SC - Saffron-WARNING

[LYN M PARKINSON]

At 9:01 PM -0500 4/23/99, Heitman wrote:
>> a carrot and spice drink (throw out the carrots, use the water they were
>> boiled in!)
>
>(sorry, somehow, I deleted the original message)
>
>Cariadoc, you mentioned a number of drink syrups.  Where would I find the
>receipes for these?

In the 13th c. Andalusian cookbook that Charles Perry translated for me. It
is included in Volume II of the collection of source material I sell. I
plan to web it at some point, but when I asked Charles about it he said he
had some corrections he wanted to make first, and he hasn't sent them yet
(it was a while ago).

Here are some of them:
- ---

Chapter One: on Drinks

The Great Drink of Roots

Take the skin of the stems of fennel, the skin of the stems of celery, the
skin of the roots of carrot and ...[three words missing]... chicory and
Mecca fig, half a ratl each; three handfuls each of halhâl (lavender?),
cilantro of the spring [i.e., water source], dawmirân, tamarisk,
pennyroyal, ghâfit, chicory, mint, clove basil and citron basil; two ûqiyas
each of the seeds of celery, carrot and roses, fennel, and habba hulwa and
nânûkha [two names for, or perhaps two varieties of, nigella seed], and
half an ûqiya of dodder seed. The bag: half an ûqiya each of cinnamon,
flowers of cloves, ginger, Chinese rhubarb, Indian spikenard, mastic,
nutmeg and aloe stems, a mithqâl of saffron, six ratls of honey, cleansed
of its foam. Cook the herbs and seeds in water that covers them until their
force comes out; then take the clean part of it [strain it] and throw it in
honey. Put this on the fire, and leave the spices in the bag after they
have become mushy, throw them into the drink and macerate them time after
time, until their force passes into the drink. Lay it aside and take it
from the fire, let it cool, and keep until needed. Drink one ûqiya of this
with three of water on arising, and see that the water is hot. Benefits:
fortifies the stomach and the liver, opens blockages of the liver and
spleen, cleans the stomach, and is beneficial for the rest of the
phlegmatic ailments of the body.

The Little Drink of Roots: Way of Making It

Take the skin of the stems of caper bush, the skin of the stems of celery,
the skin of fennel root and the skin of wild carrots, two ûqiyas of each;
two handfuls each of halhâl (lavender?), cilantro of the spring, dawmirân,
ghâfit, chicory, pennyroyal and euphorbia. The bag: cinnamon, and flower of
cloves and ginger, an ûqiya of each; half a mithqâl of saffron; three ratls
of honey, cleaned of its foam. Cook the seeds and herbs, covered with
water, until their strength comes out. Then take the clean part, add to the
honey, and take it to the fire, and put the bag in a kettle until it forms
a well-made syrup. Take it from the fire and pour it into an earthenware
vessel. The drink is made with two ûqiyas of syrup to three ûqiyas of hot
water. Its benefits: it benefits the liver and opens occlusions of it, it
is useful for the spleen and cleanses the stomach of its extra phlegm
wherever it is found in the body, and it is of profit in diseases of
dropsy, God willing.

Syrup of Aloe Wood [Stem?]: Way of Making It

Take half an ûqiya of aloe, a quarter ûqiya each of cinnamon, cloves,
Chinese cinnamon, Indian lavender, nutmeg, mastic and saffron, a ratl of
sugar and the same of rosewater. Close the roots in a bag and place them in
the sugar and rosewater. Bring all this to the fire until it takes the
consistency of syrups; then remove it from the fire, grind eight grams of
musk, and throw it in an earthenware vessel. The drink is an ûqiya with two
of hot water. Its benefits: it fortifies the stomach, the liver, and the
other parts, cheers the heart, tempers the constitution a bit, and helps in
the beginning of dropsy.

Syrup of Citron Leaves: Way of Making It

Take fifty leaves and remove the dust on them with a cloth, then cover them
all with water in a pot and cook it until the strength comes out. Then take
the clean part of it and add a ratl of sugar. The bag: half an ûqiya each
of aloe stems, Chinese cinnamon, and cloves. Cook all this until it becomes
good to drink. Drink one ûqiya with three of water. Its benefits: it cheers
the heart with much gaiety, fortifies the internal organs, and softens the
bowels gently; it is extraordinary.

The Great Cheering Syrup: Way of Making It

Take half a ratl each of borage, mint, and citron leaves, cook them in
water to cover until their strength comes out, then take the clean part and
add it to a ratl of sugar. Then put in the bag: a spoonful each of aloe
stems, Chinese rhubarb, Chinese cinnamon, cinnamon and clove flowers; pound
all these coarsely, place them in a cloth, tie it well, and place it in the
kettle, macerate it again and again until its substance passes out, and
cook until [the liquid] takes the consistency of syrups. Take one ûqiya
with three of hot water. Benefits: It profits [preceding two words
apparently supplied; in parentheses in printed Arabic text] weak stomachs,
fortifies the liver and cheers the heart, digests foods, and lightens the
constitution gently, God willing.


A Syrup of Honey

Take a quarter ûqiya each of cinnamon, flower of cloves and ginger, mastic,
nutmeg, Chinese cinnamon, Sindi laurel, Indian lavender, Roman spikenard,
elder twigs, elder seeds, oil of nutmeg, bitter and sweet nuts, large and
small cardamom, wild spikenard, galingale, aloe stems, saffron, and sedge.
Pound all this coarsely, tie it in a cloth, and put it in the kettle with
fifteen ratls of water and five of honey, cleaned of its foam. Cook all
this until it is at the point of drinking. Drink an ûqiya and a half, and
up to two, with hot water. Its benefit is for weak livers; it fortifies the
stomach and benefits dropsy among other ailments; it dissolves phlegm from
all parts of the body and heats it a great deal, gives gaiety, lightens the
body, and it was used by the ancients like wine for weariness.

