sweetened and perfumed with rose water, set with isinglass. Mild, light, reputed to strengthen weak stomachs.
On days when illness holds me and nothing appeals, they prepare this blancmange which is considered so salubrious. The almonds are finely pounded to extract their milk, which is taken as a jelly with a little sugar and rose water. It is sweet, white as snow, and can be eaten without difficulty when appetite fails. My doctor recommends no other.
- •Sweet almonds — a good handful (almond milk)
- •Isinglass (fish glue) — a little (gelling agent)
- •Sugar — to taste (sweetness)
- •Rose water — a few drops (flavoring)
Almond blancmange
A delicate white jelly of almond milk, sweetened and perfumed with rose water, set with isinglass. Mild, light, reputed to strengthen weak stomachs.
Why this dish? Of delicate constitution and often ailing, Madame de La Fayette willingly had these mild and nourishing dishes prepared for her. Blancmange, almond milk set into a jelly, was in the 17th century the preferred dish of doctors to restore the sick and convalescent.
On days when illness holds me and nothing appeals, they prepare this blancmange which is considered so salubrious. The almonds are finely pounded to extract their milk, which is taken as a jelly with a little sugar and rose water. It is sweet, white as snow, and can be eaten without difficulty when appetite fails. My doctor recommends no other.
Ingredients (period version)
- Sweet almonds — a good handful (almond milk)
- Isinglass (fish glue) — a little (gelling agent)
- Sugar — to taste (sweetness)
- Rose water — a few drops (flavoring)
Ingredients
- Ground almonds (or blanched almonds blended) — 150 g (almond milk)
- Water — 50 cl (infusion)
- Gelatin (sheets) — 4 sheets (8 g) (gelling agent)
- Sugar — 60 g (sweetness)
- Rose water — 1 tsp (flavoring)
Method
- Mix ground almonds with lukewarm water, let steep 30 minutes.
- Strain through a cloth, pressing well to collect the almond milk.
- Soften the gelatin in cold water.
- Heat the almond milk with the sugar without boiling, dissolve the squeezed-out gelatin in it.
- Flavor with rose water, pour into molds or cups.
- Let set in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours before unmolding.
How it was made : Medieval blancmange could be savory (based on chicken breast), but in the 17th century it shifted toward a sweet almond entremets. It was gelled with isinglass or hartshorn. Medical treatises prescribed it to the sick for its mildness and digestibility.
The contemporary twist : Served as a small pearly dome on a berry coulis, sprinkled with toasted slivered almonds—a very contemporary-looking dessert.
Sources : La Varenne, Le Cuisinier françois, 1651
Madame de La Fayette · Charactorium
