Ever wonder what it was like to cook in a castle? Or how medieval folk prepared their food? And what they ate? Explore A Kitchen in an English Castle as Wanderlust Tours owner Shawnie Kelley, shares recipes and historical insight from her four years living abroad and working as a medieval architectural historian for English Heritage. Using recipes from a popular historic cookery school in northern England, Shawnie demonstrates updated versions of 500 + year-old dishes while sharing historical highlights, regional food traditions, and images from her reaearch at castles across Great Britain. Journey through time from the 14th to 16th century by learning how to make recipes found on the feast table in each century. Ingredients for the creative and often playful cuisine were almost always grown onsite or sourced locally – not unlike our efforts today. During the cooking demonstrations, Shawnie shares photos of gorgeous great halls, ruinous fireplaces, and foodie images from medieval manuscripts, which helps bring to life the culinary culture of the England’s past.

Class begins with an small bite of chicken, pork, breadcrumb & saffron paté, a dish that can be traced back to the 14th century. Also, dating well before the 14th century, the “salat,” course embraces our philosophy of eating a well-rounded mix of greens, herbs and edible flowers. The main course consists of a 15th century Chewete- a precursor to the modern English pie. We’ll fill this small round pie with (an updated interpretation) creamy chicken and asparagus. And for dessert, learn to make Blancmange (“white eating” or “white food”). A smooth, silky, white almond milk custard/pudding laced with vanilla was found on the tables of Tudor England.  It is an unexpectedly sublime, yet simple way to end our historic meal.