Recipe for Honey-Water

Take a ratl of honey and add five ratls of water, cook until the water
departs and the honey remains, and clean off the foam little by little.
Pound half an ûqiya of pellitory and place it in a cloth, put it in the
kettle and bruise it once and again until its substance comes out. Remove
it to an earthenware vessel, and take it from it at the necessary time, for
it makes up for all that which detracts from this notable quality.

The Recipe for Making a Syrup of Julep

Take five ratls of aromatic rosewater, and two and a half of sugar, cook
all this until it takes the consistency of syrups. Drink two ûqiyas of this
with three of hot water. Its benefits: in phlegmatic fever; it fortifies
the stomach and the liver, profits at the onset of dropsy, purifies and
lightens the body, and in this it is most extraordinary, God willing.

Syrup of Sandalwood: Way of Making It

Take two ûqiyas each of red and white sandalwood, and an ûqiya of white
manna of sugarcane. Then pound the sandalwood and cook it in rosewater
until its substance comes out, and let there be five ratls of the
rosewater. Then take the clean part of it and add it to two ratls of sugar,
take the tabâshîr and put it in a bag, and cook all this until it forms a
well-made syrup. Its benefits are to calm the heat of jaundice, to cut
thirst, and to profit in the other ailments and fevers of jaundice. It
leaves the nature as it is, without causing retention or thinness of urine.
It fortifies the stomach, the liver, and the other organs, and in this it
is most extraordinary.

Formula for Making a Syrup of Mastic

Take three ûqiyas of mastic, powder it and put it in a bag, then take a
ratl of mint and cook it, covered with water, until its substance comes
out. Take the clean part of it and mix it with three ratls of sugar and
honey, and cook all this until it takes the form of a drink. Drink two
ûqiyas of this with three of hot water. Its profits: for the stomach and
for digesting food; it cuts vomiting and binds the bowels, and fortifies
the liver: it is the utmost in this.

Syrup of Harir: Way of Making It

Take the almonds of silk and extract from them the small seeds, after
removing their hearts, four ratls. Then divide almonds and clean the dirt
from them, wash them very well in cold water until softened, and drain the
water. Then take water out of a river oriented Eastward; heat polished
steel and cool it in this water until the water is reduced by half and
changes color. Cook the harir in this water until its substance comes out;
press it, and add to the water three ratls of honey, cleaned of its foam.
The bag: half an ûqiya each of cinnamon and cloves, an ûqiya of ginger, an
ûqiya each of cubebs, long pepper and galingale. Then pound roots and put
them in a bag, which is then tied with a strong thread and added to the
honey and the clean part. Put it on the fire and cook it until a syrup is
made. Drink two ûqiyas of this with three of hot water. It profits in the
lack of urine, and increases desire well; it dissolves the fat from all
parts of the body and heats it well, God willing, by its generosity and
virtue.

Syrup of Mint: Way of Making It

Take mint and basil, citron and cloves, a handful of each, and cook all
this in water to cover, until its substance comes out, and add the clear
part of it to a ratl of sugar. The bag: an ûqiya of flower of cloves, and
cook all this until a syrup is made. Its benefits: it frees bodies that
suffer from phlegm, and cuts phlegmatic urine, fortifies the liver and the
stomach and cheers it a great deal; in this it is admirable.

Syrup of Fresh Roses, and the Recipe for Making It

Take a ratl of fresh roses, after removing the dirt from them, and cover
them with boiled water for a day and a night, until the water cools and the
roses fall apart in the water. Clean it and take the clean part of it and
add to a ratl of sugar. Cook all this until it takes the form of a syrup.
Drink an ûqiya of this with two of hot water; its benefits are at the onset
of dropsy, and it fortifies the stomach and the liver and the other
internal organs, and lightens the constitution; in this it is admirable.
A Recipe for Making It by Repetition

Take the same, a ratl of roses or more, and place it in water to cover it,
boiling for a day and a night. Then take out the roses that are in the
water and throw them away, and go with the same quantity of fresh roses,
which are to be covered likewise with this water, after boiling it a second
time, and leave this also a day and a night. Throw away these roses
likewise, and put in others and treat them as before, and continue doing
this for ten days or more. Its benefit and the strength of its making are
solely in the manner of repeating. Then clarify the water of roses and add
to it as much sugar, and cook it until it takes the form of a syrup. It
reaches the limit in thinning and moistening the constitution, God willing.

Syrup of Dried Roses

Take a ratl of dried roses, and cover with three ratls of boiling water,
for a night, and leave it until they fall apart in the water. Press it and
clarify it, take the clear part and add it to two ratls of white sugar, and
cook all this until it is in the form of a syrup. Drink an ûqiya and a half
of this with three of water. Its benefits: it binds the constitution, and
benefits at the start of dropsy, fortifies the other internal organs, and
provokes the appetite, God willing.

Syrup of Violets

Take a ratl of fresh violet flowers, and cover them with three ratls of
boiling water, and boil until their substance comes out; then take the
clean part of it and mix it with four ratls of sugar, and cook all this
until it takes the form of a syrup. Drink an ûqiya and a half of this with
three of hot water. Its benefits are in the fever of jaundice, it cuts
thirst and lightens the body gently, and benefits in dry coughs, but it
weakens the stomach.

David/Cariadoc
http://www.best.com/~ddfr/


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