White Dish for Lean Days

A 16th century Italian Recipe, translated into English by Shannon Wanty

From Rosselli, Giovanne: Epulario: qual tratta del modo di cucinare ogni carne, vccelli, pesci, & ultra qualita di viuande (Altobello Salicato, Vinegia, 1596)

p15v Per fare diece menestre de bianco mangiare in tempo de quadrigesima. (To make ten dishes of white dish in the time of Lent.)

Take one pound and a half of almonds cleaned and very well crushed like in the one above and have a morsel of white bread moistened in white broth of bizelli¹ & if you don't have broth of bizelli then make it in another fashion boil with water a white bread for the space of half an hour stirring gently the said crumbs in this fashion, then have some good sea fish, or good fresh water pike² cooked boiled & the flesh of it more solid and more white taking at least half a pound and grinding it well with the almonds and the morsel of bread with a little broth and orange juice, and at least have added a little verjuice mixed with rosewater & half a pound of clean white ginger with a pound of sugar, & all these things distempered together passed through the strainer take them to cook in a pot for one eighth of an hour far from the fire so they will not take the smoke & continuously stirring.

2 The term given is "Luzo", which I can't find in Florio and have yet to track down, but I think it might possibly maybe be a luce fish, or pike. This is based entirely on conjecture because it "sounds a bit like...", which has led me astray many times with Italian, so may well be completely wrong. It's definitely a fresh water fish though.