At a Feast, you may present these things following.
So soon as the Meat is quite taken away, have in readiness your Cream Cheeses of several sorts and of several of Colours upon a Salver, then some fresh Cheese with Wine and Sugar, another Dish of Clouted Cream, and a Noch with Cabbage Cream of several Colours like a Cabbage; then all sorts of Fruits in season, set forth as followeth:
First, You must have a large Salver made of light kind of Wood, that it may not be too heavy for the Servitor to carry, it must be painted over, and large enough to hold six Plates round about and one larger one in the middle, there must be places made in it to set the Plates in, that they may be very fast and sure from sliding, and that in the middle the seat must be much higher than all the rest, because that is most graceful; your Plates must not be so broad as the Trencher Plates at Meat, and should be either of Silver or China.
Set your Plates fast, then fill every one with several sorts of Fruits, and the biggest sort in the middle, you must lay them in very good order, and pile them up till one more will not lie; then stick them with little green Sprigs and fine Flowers, such as you fancy best; then serve in another such Salver, with Plates piled up with all manner of Sweet-meats, the wet Sweet-meats round about and the dry in the middle, your wet Sweet-meats must be in little glasses that you may set the more on, and between every two glasses another above the first of all, and one on the top of them all; you must put of all sorts of dryed Sweet-meats in the middle Plate, first your biggest and then your lesser, till you can lay no more; then stick them all with Flowers and serve them: And in the Bason of Water you send in to wash the Hands or Fingers of Noble Persons, you must put in some Orange Flower Water, which is very rare and very pleasant.
In Winter you must alter, as to the season, but serve all in this
manner; and then dryed Fruits will also be very acceptable; as dryed
Pears and Pippins, Candied Oranges and Limons, Citrons and Eringoes,
Blanched Almonds, Prunelles, Figs, Raisins, Pistachoes and Blanched
Walnuts.
FINIS.
The CONTENTS of the First Part.
A.
Artichoke Cream. 152
Almond Pudding. 147