SC - flour and stone

[Gedney, Jeff]

>  
> > Obviously this gentle did not study period practices.  No miller
> would
> > put gravel in the flour.  Very fine sand in small quantities is what
> was
> > used to steal flour.  And the baker that did it would have rocks in
> > their head as well as in the bread.
> 
> Well, I'm not questioning the part about rocks in the head, but this
> wasn't an attempt at adulteration of product to increase profits,
> rather
> an attempt to make a reality of a rather peculiar view of period
> foods.
> I believe the idea was that stone ground flour would have some
> microscopic fragments of the mill stone in it. Of course, then the
> thing
> to do is get some stone ground flour, and not be a jerk. What can I
> tell
> you?
> 
> 
It is also the case that often a miller with old or worn millstones
would often add fine sand to the grain to get a really fine grind.  It
was then separated out by gravity as the flour was collected by
vibrating the pan and chute.  The separated sand was then recycled.  The
best flour was at the top of the flour reservoir, and this was given to
the noble or best customers who paid a premium, and as you went down the
crock, you got less expensive flour, with a higher proportion of mill
sand and grain hulls.  
I assume that an SCA cook would be recreating cooking for nobility, and
thus would have paid the premium for better flour.

Brandu   
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