Since it is “Back to School” time, in whatever capacity that means for all of us during this pandemic, I thought I would wax a bit academic.

Being the casual linguist I am, I see the word blancmange and I assume it means “white food.” Being the Monty Python fanatic I am, I also picture one of their television sketches in which a giant blancmange suddenly appears on a tennis court and aggressively shoves the players around. I seem to recall this creature is some sort of alien apparently mimicking a relatively modern version of a blancmange, which is a sweet, molded, pudding-type dessert flavored with almond and can be held together by gelatin (there are variations on this theme, of course; a glance at Wikipedia is helpful here).

However, in my food history reading, I discovered that blancmange is a whole different concept, though almonds are the preferred flavor and the food is meant to be as white as possible (I think they mean beige here…). In Life in a Medieval Castle, Joseph and Frances Gies describe various dishes popular around the twelfth century: “meat might be pounded to a paste, mixed with other ingredients, and served as a kind of custard. A dish of this kind was blankmanger, consisting of a paste of chicken blended with rice boiled in almond milk, seasoned with sugar, cooked until very thick, and garnished with fried almonds and anise.”

Now, I didn’t think a paste of chicken sounded that good, but I was intrigued by the combination of flavors mentioned above and I was determined to create something that really had a Medieval influence about it, and thus, I came up with these puffs. At first, you might think the flavors are odd, but I assure you, you will find them a bit addictive; if you have leftover filling, you can mix up the nuts and chicken and simply eat it as a snack or lunch.

Blancmange Puffs

In my original cookbook, this recipe was included in the chapter that involved foods for Bilbo’s Birthday Party. While waiting around for the actual meal, hungry hobbit guests would probably like to nibble on something substantial, such as these savory puffs. For a dinner, you could serve 3 or 4 puffs per person, accompanied by a salad or vegetable on the side.

• 17.3 ounce package puff pastry, thawed according to package directions
• 1 tablespoon plus 1 tablespoon salted butter
• ⅓ cup minced onion
• ½ teaspoon plus ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon pepper
• 2 boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into ¼” bits (partially freeze chicken to facilitate cutting, see * below)
• 1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
• ¼ cup long grain rice
• 1 teaspoon almond extract
• 3 tablespoons heavy cream
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon anise seeds
• 1 extra large egg
• 1 teaspoon water
• Candied Almonds (recipe below)

In a medium skillet, melt 1 tablespoon butter over medium-high heat. Add the onion, ½ teaspoon salt, pepper, and chicken. Sauté until chicken is no longer pink; turn off heat and let stand in pan. In a 1½-quart saucepan, combine the broth, rice, and almond extract. Bring to a boil, then simmer, covered, for 15 minutes. Drain and put rice back in saucepan. Add cream, 1 tablespoon butter, sugar, ½ teaspoon salt, and anise seeds. Combine, then add the chicken mixture to this and let stand for 1 hour. Don’t bother washing skillet and use it for the candied almonds below, which you can make now while the chicken mixture cools.

Preheat oven to 400°. Coat 2 large (18” by 13”) baking sheets with cooking spray or grease lightly. Take one sheet of puff pastry and cut into 9 fairly equal squares. Put about 1 tablespoon chicken mixture on each square. Put about ½ tablespoon nut mixture on top of chicken. Don’t overstuff. Fold pastry over and make a triangle; pinch edges together and set on one sheet. Repeat assembly process with the other sheet. Use fork tines to press edges down on all triangles. Poke the tops of each with fork tines once. In a small bowl, whisk together the egg and water. Brush each triangle with egg wash. Bake 8 minutes; brush with egg wash again. Bake another 8-10 minutes or until golden brown. Let stand 5 minutes before serving. Cover and refrigerate leftovers.

Makes 18.

* You’ll need about ½ pound of meat. You can use ground chicken, but you will end up with a better texture when you actually dice up your chicken. Plus, I find it easier to obtain chicken thighs rather than ground chicken, at least around my neighborhood grocery stores. If you want your blancmange to be whiter, you can use white meat, but the flavor is richer with dark meat.

Candied Almonds

In my original cookbook, this recipe was included in the chapter that involved foods for Bilbo’s Birthday Party. While waiting around for the actual meal, hungry hobbit guests would probably like to nibble on something substantial, such as these savory puffs. For a dinner, you could serve 3 or 4 puffs per person, accompanied by a salad or vegetable on the side.

• 2 tablespoons salted butter
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon anise seeds
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 2 ounces sliced almonds

In a medium skillet, melt the butter and mix in the seasonings. Add the almonds and sauté over medium heat 2-3 minutes. Almonds should brown slightly; be careful not to burn them. Turn off heat and let stand in the pan. When cool, break up nuts gently with a spoon. Any leftover nuts can be used on ice cream or throw on a salad.