SC - Re: SCA myths

[Philip & Susan Troy]

Terry Nutter wrote:
> 
> Carla asks whether Platina gives directions for making
> hollow pasta.  From the Elizabeth Bauermann Andrews translation:
> 
>         White flour, moistened with the white of an egg and
>         rosewater, should be well ground.  Roll this into
>         slender bits like a straw, stretched to the length
>         of half a foot.  With a very thin iron stylus, scrape
>         out the middle.  Then, as you remove the iron, you
>         leave them hollow.  Then, spread out just so and dried
>         in the sun, they will last for two or three years.
>         Indeed especially if they are made in the month of the
>         August moon.  They should be cooked in rich juice and
>         poured into dishes and sprinkled with grated cheese,
>         fresh butter, and mild herbs.  This dish needs to be
>         cooked for two hours.
> 
> Macaroni and cheese, fifteenth century Italian style!
> 
> Cheers,
> 
> -- Katerine/Terry
>    (Who has finally unpacked some of her books)

This is some pretty fascinating stuff! I suspect that the hole is there
mostly so that it will cook in two hours or less. Not unlike
perciatelli, which is unlike most tubular pasta in that the hole doesn't
provide much increase in sauce-bearing surface area. The two-hour
cooking time also suggests that this pasta is quite thick by modern
standards, and there would be a noticeable difference in the texture of
this pasta over what most of us are used to. Not a problem, of course. A
long cooking time, often in pretty minimal liquid, is perfectly
consistent with several pasta recipes up until the nineteenth century.

I do have a question about the translation, though. What's the original
for the translated term, "rich juice" ? Are we talking about stock? I
wonder if this is another example of the mysterious liquamen, which has
a different meaning for Platina than for Apicius. Any info avilable on
this?

Adamantius  
______________________________________
Phil & Susan Troy
troy at asan.com
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