Subtleties&Stuffe Massialot on Sugar Boiling Part II

Massialot's instructions continue with the instructions for the Pearled, Blown, and Feathered stages.

The Pearled Boiling.

         After having boil’d your sugar, a little longer, re-iterate the same experiment, and if in separating your Finger, as before, the String continues sticking to both, the Sugar is Pearled. The greater Pearled Boiling is when the String continues in like manner, altho’ the Fingers were stretched out farther, by entirely spreading the Hand. This sort of Boiling may also be known by a round Pearls, that arise on top of the Liquor. [p 2]

The Blown Blowing.

When your Sugar has boil’d a few more Walms, hold the Skimmer in your Hand, and having shaken it a little, as before, beating the side of the Pan, blow thro’ the Holes of it, from one side to the other; and if certain Sparks as it were, or small Bubbles fly out, the Sugar is come to the degree of Boiling, call’d Blown. [p 3]

The Feathered Boiling.

         When after some other Seethings, you blow thro’ the Skimmer, or shake the Spatula with a Back-stroke, till thicker and larger Bubbles rise up on high, then the Sugar is become Feathered: And when after frequent Tryals, you perceive these Bubbles to be thicker, and in greater quantity, so that several of them stick together, and form as it were a flying Flake; then the Sugar is greatly Feathered. [p 3]

as found in
Massialot, François. “New Instructions for Confectioners; Directing How to Preserve all sorts of Fruits, as well dry, as liquid; also how to make divers Sugar-works, and other fine Pieces of Curiosity belonging to the Confectionary Art” in

The Court and Country Cook : Giving New and Plain Directions How to Order All Manner of Entertainments, ... London, 1702.

Subtleties&Stuffe Massialot on Sugar Boiling Part I

Massialot, François. “New Instructions for Confectioners; Directing How to Preserve all sorts of Fruits, as well dry, as liquid; also how to make divers Sugar-works, and other fine Pieces of Curiosity belonging to the Confectionary Art” inThe Court and Country Cook : Giving New and Plain Directions How to Order All Manner of Entertainments, ... London, 1702.

This is the combined English translation of two earlier French cookery books, namely, Le Cuisinier royal et bourgeois which was published in Paris in 1691 and Nouvelle Instruction pour les Confitures published in Paris in 1692. The section for confectioners in the English edition begins with instructions on the boiling of sugar because “For as much as the Ground-work of the Confectioner’s Art, depends upon the different Ways of Boiling Sugar, it is requisite in the first place, to give a particular Account of them…. ” 

This account includes complete and detailed instructions as to how hot sugar syrups were tested by early eighteenth and earlier seventeenth century confectioners using primarily their fingers and spatulas. For those of us who grew up using candy thermometers or ladling out tiny amounts of hot syrup into saucers to see if soft or hot ball stage had been achieved, touching hot syrups with our hands and fingers is a distinctly alien activity. These instructions provide an invaluable glimpse into how it was done in past times.

The first degree of the these sugar instructions begins with:

“The Boiling of Sugar call’d Smooth.

         As soon as your Sugar is clarified, and set again on the Fire in orderto be boil’d, you may know when it has attain’d to its smooth Quality, by dipping the Tip of your Fore-Finger into it; afterwards applying it to your Thumb, and opening them a little, a small Thread or String sticks to both, which immediately breaks and remains in a Drop upon the Finger: When this String is almost imperceptible, the Sugar is only boil’d till it becomes a little smooth, and when it extends it self farther before it breaks, ‘tis a sign that the Sugar is very smooth. To avoid scalding your self, in making this Experiment; as it may happen, if your Finger were directly dipt into the Sugar, you need only take out the Skimmer, which ought always to be kept in the Copper-pan to stir the Sugar from time to time, and to cause it to boil equally: Then holding it a little while on the top, after having shaken it, touching the Pan, with the Handle of the Skimmer, receive the Sugar that still runs from it, and only pass the tip of your Finger upon the edge of the said Skimmer, which is sufficient to know, whether the Sugar is become smooth, or not, by observing the former Directions. [p 2]

Subtleties&Stuffe The Thirteenth Post

The Thirteenth Post

Celebrating Subtleties and the Pleasures of Research and Re-Creation of Sugar Delightes


Why is a raven like a writing desk? 

