I was glad to find this thread. My blood pressure soars when I see so-called experts making assumptions based on earliest printed records. I collect old cookery books and the genre is notorious for saying "[certain foods] were not in use before [such-and-such a date] when they first appeared in a recipe of Lady XX." It's as though the food only came into existence with the recipe -- I have a similar aversion to people who claim certain music styles were 'invented.'