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Original Recipe

 Wilt du machen aber einen kese von mandeln, so nim mandelkern vnd stoz die vnd nim die milich vnd gu^ez einer gu^oten milich dor zv^o vnd erwelle daz abe vnd schu^etez vf ein tu^och. laz in erkalden vnd lege in in einen kese napf vnd mache in vnd lege in denne vf ein teler, bestrauwe in mit eime zuckere. daz heizzet ein mandelkese.

Translation

If you want to make almond cheese, take some almonds and crush them. Take the (almond) milk (and beat the eggs into it)*. Add good milk and bring the mixture to the boil. Pour it onto a cloth and leave it to cool. Place it in a cheese mould and shape it. Place this on a plate and sprinkle it with sugar. This is called almond cheese.

*Eggs are only mentioned in the reprint version from 1844. See note below

Recipe and experience report

This is a simple dessert with a short list of ingredients (almonds, eggs, milk and sugar). What made it interesting, however, was the unusual method used to make this pudding. The homemade almond milk requires a bit of preparation, but it’s essential here too. Shop-bought almond milk would be far too thin and wouldn’t have enough almond flavor.

The ingredients (apart from the sugar) are boiled together; the eggs in particular ensure that the mixture thickens but also becomes slightly gritty. The mixture is then poured onto a cheesecloth, which is hung up, and left to cool slowly. As it cools, the solid and liquid components separate, leaving a soft pudding. You should definitely collect the liquid, as it tastes just like ‘normal’ almond milk and can be used for other purposes.

In the recipe, the cooled pudding is then shaped in a ‘cheese mold’. Here you can get creative and use any mold you have to hand. However, the cooled mixture doesn’t hold its shape very well, as it has a rather crumbly texture. Leaving it in the fridge for a while helps it to firm up a bit.

Finally, the pudding is turned out onto a plate and sprinkled with sugar. I used brown sugar, as it’s more visually appealing and its coarser grain adds more texture. In terms of flavor, the pudding is mild, with the almonds taking center stage. You can also taste the eggs a little. As the pudding isn’t a smooth, homogeneous cream, the coarse-grained brown sugar goes well with it. This wasn’t a milestone in the history of desserts, but overall a tasty and interesting recipe.

A note on the eggs: The original version does not mention eggs. However, they appear in the 1844 reprint. In my first attempt, I tried this recipe without eggs, but it didn’t work, as the milk and almond milk mixture doesn’t thicken from boiling alone. If you add a little vinegar, you would end up with a sort of ricotta. But there’s no mention of vinegar in the recipe either. So I decided to make this recipe with eggs, as described in the reprint.

Almond Cheese

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Prep Time 30 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: German, Medieval

Ingredients Method

Ingredients

  

• 100 grams Almonds
• 400 ml Water
• 150 ml Milk
• 2 Eggs
• 2 tea spoons Sugar brown

Method

 

1. Cover the 100g of almonds with cold water and leave to soak overnight.
2. Drain off the water and blend the almonds with 400ml of water in a blender or using a hand blender until very smooth to make almond milk. Strain the almond milk through a cheesecloth. (The solids are not used in this recipe)
3. Pour the almond milk into a small saucepan and whisk thoroughly with the 2 eggs using a whisk. Add the 150 ml milk, bring to the boil whilst stirring, and simmer for a few minutes.
4. Line a container with a cheesecloth and pour the mixture into it. Tie the ends of the cloth together and secure them over the container with clips so that the liquid can drain off. Leave to cool for at least 30 minutes.
5. Remove the mixture from the cloth and press it into a mould of your choice. Optional: leave to set further in the fridge.
6. Turn the mixture out onto a plate and sprinkle with sugar.