Or why a blog? And why now?

Because by now I have an accumulation or a gathering of knowledge about a subject of interest to a number of readers. Notes, paragraphs, research, posts to various lists, accumulated knowledge. Time to do something with it all.

I thought about publishing  a Compleat Anachronist, but 60 pages was a bit of a problem for a topic this varied and complex. Besides my work already appears in a CA. And others have recently written on various CAs covering aspects of the topic. E-publication or an e-book is still a possibility and remains an option. Just publish a regular book or pamphlet. Been there and done that too. A thesis ... The book on oranges, citrus, recipes, and orange and citrus lore was nearly 300 pages. A CD .. Done that too many times to count. An academic book, yes. Done that also.

Articles or series of articles. I write all the time. I had 37 articles published in 2013. I have ten articles already submitted in 2015. It seems I am either researching, writing, submitting, or readying any number of articles for publication or have them in press at any one time. 

So that leaves a blog and maybe eventually a book on the topic. In a way I am compiling a commonplace book (commonplace blog) then on the topic of Subtleties&

Subtleties& was the original name but when I finally signed on to name the blog, it was taken or not allowed!  In the end I went back to using a blog I created but never used from 2010.  This was Not So Commonplace. I then added Subtleties & Stuff as the subtitle. The point in December 2014 was to get started and start posting. Then of course I took January off. I researched things but no blogging. 

SO... The topic is subtleties and sugar stuff of all sorts.*** 

And it's distinctively mine for personal reasons. And face it, part of the motivation for this blog is the Society's A&S 50 Challenge is wrapping up and somehow 50 posts in a blog amuses me as I complete my personal Five Times Fifty Challenge. Yes, 250 items, Folks! 

(***Plus possibly some notes eventually on tableware, food in art, and esoteric items of interest. Books, of course. Resources, yes.)

Exploration, education, and entertainment for a like minded community and audience.

Why is a raven like a writing desk? Well maybe one of these days the ravens will suddenly appear and I will explain the ravens and desks, but meanwhile I hope you find it all informative and entertaining.

Subtleties&Stuffe Florio on Sugar and Sweets

Florio, John. A vvorlde of wordes, or Most copious, and exact dictionarie in Italian and English, collected by Iohn Florio. London: By Arnold Hatfield for Edw. Blount, 1598. The book is catalogued under the subject heading: Italian language -- Dictionaries -- English. Born in London, John Florio was the son of an Italian scholar who fled to England. An author and translator, he created his Italian/English dictionary first in 1598 and enlarged it for re-publication as Queen Anna's New World of Words in 1611. Reading through the 1598 edition of Florio, one encounters a number of words dealing with sugar and confections. These include the following:

Berlingozzo,a kinde of bisket, simnell, or sugar bread

Cannamella,a kinde of musicall instru∣ment or pipe. Also a sugar cane.

Cialdaro, a wafrer or wafer maker.

Cialde, bread made with honie, sugar bread. Also wafers or simnels. Also flakes of snowe.

Cialdonaro, Cialdaro, a wafer maker.

Cialdoni, wafers, long wafers that are rouled vp.

Ciambellaro, a maker of wafers, simnels or buns.

Ciambelle, little manchets, rowles, buns or cakes of bread. Also wafers.

Confertini, a kind of spice or sugar bread.

Confettare,to comfite or to candie, to preserue with sugar.

Confettaro, a comfit-maker.

Confetti, Confettioni, comsets.

Confettiera, a sugar boxe, a comfet boxe.

Confettinaro, a comfet maker.

Confettionale, confectionall. Confettionario, a confectionarie, or confet maker.

