SC - Allergies and listing ingredients

[Yeldham, Caroline S]

I don't list ingredients because I can't list ingredients - even getting a
menu list is difficult.  Why - because I'm cooking for a group of reenactors
in an 'authentic' environment - ie we try to have nothing around outside our
chosen period.  If I want a menu I have to ask the scribe to write it out
for me (authentic pens, ink etc etc), and there isn't always a scribe around
and he and I don't always have time to do it when he is around.

How do I manage?  I prepare a range of dishes, and don't expect everyone to
eat of all of them (I try to structure menus so that there are as few dishes
with common ingredients as possible).  I work with a limited number of
people (usually 30 - 50) and know what their allergies are (and if they
don't tell me that is their problem).  I have had problems with 'allergies'
in the past, some real, some not, but at the moment I have few 'problems'
(OK exceptions to the usual carniverous rule), one gluten allergy, one
Jewish vegetarian and a vegetarian family.

One aspect that might help is that we cook authentically for all meals
(maybe not at the right time or in the proper order, but all the dishes are
authentic*), so people get used to what is provided (it helps that it tastes
good).  They get used to the range of dishes available, and the style of
menus, so there isn't any worry about 'wierd stuff' - it just that that's
what you eat when at an event.

Would that help?

Caroline

*just to explain, given that I'm not prepared to get up at dawn and we want
to show cooking to the general public, we usually have the following:

Breakfast	8 - 9  	cooked - bacon, eggs, sausages, bread (tea and
coffee - it is out of public hours)
Mid-day		12 - 1	cold meat, cheese, bread, maybe sod eggs or fritters
Dinner		4 - 5	main meal, pottage, roast meats, civey, worts,
salad, sweet dishes




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