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For to make flampens (To Make Pasta Pies)
For to make flampens (To Make Pasta Pies) is a traditional Medieval recipe for a classic pie of pork, figs, ale, cheese and eggs baked in a pasta-style pastry crust. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic Medieval version of: To Make Pasta Pies (For to make flampens).
prep time
20 minutes
cook time
80 minutes
Total Time:
100 minutes
Serves:
6–8
Rating: 
Tags : Pork RecipesCheese RecipesBaking RecipesBritish RecipesEnglish Recipes
Original Recipe
ffor ꞇo mae flampens ·
(from A Forme of Cury)
Ꞇe clene por +̅ boyle iꞇ ꞇenꝺɼe +̅ þāne ewe iꞇ ſmale · +̅ þanne bray iꞇ ſmale a moꝛꞇ᷑ · ꞇae fygꝯ +̅ boyle ē ꞇenꝺɼe ſmal ale anꝺ bray ē +̅ ꞇenꝺɼeɼ ꞇeſe þꝯwꞇ · þanne waye ē waꞇ anꝺ þēne bray ē alle ꞇo giꝺeɼ wiþ ayro · þēne ꞇae pouꝺo of peꝑ oɼ elli [powo] marcanꞇ̅ +̅ ayɼo +̅ a porcio of afro +̅ alꞇ +̅ þēne ꞇae · blan sugꝯ +̅ ayɼo +̅ flo +̅ mae a paſt wꞇ a ɼolleɼꝯ · þenne mae þof male peleꞇꝯ +̅ fɼye ē bɼowne clene grece +̅ eꞇ ē ayꝺe · þan mae of þꞇ oþꝯ ꝺel of þꞇ paſt long coffyn +̅ ꝺo þꝯ comaꝺe þꝯinne +̅ cloſe ē fayr wꞇ a couꝯꞇour [+̅ pynce ē ſmale about · þāne yt aboue foure oþꝯ ſex wayes þanne tae eu̅y of þꞇ uttyng up +̅ þāne colo iꞇ wꞇ ꝫoles of ayro +̅ plaꞇ ē þice ꞇo þe flaumpeyns aboue þꝯ þu uꞇꞇeſt ē +̅ eꞇꞇe em an oỽene +̅ laꞇ ē bae eſelic +̅ þenne ꝯue em foɼꞇ ·
Translation
To Make Pasta Pies
Take fresh pork and boil it until tender then slice it finely and pound it to a paste in a mortar. Take figs and boil them tender in a little ale and pound to a paste and mix with cheese. Then wash them in water and then mix them all together with eggs. Then take powdered pepper or else marchant powder and eggs and a portion of saffron and salt. Then take white sugar, eggs and flour and make a paste with a roller. Then form this into small balls and fry them until brown in clear lard and set them aside. Then use the other part of the paste to make long, lidless, pies and fill them with thin comadore and close them well with a lid and pinch them gently all the way around [to seal]. Then make four or six slits then take each of the pies up and then colour it with the yolks of eggs, and pour into them the thick flaumpens above where you slit them and set them in an oven and let them bake gently and then serve them forth.
Modern Redaction
Though the recipe here gives ingredients for a 'pastry', because there is no fat added we would call this a pasta dough. Regardless of the terminological definition, it still works well for lining pie dishes. The Medieval word 'flampen' literally translates to 'flan points', because it was the same pastry as used here that was rolled out, cut into triangles and fried as 'points' to decorate other dishes.
Ingredients:
600g pork
10 dried figs
200ml ale
200g grated Cheddar cheese
4 eggs
freshly-ground black pepper, to taste
pinch of saffron, crumbled in 2 tbsp warm water and allowed to infuse for 20 minutes
salt, to taste
For the Pastry:
600g fine flour
6 large eggs
2 tbsp granulated sugar
1 egg, beaten, for brushing
Method:
Place the flour on a board, form a well in the centre then crack in the eggs and scatter the sugar over the eggs. Beat the egg and sugar mix with a fork until smooth then, using the tips of your fingers, gradually mix the eggs with the flour, incorporating them a little at a time. Continue in this fashion until everything is mixed together. Now knead the dough until everything comes together as a large, smooth and elastic ball.
Once the dough has come together, continue working and kneading so that the gluten molecules have a chance to bind and form long strings (this will be harder than for normal pasta dough because of the sugar). Keep on working the dough and it will eventually get there. When done, cover in clingfilm (plastic wrap) then set aside in the refrigerator to chill for 20 minutes.
In the meantime, bring a large pan of water to a boil. Add the pork and cook for about 60 minutes, or until tender. Drain the pork then chop finely and pound to a smooth paste in a mortar. Turn the pork paste into a bowl.
Add the dried figs to a pan with the ale, bring to a simmer and cook for about 20 minutes, or until the figs have plumped up and are tender. Drain the figs, chop and pound to a past in a mortar. Mix this with the pork paste, the cheese and the eggs. Work the mixture so that it is thick, but just about pourable. Season to taste with salt and black pepper then work in the saffron water.
Remove the pastry from the refrigerator turn out onto a lightly-floured work surface and roll out to about 5mm thick. Cut out four oval bases about 15cm long and 8cm broad (these should look like Zulu shields, with pointed ends). Now cut out strips of the dough about 5cm high that are long enough to wrap around the bases. Arrange the bases on a greased baking tray, wrap the sides around the bases and pinch to secure and seal.
Pour a little of the comadore into the base of the pies then make lids, cut four holes in these and pinch to seal on top of the pies. Take your flaumpens mixture and pour into the pies until full. Brush the tops of the pies with egg wash then transfer to an oven pre-heated to 180°C and bake for about 40 minutes, or until golden brown and cooked through.
Whilst the pies are baking, take the scraps of pastry, form into a ball then pinch off small balls. Make 16 of the balls slightly larger. Fry these balls in butter until golden brown.
When the pies come out of the oven, allow to cool for 10 minutes. Arrange the larger balls on top of the pies to cover the holes then transfer the pies to a serving dish. Garnish with the fried dough balls and serve.
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