500-year-old Christmas food list
Tucked away in the Abbey archives is this list of Christmas ingredients which belonged to the Abbot of Westminster, John Islip. And it dates back to 1509.
Islip was Abbot of Westminster from 1500 until his death in 1532. He is buried in the chantry chapel he built at the Abbey.
Islip was Abbot of Westminster from 1500 until his death in 1532. He is buried in the chantry chapel he built at the Abbey.
What's on the list?
The list above details the various spices ordered for a Tudor feast for the Abbey monks. The ingredients, ordered by Abbot Islip, might have been for a Christmas pudding and include:
- raisins
- currants
- sugar
- cloves
- almonds
- cinnamon
- ginger
- dates
Interestingly, some recipes dating back to the 1300s feature some of the ingredients listed above: almonds and a variety of dried fruits. In some cases the pudding included meat or meat stock too, but this doesn't appear to be featured on the Abbot's shopping list.
