SC - Bean Bread and Brid

[Ian van Tets]

Yay Brid, congrats, huzzahs and throwing of flowers!  When do they 
start learning to cook?


As to the bean bread, this might prove useful:

"It is folly to send more corn to the mill than one has present use 
for.  Wee sende (in winter time) a mette [2 bushels] of massledine 
for our own tempsed-bread [passed through a tempse, or coarse hair 
sieve] backinge; in the heat of summer wee sende but a bushell, 
because it will moulde and bee wasted with long standing.  Wee sende 
for the browne bread baking (in winter time) a bushell of rye;  a 
bushell of pease and a bushell of barley;  and afore wee putte it in 
the poake, wee make the miller take a besome and sweepe a place, and 
pour it onto the grownd, and blende it alltogeather with his hand, 
and after that take a scuttle and putte it into the poake;  in summer 
time wee send but a mette, because it will grow hard with long 
standings, viz, a bushell of pease, and a bushell of rye, into which 
wee putt a ryinge or two or three of barley.  Wee send for our own 
pyes a bushell of the best wheat.  We send for the folkes puddinges a 
bushell of barley, but never use any rye for puddinges, because it 
maketh them soe softe that they run about the platters;  in harvest 
time they have wheate puddinges.  The folkes pye crusts are made of 
massledine, as our bread is, because that paste that is made of 
barley meale cracketh and checketh [splits].  Poore folks putt 
usually a pecke of pease to a bushell of rye;  and some again two 
pecks of pease to a frundell [2 pecks] of massledine, and say that 
these make hearty bread.  In many places they grinde after-logginges 
of wheat for their servants pyes;  and fewer there are that grinde 
any barley at all for their household use, because it is soe shorte, 
and will not abide workinge."
Henry Best, 'Farming Book', 1641 (in Yorkshire)

Having said that, I _like_ barley bread (half and half with wheat) at 
camping events - it lasts better.  I used to make a mixed grain loaf 
of rice, rye, barley, cornmeal, wheat, buckwheat and whatever else 
was around.  Buckwheat was the only one that wasn't successful by 
itself (or half and half with wheat).  Have also been trying sorghum 
and wheat combined lately.  Very like rye in effect.  But to date, 
not tried pease flour - tho' I do have some in the cupboard...

Cairistiona

*****************************************************
Dr. Ian van Tets
Dept. of Zoology
University of Cape Town
Rondebosch 7701 RSA

ph: +27 +21 650 3641 (w), 650 3301 (fax), 47 5324 (H)
*****************************************************

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