SC - icelandic sour Dough?

[Michael F. Gunter]

> Some of us, are trying to be accurate, but lack the knowledge yet to be
> reasonably accurate.

That's me. But I'm learning.

> Some of us, are trying to make period dishes that for practical reasons,
> tasting good must be first consideration. I.E. having an encampment or feast
> spitting out the food despite the claims from the kitchen, "Poisoning is
> period."  There in the same group are those for cost, or availability reasons
> make substitutions (Hopefully good ones) to produce good medieval like food.

I think that's pretty much everybody on this list. First we have to get
comfortable
with the cuisine and then we want to play around with it. Like cooking cobbler
in a dutch oven or going beyond burgers and franks on a bbq.

> Yes, I can hear one person say, If you can not make the recipe as written do
> not make it.  At times I agree with him.  Yet, by changing a single
> ingredient and thus exposing more gentles to good medieval LIKE foods, I am
> all for it.

But this is also a lot of philosophy and flat guesswork. And, like all artists
and craftspeople, we want to see how the old Masters did it before putting
our special touches on it.  In a sense it is like creating an Indian dish and
instead of using Naan (Indian flat bread) you use tortillas (Mexican flat
bread).
It's close but not quite there. But it will give an impression of what the
Indian
food is like to someone who has never tasted it before.

> OK back to my point.  Please when reading people's comments.  Remember why
> you wrote, why they are writing.  When people seem to be attacking you, it
> just may be a shift in perception.

Very true and, speaking as someone who has served Icelandic Chicken in a
calzone dough, without the knowledge gained from those who have looked deeper
into a subject you could feel you were correct. But instead of dubbing someone
a nazi (a term I prefer not having on the list unless absolutely necessary)
maybe
you could present the chickens in a different way. I think diners would get just

as big a kick out of being served their chicken in individual "serving dishes"
with
the servers warning that the bread isn't really for eating but it was a cooking
devices. The diners could still nibble them if they desire (scenes of Willie
Wonka
"You can even eat the DISHES!) but they would know that the dough was
meant to be tough and not that you were a bad cook.

It could be a bit of fun for the diners to learn the fact that period cooks used
clay
bakers without clay. Basically make it a learning expirience and another neat
thing they didn't know. That way they enjoy the succulent flesh of the chicken
and not complain about the tough "bread". Perhaps High Table could get a
ceremonial breaking of the shell and serving of the meat instead of just
plopping
down a big roll-looking thing.

It's okay to play around with recipes to make them more palatable. But it's
also okay to be a nazi, just be a fun and polite one.

> Frederich

Yers,

Gunthar

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