Wild boar’s head cooked in wine, boiled capon, roast goose, peacock, swan, fruit jellies, syllabubs and Christmas pie (“a most learned mixture of neats [beef] tongues, chicken, eggs, sugar, raising, lemon and orange peel, and various kinds of spicery”): if you were a guest at a Tudor court banquet, such mouthwatering mountains would likely be among the treats to set your tastebuds dancing. Conspicuous consumption was the name of the game in extravagant dining displays of wealth and power.
Through the ages, royal Yuletide feasts dish up rich insights into both changing tastes and changing times: from medieval boar’s head to modern turkey, and from extravagant public shows to more private meals behind closed doors. Eating has never been simply about sustenance. So, pour the lamb’s wool (hot spiced ale)…
