Leach (sometimes leech) was a popular medieval
sweetmeat
Confectionery is the art of making confections, which are food items that are rich in sugar and carbohydrates. Exact definitions are difficult. In general, however, confectionery is divided into two broad and somewhat overlapping categorie ...
(confection) consisting of a thick, jelly-like preserve which set hard enough to be sliced for serving.
They consisted of sugar and flavourings such as almonds, dates, dried fruit, peel and fruit extracts (such as rose water), sometimes spiced (with ginger, aniseed, cinnamon and other spices) or with milk added, and thickened with
isinglass
Isinglass () is a substance obtained from the dried swim bladders of fish. It is a form of collagen used mainly for the clarification or fining of some beer and wine. It can also be cooked into a paste for specialised gluing purposes.
The E ...
or
gum arabic
Gum arabic, also known as gum sudani, acacia gum, Arabic gum, gum acacia, acacia, Senegal gum, Indian gum, and by other names, is a natural gum originally consisting of the hardened sap of two species of the '' Acacia'' tree, ''Senegalia sen ...
.
Leaches were often shaped or moulded into fancy shapes such as hearts, diamonds, clubs, spades, or crescent moons. They would feature as a decorative display on a silver tray at the dessert course of banquets, where specialised sweetmeat spoons with a fork at the handle end might be provided. They were also eaten through the day, perhaps as a breath freshener, and were a favourite of
Elizabeth I
Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is sometimes referred to as the "Virgin Queen".
El ...
.
See also
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The Queen-Like Closet
''The Queen-like Closet, Or, Rich Cabinet'' was a cookery book published in 1670 by the English writer on household management, Hannah Woolley (1622 – c.1675). It ran through five English editions by 1684. At least two German editions were als ...
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Medieval cuisine
Medieval cuisine includes foods, eating habits, and cooking methods of various European cultures during the Middle Ages, which lasted from the fifth to the fifteenth century. During this period, diets and cooking changed less than they did in th ...
References
External links
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Confectionery
Medieval cuisine
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