SC - Pucks Glen, off topic

[kappler]

> Date: Sun, 04 Jan 1998 00:23:53 -0600
> From: Stefan li Rous <stefan at texas.net>
> Subject: SC - Da whole onion soup deal, including porrey chapeleyn

> Ok, cautions have come up before that traditional foods not necessarily
> medieval. So my turn here. What are you defining as *classical*?
> Is this a medieval onion soup or not?

In a French culinary sense (and where else would you classify French
Onion Soup?) Classical refers to, I'd say, the latter half of the
eighteenth century, most of the nineteenth century, and arguably up
until the 1920's or so. These were not really the traditional foods of
the rural French people of the period described, but a sort of
artifical, Esperanto-ish cuisine found in restaurants and hotels. The
term applies largely to the foods developed during the careers of great
chefs like Careme and Escoffier, Escoffier being the one who, although
he was professionally active at the very end of the age of classical
French cookery, is also the one who classfied dishes by types according
to their ingredients and methods of praparation. So, Escoffier is
largely the single source of information about what is, and isn't
orthodox for Classical French cuisine, since he more or less did most of
the defining.

Think in terms of those years when the cuisine of France was almost
universally regarded as the single finest cuisine on earth, and you'll
get a rough idea.  
 
> If not, my question still stands, Does anyone know of a medieval onion
> soup that uses a meat broth?

Offhand, no. Some use almond milk, and many use wine or ale, but I
haven't come across one using meat stock, at least not in a quick,
cursory check through a couple of sources. If I do run across any, I'll
mention it.

Hoping this helps,

Adamantius
troy at asan.com
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