Confittaro, as Confettaro.

Confitti, Confittioni, as Confetti.

Confortini, a kinde of simnell or ginger bread. Also little comforts.

Coppetta, a little cup or goblet. Also a kinde of countrie cake or sugar bread.

Diatragante, certaine sugar pellets.

Inzuccherare, to sugar, to candie, to comsit, to couer with sugar.

Inzuccherata,any paste candied or made of sugar, a sugar cake.

Melare,  to sweeten with honie.

Melato, sweetned with honie, honied, sweete, of the colour of honie.

Mele,bonie. Also any kinde of apples.

Mele cotogna, a quince.

Mele d'api,stone-honie, bee-honie.

Mele di canna, hath bin vsed for sugar.

Mostacciuoli, a kind of sugar or ginger-cake, or simnell.

Neuola, as Nebbia. Also a kind of simnell, wafer, cracknell or sugar bread.

Obiata, are properly thinne wafers, or sugar-bread.

Occhietti,small or little eyes, or oylet holes, a kinde of sugar or ginger bread.

Pane di zuccaro, a sugar loafe.

Saccaro, a kinde of hawke called a Sakre. also a kind of tree which yeeldeth sugar 

Sembolélli, a kinde of simnell or sugar-bread.

Zuccaro, sugar.

Zuccherare, to sugar, to candie, to preserue or dresse with sugar.

Zuccheraio,a sugar-maker, a comfetmaker, a preseruer, a candier.

Zuccherini, a kind of sweete meate made of sugar like marchpane, of which they make of diuers formes and fashions, as of beasts and birds.

Zucchero, sugar.

Zuccheroso, sweete, candied, full of sugar, sugrie.

Also:

Bassotta,a kinde of cake.

Bracciatéllo, Bracciéllo,a kinde of cake, bun, rowle, simnell, bisket or ginger bread.

Capriata,a cheese-cake or such other meat made of goates milke.

Cepola,a kinde of cheese cake.

Cofaccia,a cake, a whitepot, a cheesecake.

Coppetta,a little cup or goblet. Also a kinde of countrie cake or sugar bread.

Cubaita,a kinde of sweete cake or marchpane.

Cupéta,a march pane or sweete cake.

Dolce,sweete,

Focaccia,any kinde of cake.

Fogaccia,a cake, a cheese-cake.

Fogacciera,a cake-maker.

Fugaccia, Fugazza,a cake, a tarte, a cheese cake.

Fugacciera, Fugacciara,a woman cake-maker.

Impignoccato,candied or preserued with confets of pine apples.

Montiana,a kind of cheese-cake or tarte.

Mostacciuoli,a kind of sugar or ginger-cake, or simnell.

Orinda,a kinde of bread or cake made with honie and pepper, and of orindo meale.

Ostia,the hoast, a wafer-cake made for an hoast, a sacrifice.

Pasta regia,a confection or sweete paste

Pinza,a tarte, a white-pot, or a cake.

Pitta,a cake, a tarte, a whitepot.

Rosata,a rose cake, rosed, smelling of roses, made of roses.

Schiacciata,any kinde of broad or flat cake.

Schiacciatina,a little thinne, flat cake.

Sosamele,a kinde of sugar bread or cake.

Statccia,a cake, a tarte. Also any flat thing or pye plate.

Stacciata,a cake or tarte of sifted meale.

Stacciatura,any maner of sifting. ...

Taréllo,a kind of cheese or sweet cake.

Torta,a tart, a cake, a custard, a white-pot, a pudding-pie, a florentine.

Tortano,a kind of white-pot, pudding-pie, or cheese-cake.

Tortaro,a tarte or pudding-pye-maker.

