From Sabrina Welserin's cookbook c 1553
188: To make a date tart
Cut up the dates and take out the pits, cook them in sweet wine, let them boil a little, lay them attractively on a pastry shell and sprinkle sugar and cinnamon on top of it, and lay the dates in a circle. And again sprinkle sugar and cinnamon on top. And make a cover over it and pour on it some of the broth in which the dates were cooked, and let it bake.
My recreation of the Date Tart
Ingredients
16 oz package of dates, whole and pitted
1 c sweet port wine
1 c water
Sugar
cinnamon
1 double crust pie shell
Method
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
Place dates, water and wine in a medium sized sauce pan and stir well. Bring mixture to a gentle boil and remove pan from heat. Let cool completely.
Lay one half of pastry crust in bottom of 9" pie tin and trim edges of crust. Arrange 1/2 cooled dates on bottom of shell. Sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon. Lay remaining dates on top. Sprinkle with more sugar and cinnamon. Add about 1/4 of the broth in which the dates were cooked.
Wet edge of bottom crust with water. Place cover on pie and press edges firmly together with fingers. Brush top with a mixture of one beaten egg and 1T water.
Bake at 350 degrees F for 40 mins
Comments:
This is a very rich pie, but quite yummy.