Rys (c.1420) ★★★

This recipe comes from a book called Two Fifteenth-Century Cookery-Books, which was published in 1888. This book contains recipes which were copied from manuscripts in the British Museum, so even though the recipes come from a book published in the late nineteenth century, they are still written in Middle English. This recipe for "Rys" is taken from the manuscript Harleian MS. 279. I've seen dates ranging from circa 1420 to 1439, so I just went with the earliest one.

Original Recipe:
.lxxxvj. Rys. Take a porcyoun of Rys, & pyke hem clene, & sethe hem welle, & late hem kele; þen take gode Mylke of Almaundys & do þer-to, & seþe & stere wyl; & do þer-to Sugre an hony, & serue forth.

The Verdict:

This was not as bad as I thought it would be! I've never had rice pudding before, so to me this recipe sounded a bit weird. I'm also not a huge fan of almonds (sometimes I wonder why I pick these recipes). To my surprise, I didn't mind this. I probably wouldn't eat this by choice, but I'm sure people who like rice pudding would like this. After the initial tasting I added some powder douce, which improved the taste considerably.

Modernized Recipe:
(Adapted from Two Fifteenth-Century Cookery-Books)

COOKED RICE
UNSWEETENED ALMOND MILK
SUGAR
HONEY

1. Add the rice to a saucepan (I used my medium one for about 1 cup of rice). Just cover with almond milk and bring to a boil, stirring often.
2. Once boiling, add the sugar and honey to taste. Let simmer for a few minutes until the desired consistency is reached. Serve forth!