An archaic or obsolete form meaning to make white or pale, or to blanch.
From Old French blanc 'white,' from Germanic roots. This word is related to the verb 'blanch' and represents an older spelling or variant that fell out of standard use.
Medieval cooking had 'blanqueing' as a major technique—blanching vegetables made them whiter, and pale things were fashionable and associated with nobility, so this verb literally shaped medieval cuisine and what people thought looked attractive on a plate.
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