Subtleties&Stuffe La Varenne on Sugar Stages

François Pierre de La Varenne, (1618-1678) is best known for the 1651 work Le Cuisinier Francois. It was published in English as The French Cook in 1653. He is also credited with a work on pastry Le Patissier Francois (1653) and more importantly a work on confections titled Le Confiturier Francois (bearing the date of 1650 but most bibliographers feel it should be 1660). It's unlikely that a cook, even a master cook, would have possessed the knowledge to author either of these last two volumes, but for our purposes the Le Confiturier Francois is of great interest because it contains instructions on the cooking of sugar.

These instructions plus a very rough translation are:

Cuissons de sucre

La premiere est a lisse, elle se remarque lors que le syrop commence a s’epaissir, qu’en le pregnant avec le doight, & le mettant sur le poulce, il ne coulle plus, & demeure rond comme un pois.

Sugar cooking

The first is a smooth [stage], it is noticeable when the syrup starts to thicken, the only pregnant with [your] finger, and putting it on the thumb, it no longer flows, and is still as round as a pea.

(The syrup thickens and you test by dipping your finger in the syrup and putting it on the thumb where it no longer flows and remains as round as a pea.)

Cuit a perle

Seconde caisson est lors qu’en pregnant avec un doight, & le mettant sur le poulce, & ouvrant les doigts il en sort un petit filet; & lors qu’il en sort un gros de la longueur de la main, cela s’appelle a perle grosse.

Cooked to pearl [stage]

Second is that when pregnant with finger, and putting it on the thumb, and opening the fingers out comes a small net; & When it (the syrup) pulls out a large length of (or along) the hand, this is called a gross (large) pearl [stage.]

Cuit a la plume

3. Cette caisson a plusieurs noms differents, les uns dissent a souflé, les autres a l’espatule, d’autres a rosard, d’autes a la plume. A laquelle je m’arreste, &elle se Remarque en mettant une espatule dedans, & secouant le sucre en l’air, il s’envole comme des plumes seiches sans glue, ou bien trempez une ecumoire dans le le sucre, souflez au travers jusqu’a ce que le sucre s’envole par feuilles : Cette caisson est celle des conserves & des tablettes.

Cooked to pen [feather stage]

3. This stage has several different names, some dissent [or say] soufflé [stage], the other says spatula, others have Rosard [rose (pink) stage], autes of a pen. At which I stop, & (if you place) a spatula (in the syrup), and shaking the sugar in the air, it flies like cuttlefish feathers without glue, or dip a skimmer in the sugar souflez (stage) up has the sugar flies out sheets: this is (the stage) of conserves & tablets.

Cuit a brusle

4. Cette cuisson se remarque lors que l’on trempe son doight dans l’eau fraische, puis dans le sucre, & qu’en remettant dans l’eau fraische, le sucre se casse net comme un verre sans glue, on peut faire la mesme remarque avec  un petit baston. Cette caisson est celle du grand biscuit de citron, celle du caramel, & du sucre tors, ou penide, c’est la derniere cuisse du sucre.

Cooked to BRUSLE (Burned)

4. This is noticeable when cooking that is (when) his finger is dipped in water, then in sugar, and then into the water again, the sugar snaps like a glass without glue, can be after the same remark with a little [stick]. This stage is that of the grand biscuit de citron (great lemon cookie), the caramel, and the twisted sugar or Penide. It is the last cooked sugar stage.

Transcribed from Chap III page 465-466

Le Cuisinier François. Edited by Jean-Louis Flandrin, Philip & Mary Hyman. Paris: Montalba, 1983. (Bibliotheque Bleue edition.)

The original Le confiturier français. [LE CONFITVRIER FRANÇOIS, Où est enseigné la maniere de ....] Paris: Jean Gaillard 1660. A modern English translation by Terence Scully was published as La Varenne's Cookery in 2006 (Totnes, UK: Prospect Books, 2006.)

A version of the same text may be found online where the 1675 edition of  La Varenne’s L'école des ragovsts, ov, Le chef-d'oevvre dv cvisinier, dv patissier, & du confiturier : may be found through Google Books

 http://tinyurl.com/nl4ux9vat    See pages 382-383.