Rating: 
Summary: Medieval - It's Not
Review: Although this book claims to be a historical reference about 1500c cookery it is not an accurate reference. The recipies are not historically accurate, and the book does not provide the original recipes. [bad], "exploitive", "fantasy" are words that my wife (a food historian) uses to describe this book. Recommend anything by terrance scully.
Rating:
Summary: Medieval - It's Not
Review: Although this book claims to be a historical reference about 1500c cookery it is not an accurate reference. The recipies are not historically accurate, and the book does not provide the original recipes. [bad], "exploitive", "fantasy" are words that my wife (a food historian) uses to describe this book. Recommend anything by terrance scully.
Rating: 
Summary: Who cares if it is absolutely authentic?
Review: Another reviewer has taken the author to task for not being absolutely authentic in every detail. I have been cooking from this book for 20 years and with very few exceptions each recipe has been very well received by the literally hundreds of people I have served. Some of my favorites - the Roste (a beef roast cooked in a lovely goo of fruits, honey and beef juices) the Fruytes Ryal Rice (sounds ghastly but beautiful and tasty), and the Blak Perys (my favorite dessert of any time or place).
Rating:
Summary: Not at all accurate!
Review: Buy this book for the illustrations if you want, but don't be lured into believing that the scholarship is accurate! Cosman does NOT document her recipes (as a matter of fact, she has admitted in lectures to making some of them up), she does not give original recipes and sources, and she continually substitutes ingredients and methods unknown in Europe in the Renaissance. This book is old and the "fantasy" research is long outdated by the excellent work of Hieatt, Santich, Redon, Scully, and the like.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent, tasty, enjoyable!
Review: I am no means a medieval scholar, but while I was studying Chaucer in high school we had to study and perform everything there is about a medieval feast. I had been searching online for medieval recipes since I had lost the ones I used in high school. I found some and tried them out, but they just weren't as good as the ones before. Thankfully, my teacher told me the title and I immediately purchase this book. The descriptions and history are fantastic and the recipes are excellent! If you like history, get this book. If you like trying out recipes, get this book! :-)
Rating: 
Summary: Wonderful
Review: I loved this book. It has gorgeous full colour glossy photos in it. It is really more of a historical book then a recipe book (although it does have recipes). This is a must have for anyone into food etymology.
Rating:
Summary: Buy it for the Bibliography
Review: Most of the book is a disucssion of various aspects of food in medieval society. The writing style is light and quick to read while giving a lot of information. Her foot notes and bibliography are EXTENSIVE. The recipes at the end are not the main point ofthe book. Many of them are delicious but they are not what you want if complete authenticity is what you are looking for. If you want a "flavor" of the middle ages, they are fine. Again, the best thing about the book are the references.
Rating:
Summary: Buy it for the Bibliography
Review: Most of the book is a disucssion of various aspects of food in medieval society. The writing style is light and quick to read while giving a lot of information. Her foot notes and bibliography are EXTENSIVE. The recipes at the end are not the main point ofthe book. Many of them are delicious but they are not what you want if complete authenticity is what you are looking for. If you want a "flavor" of the middle ages, they are fine. Again, the best thing about the book are the references.
Rating:
Summary: What good eating is all about (for Chaucer...)
Review: My background is in Medieval History. I have always been fascinated with flavours and sounds in addition to kings and social movements. This, of course, led to the discovery of Fabulous Feasts. Now as to the 100% accuracy of the recipes, I am unable to vouch. I can say, however, that they are all clearly discribed and easy to follow. I have a particular fondness for the arbolyetts and the parsley bread. I have cooked, at one time or another over the past 15 years, about 2/3 of the recipes -- some are definitely acquired tastes and some are pure show-stoppers. Cosman also does a marvelous job of giving you food lore and manners of the latter half of the Middle Ages. From the salacious to the practical, all sorts of information is here. Her bibliography is helpful for those who want to follow further in her footsteps and her list of where to get the ingredients is good, but a bit dated. WARNING: at least one of the spice stores listed has shut since this book was first released. This is a book for cooks and amateur historians. It is not a HISTORY book, but rather a cookbook that gets into a bit of history and allows you to sample the tastes of another time and place.
Rating:
Summary: What good eating is all about (for Chaucer...)
Review: My background is in Medieval History. I have always been fascinated with flavours and sounds in addition to kings and social movements. This, of course, led to the discovery of Fabulous Feasts. Now as to the 100% accuracy of the recipes, I am unable to vouch. I can say, however, that they are all clearly discribed and easy to follow. I have a particular fondness for the arbolyetts and the parsley bread. I have cooked, at one time or another over the past 15 years, about 2/3 of the recipes -- some are definitely acquired tastes and some are pure show-stoppers. Cosman also does a marvelous job of giving you food lore and manners of the latter half of the Middle Ages. From the salacious to the practical, all sorts of information is here. Her bibliography is helpful for those who want to follow further in her footsteps and her list of where to get the ingredients is good, but a bit dated. WARNING: at least one of the spice stores listed has shut since this book was first released. This is a book for cooks and amateur historians. It is not a HISTORY book, but rather a cookbook that gets into a bit of history and allows you to sample the tastes of another time and place.
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